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Reisen nach Afrika: Tipps zum Thema Geld / Money and travelling in Africa

Posted by dc on March 12, 2013
Posted in: Africa Tourism, Ausrüstung, Selbstfahrer. Tagged: , , , , , . 7 comments

Travelling and travelling to Africa in special means, to think about money: how much to carry with you, what currency, where to exchange money, what options you have to get money while on the road, where are ATMs, which cards do they take or not, what can be paid with credit card or not.

money2

Especially when it comes to travelling to Africa, you need tob e an expert and plan carefully ahead, to avoid bad surprises. Examples: In Namibia you cannot pay with credit card at petrol stations – it is cash only. In Tanzania it might be difficult to find an ATM which acceepts your credit card. In transit in Johannesburg airport there is no ATM – only bureaux de change offices. One need to know every currency rate you might encounter, even for Botswana Pula.

So a careful preparation is king and the key to non hassle journey when it comes to money. To know some providers for currency exchange might be helpful. A good converter is provided by travelex or by XE. Also helpful: plan ahead, what you will pay with credit card and what you will have to pay in cash. Try to pay lodges or accomodation in advance. Do not forget, that in some African countries you will need to pay gas in cash, e.g. in Namibia. And never forget all these departure taxes, entrance fees, insurances, tips and bribes: That is cash money only. Dollars better than Rand better than local currency.

But when it comes to travel in Africa, the old saying still goes: When you travel in Africa, you have to have a lot of cash money. That is – beside the local currency – US Dollars, and in southern Africa (Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana): Rands from South Africa.

And the golden rule for carrying cash money: never carry more money with you than you can afford to lose, in case of loss, theft, or getting mugged.

Hier beginnt die deutsche Version: Reisen nach Afrika – Tipps zum Thema Geld

Für das Verreisen im Allgemeinen und speziell das Reisen nach Afrika gilt es beim Thema Geld diverse Spezialfälle zu beachten, ich möchte diese wie folgt und in Form einer Auflistung darstellen:

  • Besonders für Reisen in Länder mit nur rudimentärer Infrastruktur das Banken- und Geldwesen betreffend, hilft nur eines wirklich: Gründliche Information und Vorbereitung!
  • Ein guter Ersatz für lokale Währungen, welche man in Deutschland vorab nicht eintauschen kann, und man sollte ihn immer in zumindest kleineren Mengen dabei haben: US Dollar. Für Afrika und den US Dollar gilt: Kein Schein grösser als der 50er, und nur Scheine mit dem neuen Design!
  • Es gibt lokale Leitwährungen, die ebenfalls nützlich sind, z.B. den südafrikanischen Rand im südlichen Afrika. Botswana Pula bekommt man nicht in Deutschland, aber Rand schon.
  • Kenne deinen Wechselkurs! Ein guter Währungsrechner ist hier zu finden.
  • Vorbereitung und zu klärende Fragen: Welche Währung erhalte ich wo und wie, welche Karten werden akzeptiert, kann ich meine Kreditkarten oder EC Karten an Automaten und in Banken nutzen? Kann ich mit meiner Kreditkarte Bargeld am Automaten abheben? PIN? Kann ich Sorten ein und ausführen bzw. gibt es Zollbestimmungen diesbezüglich?
  • Was ist mein Plan B, gesetzt dem Fall, dass keine Karte, aus welchen Gründen auch immer, funktioniert, und ich kein frisches Bargeld erhalte?
  • Was kann man ausschliesslich mit Bargeld bezahlen? Ein gutes Beispiel dafür: Tankstellen in Namibia akzeptieren keine Kreditkarten!
  • Mache einen Kostenplan: Wo kann ich mit Kreditkarte zahlen, was geht nur in Bar, was kann ich vorab von Deutschland oder Österreich überweisen? Wie hoch werden die Beträge für Kreditkarte und Barzahlung ungefähr sein?
  • Wo befindet sich potenziell die erste Bank/Wechselstube/Geldautomat auf der Einreise in mein Zielland, und was sind dort die Öffnungszeiten bzw. welche Karten werden akzeptiert?
  • Und die letzte und absolut Goldene Regel des Bargeldtransportes: Trage nie mehr Bargeld mit dir herum, als du verschmerzen kannst zu verlieren! Sei es durch Raub oder Diebstahl oder sonstige Unbill.

Travel photography – Reisefotografie: San Telmo – Buenos Aires

Posted by dc on February 27, 2013
Posted in: photo gear. Tagged: , , , . 1 comment
San Telmo Buenos Aires by DC Loew

San Telmo Buenos Aires by DC Loew

City Map in the barrio San Telmo, Buenos Aires, Argentina. I guess the iPhone was a real game changer when it comes to “travel photography”. The quality of the images is surprisingly good, and sometimes you simply cannot carry all of of your gear…

Stadtteilkarte aus dem Viertel san telmo in Buenos Aires, Argentinien. Mit dem iPhone fotografiert – das iPhone ist die für die Reisefotografie ziemlich unerlässlich, denke ich, und sollte jede ernsthafte Ausrüstung vervollständigen.

Great African lodges: The perfect retreat – Mara Timbo Camp, Masai Mara/ Im Herzen Afrikas: Das Mara Timbo Camp

Posted by dc on January 15, 2013
Posted in: Africa Tourism, Great African Lodges, Safari photography. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

From time to time safari-photographer.com presents outstanding lodges  in Africa. This time it is the Masai Mara in Kenya, where the Mara Timbo Camp is situated.The camp is directly located at the shores of the Mara river, and contains of seven self constructed luxury tents with ensuite bathrooms.

Mara Tembo Camp

The Masai Mara is a safari photographers dream, especially when you want to shoot pictures of big cats, especially lions and cheetahs. You can go there any other time of the year to find abundant wildlife among a lovely scenery. When the wildebeest migration is coming in from the Serengeti, the Mara is packed with mammals and is one of the best places on earth for wildlife photography.

The Mara Timbo Camp itself is a very good base for safari photographers, offering all amenities of African hospitality (restaurant, bar) and the technical infrastructure you need to rely as a wildlife photographer – electricity for chargers, in rooms as well in safari vehicles. As the owners of the lodge used to work in tv business, they know quite well what technical infrastructure is needed for photographers. Check here for details.

The amazing story behind the camp is, that the owners built the place literally from scratch. They designed the tents, houses, bar, furniture etc. in Nairobi. Than it was all put together by local craftsmen, and transported to the Mara. The camp is close to Oloololo Gate of the game reserve, and for building it on a private concession, not a single tree was cut. This approach is giving the place its very unique closeness to the bush that surrounds it.

When the migration of the wildebeests starts to arrive in July, the wildebeest have to cross the Mara river, which is one of the true nature extravaganzas on this planet. The huge herds stay in the Mara until the end of October, and in this time of the year the area is packed with carnivores. Safari in the Mara means, that you do not have to spend hours sitting in the car waiting for the action to happen somewhere – it is just right there!

How to get there: Plane from Nairobi Wilson Airport, or Mombasa or Diani to Kichwa Tembo airstrip. When arriving by car from Nairobi, it takes approx. 5-6 hours.

International Airport: Nairobi International Yomo Kenyatta. You need to transfer to Wilson Airport.

4524 / Mara Timbo Camp in Kenias Maasai Mara

Das Mara Timbo Camp in Kenias bestem Naturschutzgebiet, der Masai Mara, ist ein wunderbares Camp in einzigartiger Natur, und ist zudem mit einer grossartigen Gründergeschichte verknüpft.

Nachdem die jetzigen Besitzer des Camps ihre Berufe im deutschen Fernsehen aufgegeben haben und nach Kenia gingen, pachteten sie ein Buschgrundstück direkt am Mara Fluss und dem Oloololo Gate zum Masai Mara Schutzgebiet. Die Zeltchalets aus Holz und Stoff designten sie mangels Vorlage selbst, und bauten ein Musterchalet im Garten ihres Hauses in Nairobi, mit Hilfe lokaler Handwerker.

Dann wurden alle Baumaterialien nach der Mara gebracht, und dort insgesamt sieben Gästezelte, alle mit eigenem Bad und eigener Veranda errichtet. Die gesamte Anlage wurde in das bestehende Gelände sorgfältig integriert, und laut Klaus Willen, Direktor des Camps, wurde dafür kein einziger Baum gefällt.

Für Fotografen ist Kenias Masai Mara sicherlich eines des spannendsten Safarigebiete weltweit – das ganze Jahr über herrschen ideale Bedingungen, es gibt extrem viele Tiere auf einem kleinen Gebiet, so dass man selten stundenlange Anfahrten per Auto einplanen muss. Mit der Ankunft der migratorischen Gnuherden der Great Migration aus der Serengeti ab Juli, steigt die Raubtierdichte in der Mara noch einmal an, und es gibt in dieser Zeit wohl keinen besseren Platz für Wildlife Fotografie in ganz Afrika.

Das Camp bietet eine sehr gute Infrastruktur für Fotografen, und bei Anfrage auch preislich interessante Pakete für längere Aufenthalte.

Restaurant und Bar sind ebenfalls vorhanden, Lunch und Dinner sowie Lunch Pakete für ganztägige game drives werden zubereitet.

Mara Timbo Camp, Kenya

Anfahrt: Per Auto von Nairobi, fünf bis sechs Stunden Fahrt. Per Flugzeug von Nairobi Wilson Airport, von Kenias Küste von Diani oder Mombasa.

Argentina Pizza or being a veggie in the land of the steak/ Vegetarisch unterwegs in Argentinien

Posted by dc on November 5, 2012
Posted in: Patagonia. Tagged: , , , . 3 comments

Being a vegetarian and travelling a lot always seems to be a challenge. What can I eat there or what actually do you eat there are typical questions by friends. I always think: No matter where in the world, there is everywhere Italian or Indian food around with a veggie option. And that is true, even in the worst countries to travel being a vegetarian, like, ahem,  France.

When I was in Patagonia, Argentina, I first thought: That will be difficult with eating veggie style in the country that invented the steak. But, it was a very pleasant experience, because in Argentina they have real great: Pizza! Italian restaurants with a superb quality all over the nation. (Because in the beginning of the 20th century people from Italy not only immigrated to the United States, but to Argentina as well. They brought two great things to that country:  their wonderful cuisine, and: Football!).

Being a veggie in Patagonia, that was an awesome experience, and I never gained any weight when traveling, except when I was in Argentina. A Pizza a day, well, that shows!

Reisen und Vegetarier sein, das ist zuweilen eine echte Herausforderung. Manchmal richtet man sich vornherein ein, dass man wochenlang Kartoffeln in allen möglichen Varianten essen wird: Pommes, Chips, baked. Mit Ei in allen Varianten. Und man könnte glauben, ein Vegetarier in Argentinien, dem Land, das Steaks vermeintlich  zum Frühstück brutzelt, müsste verhungern. Aber das Gegenteil war der Fall. In Argentinien gibt es sicherlich die beste italienische Küche der Welt – ausserhalb Italiens natürlich. Zu Beginn des 20. Jahrhunderts wanderten erlebte Argentinien eine grosse Einwandererwelle aus Italien, und die Italiener brachten dem Land zwei wunderbare Dinge mit: Ihre Küche, und den Fussball.

Also hat der Vegetarier auf Reisen in Argentinien die Qual der Wahl – nämlich zwischen den besonders guten Pizzen, die sie hier servieren, ausnahmslos. Die argentinische Pizza ist ein wenig anders als die europäische Pizza – mit mehr Käse als Grundlage plus dann den Belag auf den Käse oben drauf. Aber der Boden ähnlich dünn wie in Italien, und fern von den gängigen U.S. Pizzen.

 

 

 

Wildlife Photographers (6): Sudhir Shivaram

Posted by dc on October 25, 2012
Posted in: India, wildlife photographers. Tagged: , , , , , , , , . 12 comments

There is only one country in the world, where you can shoot pictures of wild living tigers, bears, leopards and lions  - India! As we found out, India offers plenty of animal life, with more than 100 national parks on the sub – continent. One of the leading bird and wildlife photographers of India, and a Canon ambassador, is Sudhir Shivaram.

Sudhir specializes on birds, and he shoots technically stunning pictures with their objects always staged in a perfect frame and a colorful bokeh background. As Indias parks offer an amazing number of animals you would otherwise expect to be in Africa (hyenas, wild dogs, lions, antelopes, very colorful and abundant birds) his pictures look exotic and familiar at the same time.
As almost all wildlife photographers, Sudhir is true wildlife lover and he is worried about the poaching crisis which takes place in Indias today. Government and administration seem to lack interest – or
are bribed by the poachers –  to protect wildlife and environment. It is the sad sad story like almost everywhere on our planet, where money corrupts enviromental interests.
As Sudhir helds widllfe photgraphy workshops in the Bangalore region, this might be a good opportunity for some of you for a switch – why not go for Safari and photo workshop to India?!
Es gibt nur ein Land auf diesem Planeten, wo der interessierte Natur- und Tierfotograf wild lebende Bären, Leoparden, Tiger und Löwen in Schutzgebieten antreffen kann – Indien! Sudhir Shivaram ist Canon ambassador und einer der profiliertesten Naturfotografen des Subkontinents.
Sudhir Shivaram spezialisiert sich auf die Vogelfotografie, seine Fotos sind von technischer Brillanz (Schärfe!) und perfekter Komposition geprägt. Grossartig aber auch seine Leopardenbilder, in denen die Katzen wie magisch mit dem Wald im Hintergrund verschmelzen.
Indien erlebt die gleiche Wilderei-Krise wie viele afrikanische Länder, getrieben von der Nachfrage der asiatischen Märkte (die traditionelle chinesische Medizin ist wohl einer der Hauptverursacher) nach Wildtierteilen. Die Zentralregierung Indiens als auch die Verwaltungen der Bundesstaaten scheinen korrupt oder desinteressiert an einer Verbesserung der Schutzbemühungen, was die Lage der Schutzgebiete sicherlich nicht vereinfacht. Insbesondere der Tiger- und Nashornbestand stehen massiv unter Druck, wie Sudhir im safari-photographer Interview zu berichten weiss.
Wer also mal eine etwas andere Safari mit grossartigem Tierbestand, oder auch einen von Sudhirs Foto Workshops in Bangalore erleben möchte – auf nach Indien!
Q: What is your photo equipment, and what is the reason for Canon or Nikon? I saw on your website that you are kind of exotic user of Canon cameras?!
A: I have been using Canon for the last 18 years of my photography. I use Canon equipment for their unsurpassed quality and their impressive line-up of equipment which caters to all genres of photography.
Q: What are your lenses?
A: I extensively use Canon 800mm f/5.6 L IS for Bird Photography and Canon 400mm f2.8 L IS II for all my Wildlife image making. I also use Canon 70-200 f2.8 L and 100-400 L IS depending on the need. The Canon 17-40L is also part of my kit for landscape image making.
Q: What is your favorite lens, and why?
A: It is indeed, without doubt, the Canon 800mm f5.6 L IS lens. This lens is the best thing that has happened to me for my specialization in Bird Photography. It is not too heavy and can be hand held when needed. The reach is superb for small birds. It can be easily used with Canon 1.4xIII converter and you hardly notice any drop in image quality. I have also used that lens on my Canon 1D Mark III stacked with Canon 1.4xII and Canon 2xII converters taking the reach to around 3200mm. The 800mm lens can also be used for Wildlife Photography and the perspective you get from this lens us totally different. The bokeh you get from this lens is something you simply cannot think of getting from any other other lens (for the reach it has). Hats off to Canon for the fantastic job on this lens!
Q: what is your favorite place for wildlife photography in India/Africa/the rest of the world, and why?
A: The backwaters of Kabini river which is part of the Rajiv Gandhi National Park in South India has been one of my favorite destinations. This is considered as one of the top 5 destinations for wildlife in the world. Kabini is also known all over the world for its largest congregation of Asiatic Elephants, where one does not have to struggle to get a glimpse of the majestic Elephas Maximus.
Q: What is your current project you are working on?
A: I have travelled all over India capturing the beauty of nature and the abundant birdlife and wildlife it has to offer, except for one mammal – The Asiatic Lion. I will be traveling to Gir National Park to photograph them.
Q: What is a dream project for you in the future?
A: I have great passion for sharing my knowledge on photography and I conduct workshops and photo tours across India. I want to take this knowledge sharing to the next level where I can create a platform for more number of people to benefit.
Q: What are your concerns for the future regarding protecting the Indian wildlife and national parks?
A: There are way too many issues threatening the Wildlife of India – poaching, illegal mining, forest encroachment, illegal felling of trees – to name a few. Tiger Conservation is one of the hot topics in India. The Tiger represents the ecosystem of our forest. They go, the forests go. There is a lot of political pressure to lease out parts of the forest for mining in the name of development.
Indian wildlife continues to be an easy target for poachers. 2012 has been the worst year in the last decade as it recorded largest number of killings of endangered animals. Out of 69 tigers killed since January this year, 41 have fallen to poaching, 39 one-horned rhinos too have lost their lives in Kaziranga National Park in the northern state of Assam and in a latest report 252 leopards have also been killed during the same period.
The Indian government blames the shortage of manpower to secure country’s wildlife reserves. However, wildlife professionals have blamed lack of commitment in the efforts of the authorities. Wildlife Advisory Committee, which was set up in 2005 under the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, has not met even once. 
 
Q: What do you try to achieve with your photography?
A: For me, the singular aim of wildlife photography is to share the joy of nature. I also use my images for conservation related activities and give them away for free for this purpose. It is used by many NGOs to create awareness about our natural heritage.
Q: When it comes to wildlife and to bird photography, what are best spots/national parks in India?
A: There are my top destinations in India for Wildlife and Bird Photography:
Lava And Neora Valley, West Bengal
Eaglenest Sanctuary, Arunachal Pradesh 
Little & Greater Rann Of Kutch, Gujarat
Thattekad Bird Sanctuary, Kerala
Keoaldeo Ghana National Park (Bharatpur), Rajasthan
Corbett National Park, Uttarahand
Pangot and Sattal, Uttarakhand
Goa
Kaziranga National Park, Assam
Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh
Tadoba Tiger Reserve, Maharashtra
Nagarhole Tiger Reserve, Karnataka
Q: What is a typical agenda for one of your workshops?
A: I have a practice of understanding the participants much before they attend the workshop. I ask them to submit their portfolio of images which I review before the workshop. This gives me a good understand on what I need to cover as a part of the workshop. I cover all the basic and fundamentals of photography and take them through advance concepts. Once all the learning happens in the classroom session, the following day I have a field outing where those concepts are practiced. I spend time with the participants helping them practice the learning. The participants are given the flexibility to contact me post the workshop for getting their images reviewed so that they can evaluate how the workshop has helped them improve their photography knowledge.
Q: Do you consider yourself being an artist?
A: I strongly believe I have moved away from taking images to making images. It takes a lot of effort and planning to make images. Most of my images I shoot with the concept of pre-visualization where that image is formed in my mind and I try to execute it in the field.
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Travel to wildlife photography places: National Parks of India

Posted by dc on October 20, 2012
Posted in: environment protection, Umweltschutz, wildlife photography. Tagged: , , . 1 comment

When it comes to think about places for wildlife photography, most people automatically thinka about Africa. And the word “safari” is as well per default linked to Africa. But, there are some other very interesting alternatives on this planet of ours. Think of India! India offers more than 102 national parks and around 500 game reserves. This is a lot, even more when you consider, that India in 1970 only had five national parks altogether.

Poaching and pressure through increase in population are the main threats to Indias parks and wildlife. The fact that a certain amount of corruption in wildlife management does not really help seems as well to be a problem for parks and wildlife. The poaching of rhino horn and furs for the asian markets is increasing in the same style as it is in the african wildlife protection areas. Visiting the indian parks is a good way to support them, writing about them is raising awareness, too – at least I hope so.

Wildlife in India has some real great animals to offer for wildlife photographers: wild asian elephants, tigers, asian lions, indian wild dogs, hyenas, bears and abundant birdlife with up to 300 species in one park, and of course, the indian rhino.

Safari und Tierfotografie sind nicht allein auf Afrika beschränkt – Indien bietet mehr als 100 Nationalparks und mehr als 500 Schutzgebiete. Die Tierwelt erstreckt sich über asiatische Elefanten zu einer grossen Zahl von bis zu 300 verschiedenen Vogelarten, über fotogene Raubtiere wie Tiger, Löwen, Bären, Hyänen, Wildhunde, Mangusten bis zum indischen Panzernashorn. Die Parks sind höchst unterscheedlich erschlossen, und teilweise sehr weit abseits der meisten Touristenpfade. Lodges und einfache Hotels werden meist in der Nähe der Parks angeboten.

Die grössten Gefahren für Indiens Tierwelt sind zunehmender Bevölkerungsdruck und Abnahme der Lebensräume, sowie Wilderei und Korruption in den Verwaltungsbehörden. Ähnlich wie in Afrika nimmt die Wilderei in den letzten Jahren stetig zu, der asiatische Markt mit zunehmender Nachfrage nach Elfenbein, Fellen von Leoparden und Bestandteile für die traditionelle chinesische Medizin ist der Hauptantrieb für die organisierte Jagd nach z.b. Tigern und Nashörnern.

Next week in our series of international great wildlife photographers on safari-photographer.com, I am proud to present, from India: Sudhir Shivaram.

 

Some thoughts about bird photography

Posted by dc on October 8, 2012
Posted in: Germany, Safari photography. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 7 comments

Some weeks ago I went to photograph the White Storks we have around here, migrating each year between their summer homes along the Rhine river and Africa. There is a colony along the Rhine river valley, and there are, including young ones which hatch each year, around thirty White Storks in the area. 15 of these even stay for the winter, and they even survived the very cold weather we had here last winter. So your chances of getting some nice pictures are quite high, but the challenges of getting a good picture are huge, either.

The storks are either in their nests, which gives mostly a boring picture. Or they walk around. There is one nest which might gives you some promising chances for a good image, especially when you have a nice color  background, like in the picture below.

White Stork on the watch

But this year, this nest was empty, which is sad, because it is very easy easily accessible, but this might be the reason for it being void of any bird – there might be too many people around. The colony is growing, but this nest was empty this year. I discovered this after the first storks came back from Africa. So the other chance of getting some good images is to encounter the storks when they alk around in the meadows. They accept you getting close around 80 meters, and than they fly away. But it is this flying away which gives – sometimes – a great photo. So you sneak towards them, they notice you, because it is an open meadow with nothing to hide, and than the storks fly away. They tend to stay very low over the ground for some time before they gain some altitude, they are heavy birds and can only climb to higher altitude very slowly. This is the moment where you have make the picture, with a clear background. But anyway, you and your autofocus have to be very quick! Otherwise pictures will look like this:

White Stork out of focus

With the focus set on one single point (camera settings!), pictures will have one sharp spot, which should be around the eye of the bird, the storks wings and body can be out of focus, just like the following example. In this pictures I also adjusted the images color settings to have a greater contrast, but I am still not sure if I like this or not….

After a while the storks are flying higher and they always flay back to their nest. I like more when they are flying almost in eye sight, these images I like most. After they gained some altitude, pictures look like the one following – which ist still not perfect in sharpness. In a few words, what do you need to prepare for bird photography:

  • ISO setting should be adapated to local light situation, and you should remember that you need a fast autofocus.
  • Autofocus should be a single spot
  • When it comes to photographing storks, I would not use a tripod – maybe a monopod would be the better solution.
  • Lens aperture should be not under 300mm
  • Lens should be a zoom lens, because the situation can change so quickly.
  • If you want to know exactly, where you can encounter the storks at the Rhine river, send me an email. Storks are there all year, best time is when the young ones are flying  – around July. Most storks leave for Africa in September, some stay during the European winter, but they are hardly to be seen in this time of the year.
  • More of the better shots of white storks you find here in my gallery

White Stork

And well, there might be only a view bird photography spots in the world, where you can encounter white storks and little green parakeets at the same time. But here in the Rine river valley, this is possible. Parrots in Germany, you might say, come on. But yes, they are breeding birds to the region between Speyer and Cologne along the Rhine river, and they are a lot! The only thing is, that you can only very barely see them, because they use to stay all the time in the trees leaves. So, only in spring and winter, when there are no leaves, you might have the chance to make a succesful picture of  parakeets, but you have to be lucky and very patient, because this birds are shy, and smart…

In April, when they are nesting and feeding their young ones, I made the following shot, which is quite acceptable. The tips above can be used for all kinds of birds, and I hope they give you some hints how to achieve better photos of birds and other fast moving animals in the great outdoors.

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Parakeet (Psittacula krameri) in Germany

Wildlife photographers (4): Gorazd Golob

Posted by dc on September 28, 2012
Posted in: Safari photography, wildlife photographers. Tagged: , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

There is only a few wildlife photographers out there, who combine great artistry and some down to earth feeling just like Gorazd Golob is doing that. Seeing his pictures, and wanting to pack your stuff being directly in direction to somewhere outdoors, is one thing.What I like about his pictures is this feelng of being outdoors and close to nature. This guy really likes the animals, and he close to them, literally and emotionally. Gorazd Golob sees the beauty in nature, and that is why you can find in his gallery pictures from ants to elefants.

Especially his b+w pictures are great art, and real showcases for everyone of us, to discover what can be achieved without HDR, popart-like color saturation and fancy filters and who knows what: simple black and white, and a stark motive in the picture, thats it. This year Gorazd won the International Photography Award in the category “Wildlife“. But read Gorazd answers to my questions, and check out where he is going to be on tour in the African bush, and than just pack your bag, grab your gear, and off you go…

Gorazd Golob hat bei den diesjährigen International Photographers Awards in der Kategorie Naturfotografie  mit dem sehr ausdrucksstarken Motiv eines Flusspferdes gewonnen – ein Foto in schwarz-weiss! Aber diesen grossartigen Naturfotografen auf seine kunstvollen Schwarz-weiss Kompositionen zu reduzieren, hiesse, die andere Hälfte des Künstlers und Outdoorburschen Gorazd zu negieren. Denn in seinen Farbfotos zeigt sich seine Nähe und seine Liebe zur Natur, und für ihn ist das Foto einer Ameise genauso wichtig wie das Foto eines Elefanten – schaut euch auf seiner Homepage die Gallerie an, ihr werdet verstehen. Und klar, Gorazd organisiert Fototouren in den afrikanischen Busch, aber auch nach Helgoland, und da möchte man dabei sein! Denn die Reisen versprechen genauso authentisch zu sein wie der Mann selbst und seine Fotos. Lest  seine grossartigen Antworten und Einsichten im folgenden Interview.

Here are Gorazd answers to my questions:

Q. What is your photo equipment, and what is the reason for Canon or Nikon? I saw on your website that you are kind of exotic user of Panasonic and Olympus cameras?!

A: My most used equipment is Nikon for wildlife and landscape and Panasonic GH2 for video and also wide-angle shots on tours, when I use Nikon D700 and D300 bodies with telephoto lenses

I choose Nikon 30 years ago, build a system and stick with it. After that time you know your equipment and you should stay with something you are familiar (if it is not puling you back, of course).

Panasonic and m4/3 system I started to use because of the size and video. But for wildlife I still use Nikon.

Q. What are your lenses?

I use many lenses from wide to tele but mostly AFS 500mm f/4 and 70-200mm f/2,8 AFS lenses for wildlife, 14-24 Nikon for wide-angle scenes, fixed focal lenses 50mm 1,4; 28mm 2,0 Zeiss; macro Tamron 90mm and many other for specific purposes. For m4/3 I use mostly Panasonic 14mm f/2,5 and Olympus 45mm f/1,8 with additional 14-140mm lens for video (but I also use Nikon lenses for video with converter)

Q.What is your favorite lense, and why?

All are best for some project but mostly used are 500mm and 70-200mm Nikon lenses and 45mm Olympus lens for m4/3

Q. What is your favorite place for wildlife photography in Africa/the rest of the world, and why?

I visited over 60 countries on 4 continents and I am still looking for the country/place that I will not like. You should look for the beauty when travel, not for bad things.

But yes I have my favorites and they are in Africa – south of Africa. For wildlife I am looking for remote places, for really wild animals, for safe places and my preferences are Zambia, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana. For best photo sights are South Africa and Botswana, for remoteness and great wildlife is Zambia, for special landscapes and wilderness is Namibia. But I do a lot of photography also in Europe, South and North America and starting in Asia (India).

Q. What is your current project you are working on?

I just come back from Zambia; I had two tours in August, wildlife in Kafue Park and Victoria falls with short visit to Chobe in Botswana. Now I am planning tours for next year and it will be Africa most of the time.  I am also planning some exhibitions of my b&w wildlife.

Q. What is a dream project for you in the future?

To get a job in some African park as a photographer and photo tutor or to work only as a photo tour leader in remote places (which I am doing already for quite some time in the year)

Q. What are your concerns for the future regarding protecting the African wildlife and national parks?

It seems that all is well organized but when you visit them few times, you see how many problems they have. Most obvious for me are two: poaching and industry (mining, oil, natural gas,…), which wants to use natural resources in the areas of parks. Finding out that over 150 rhinos were killed just in Kruger Park in THIS year only, makes you feel bad. I can understand poor people to kill for food but not organized crime for rich customers and just to use horns (they are so dumb they don’t know that they can eat their nails with same results). And same is with companies coming to exploit natural resources and destroy Nature, just for the purpose of FEW rich people, to get even richer…

As always, I hope for common sense (I know that I am idealist…)

Q. What do you try to achieve with your photography?

I use Nature as art objects. I don’t want to just capture the moment in time; I want it to be special, in terms of light, pose, animal, and scenery… Yes I do portraits and action shots but I like to present most of my photos in b&w, in special light, photos showing animals in their environment …  I don’t look just for BIG FIVE, for me even a rat or ant can be a model and beautiful art object. And I want to show remote places and wildlife in best possible light and presentation.

And I want to tease other photographers to join me on my tours :-)

Q. Do you consider yourself being an artist?

We are all artists and we have our own way of seeing art. Yes I consider myself an artist (I won IPA wildlife pro section this year, so some others may also think so :-) , hoping that there are more of them who think the same (then those who think I am not J).

I want to express my feelings about nature and my view of nature through my photos, mostly b&w.

Recent portraits of wildlife photographers: use the category “wildlife photographers”

Gorazd in action in Namibia

How to photograph leopards when on Safari – Wie man Leoparden vor die Kamera bekommt

Posted by dc on September 1, 2012
Posted in: photo workshops, Safari photography, travel Africa. Tagged: . Leave a Comment

There is a tactical and a spiritual approch for this object – let me start with the spiritual appraoch before we come to the hard facts of wildlife photography. And let me introduce Ute from Roho Ya Chui, who wrote this text and who organizes games drives and photography workshops in Africa, especially this leopard special photography course in Sabi Sand, South Africa.

Es gibt zwei Wege, sich dem Leoparden als fotografischem Objekt anzunähern: Einen spirituellen, und einen taktisch-planerischen. Bevor wir zu den Planungen kommen, wie und wo man Leoparden am besten in freier Wildbahn fotografieren kann, lasst mich Ute von Roho Ya Chui vorstellen, welche diesen Text geschrieben hat und die Foto Safari und Foto Workshops nach Sabi Sand (ein Teil des Krüger Nationalparks) organisiert und durchführt. Mehr Information über ihre workshops und Fotoreisen erhaltet Ihr beim Klicken auf das Foto.

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It might sound far-fetched, but Quantum Physics is the starting point to understand and photograph leopards. Everything is made of the same energy and everything is connected to everything else is an essential lesson from Quantum Physics, that applies to us as it applies to leopards, a coffee mug and the car we are driving in. Because we are all made of the same energy, we are also all connected and communicate on the energy level all the time.  That means that the energy we are made of vibrates or moves in different frequencies, higher or lower frequencies, faster or slower. We might experience situations where we immediately have a good “click” with somebody. Most likely this persons communicates on energy level on the same frequency as we do. When we experience a situation that we find it difficult to be in the presence of a certain person for too long, because we start to feel tensed and restless, like pressure is building up, we might have an encounter with somebody of a high frequency energy and our energy frequency finds it hard to adjust to the same level. In the other direction to a lower frequency the adjustment is easier and mostly not experienced as demanding or unpleasant. But what does all that have to do with photography and especially leopard photography?

An easy answer could be, wait until you look one into the eyes, but it is helpful to know what happens when you are in the lucky position to be near a leopard and able to spend time with the animal. The difference in photographing wildlife in general and leopards in particular is the very high frequency energy this incredible cat has. Being conscious about that helps a lot when photographing them.

Imagine you are on a game drive and suddenly there is the leopard you were looking for already for days, right in front of the vehicle on a termite mount. Now just shoot away. Don’t think. Let the adrenaline from the excitement out and also take the pictures you can get, before the leopard possibly disappears. This moment might take a minute or two. You will feel when the excitement has settled and you will sit more relaxed in the vehicle. First thoughts of how to photograph the leopard properly will pop up. The next thing might be a feeling of impatience and negative thoughts about the light, the not doing anything animal, chaos with the camera settings, maybe a bit cursing, annoyance and eventually anger why we are still here with this leopard, enough leopard. This is a very important moment. When you decide to leave the sighting, you will miss the chance to connect with the animal and to get the most beautiful photos. All the negative thoughts and the physical reactions of feeling uncomfortable are caused by the difference in energy vibration/frequency. The leopard as a high frequency animal is just sitting there and doing nothing, only sending out on his/her frequency and your energy is trying to tune in to the leopards energy frequency. This tuning process causes the uncomfortable feeling. It will disappear as soon as you are tuned in and from there its as easy as what to photograph this amazing animal and to get the most beautiful leopard images.

Be patient. Stay with the animal and give yourself the time to tune in. As soon as you are tuned in on the leopards frequency the whole “energy situation” on the sighting will calm down and all present parties will connect on the same level. The leopard will start doing his/her thing and the most incredible photo opportunities will occur.

Hier nun, nach dem spirituellen Ansatz bei der Naturfotografie, die harten Fakten: Foto Safari für Leoparden Fotos macht man in Sabi Sand, Südafrika. Was ihr dafür benötigt:

Here comes the hard facts for photographing leopards: Recipe and ingredients for an Amazing Leopard Photography Course

Hardware – Kamera Ausrüstung:

1 or more camera(s)

1 or more lens(es)

1 or more fully charged battery(ies)

1 or more memory cards/films

1 laptop or other backup medium

1 or more power adapter(s)

1 card reader or cable for image upload

1 or more camera bag(s)/backpack

Software / Foto Workshop: Roho Ya Chui Leopard Special Photography Course in the Sabi Sand (part of the greater Kruger National Park in South Africa) conducted by professional photographer Ute Sonnenberg (reviewed by National Geographic Traveler).

Comfortware / Kleidung+Essen: comfortable clothes for all possible weather conditions, delicious food & beverages, professional travel planning provided by Roho Ya Chui

Mindware: passion, inspiration & a high spirit

Method / Methodik: Make up your mind when you would like to go on your leopard adventure and get in touch with Roho Ya Chui for the planning. Be conscious that this will be more than a “usual” Wildlife Photography Course. You will meet the cat of the cats.

Take all technical ingredients, check them, clean them and decide on the cameras and lenses. Check with Roho Ya Chui for advice. When you made your choice put the technical equipment in the camera bag or backpack.

Add the environmental ingredients. Make sure you have all necessary clothes and accessories packed, not more. Check with Roho Ya Chui for advice.

Finish with putting the cherry on the cake; the ingredients passion, inspiration and high spirit.

Enjoy your Leopard Photography adventure.

Great African lodges: New lodges in Central Africas Congo-Brazzaville

Posted by dc on August 17, 2012
Posted in: Africa Tourism, conservation projects, Great African Lodges, Republic of the Congo, travel Africa, Walking Safari. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , . 1 comment

There are new, exciting opportunities for the intrepid traveller and photographer. For instance, why not plan to travel to the Republic of the Congo and the odzala National Park. The capital of Brazzaville can quite easily be reached from Europe or the US by plane, or by ferry from neighboring Kinshasa. You can fly from Europe directly to Brazzaville with Air France via Paris. Or you fly from Brussels with Brussels Airlines to Kinshasa. Other quite good services are via Casablanca with Royal Air Maroc or via Addis Abeba with Ethiopian Airlines. KLM also flies from Amsterdam directly to Kinshasa. And Kenya Airways both connects Kinshasa as Brazzaville alike from their hub in Nairobi, Kenya. Coming from the US this means your connecting destinations are Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam. Coming from Asia or Australia or South Africa, it might be Addis and Nairobi.

From Brazzaville take a domestic chartered flight to the National Park of  Odzala. Here you find two quite new camps by Wilderness Safaris, Ngaga Camp and Lango Camp. Wilderness Safaris is an eco friendly company from South Africa, and they especially care about conservation and local communities, they call this the four c`s, here is how they put it:

“Wilderness is a conservation organisation and ecotourism company that specialises in memorable wildlife experiences in some of the most remote and pristine areas in Africa, at the same time remaining fiercely committed to protecting the continent’s precious natural resources. Their sustainability strategy is encapsulated by “the 4Cs”

“Conservation, Community, Culture or Commerce. Make your selection above.
Wilderness views responsible, nature-based tourism as the most effective and practical vehicle to ensure the sustainability of African conservation in the modern era. We are serious about what we do and believe fully in our vision of contributing meaningfully to conservation.”

In the two lodges they set up in the jungle of the Republic of the Congo, the main activity for a wildlife photographer, is of course, tracking the local western lowland gorilla population.

Photographic activities range from gorilla tracking (habituated groups), pirogue rides along lush river systems, game drives in the savannah, night drives, walks along lush forest streams and salines, and of course time spent at the productive forest bais.

Wildlife in the jungle exists of around 400 species of mammals and uncounted species of birds. Walking and boat safaris are offered, season is all year. Electrical power is  available in the two camps, so photographers do not need to rely on their batteries, as battery charging facilities are available in the camps.

Colobus monkey in Arusha National Park, Tanzania.

As what photography concerns in the jungle, that is a different thing: light conditions are pretty complicated, you have a lot of light, but also a lot of shadows, and this is changing constantly. Focusing is difficult, because there is a lot of leaves and branches between you and the animal up in the trees. I suggest to only use a single focusing point, and I also suggest to increase or adapt your ISO  settings. To be sure, photograph in RAW and always expect light to be lesser than your camera suggests, so better tend to over exposure your images.

Auf der touristischen Landkarte Afrikas gibt es zwei neue Lodges in der Republik Kongo, auch bekannt als Kongo Brazzaville. Wilderness Safaris bietet diese zwei Ökolodges an, man erreicht sie von Brazzaville mit einem Charterflieger in den Odzala Nationalpark. Von Mitteleuropa, Deutschland, Österreich oder der Schweiz bieten sich Flugverbindungen über Brüssel oder Nairobi an, von Frankfurt attraktiv ist auch die Verbindung über Addis oder Paris/Amsterdam. Genauere Beschreibungen der Flugoptionen seht ihr im oberen Bereich des Textes in Englisch.

Der Odzala Nationalpark beherbergt eine der grossen Populationen Afrikas des westlichen Flachland-Gorillas, als auch Waldelefanten, Colobusaffen und Schimpansen, insgesamt über 400 Säugetierarten. Fotografieren im Dschungel ist dann noch einmal eine der grossen Herausforderungen für jeden Fotografen: Schwierigste Licht- und Sichtverhältnisse, Schwüle, Feuchtigkeit, hier ist technisch-fotografisches Know-how und Schutz für das Equipment gefragt. ISO Werte sind hochzusetzen, und ich würde die Fokussierung auf einen Single-Point begrenzen, da Äste und Blätter die Fokussierung/Scharfstellung sehr schwierig machen. Im Montanwald des Arusha Nationalparks in Tansania habe ich einschlägige Erfahrungen gemacht, und die nicht sehr scheuen Colobusaffen waren wirklich sehr schwer fotografisch einzufangen.

Wildlife Photographers (1): Markus Mauthe

Posted by dc on August 15, 2012
Posted in: conservation projects, photo gear, Safari photography, Serengeti, Tanzania, wildlife photographers, wildlife photography. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Well, actually I came upon Markus Mauthe because I wanted to link from my blog to his very detailed and inspring report about being in the Serengeti. Then I found out that this guy is a great wildlife photographer as well, with a very interesting upcoming project with foto sessions in Patagonia, Tasmania, Nepal, Palau and the Arctic, among other beautiful places of our little blue planet.

And yes, this planet of us is in danger, and that is why Markus is working together with Greenpeace, to act against the destruction of nature, wildlife, and the oceans. Photographing the beauty of planet earth is one way to make people think and feel, and this you can see in Markus`photography, his workshops and lectures.

Markus Mauthe uses Nikon camera gear and lenses, this is his equipment:

Nikon D3x + D4
21 mm Zeiss
35-70 mm Nikon
200-400 mm Nikon
600 mm Nikon
Gitzo Carbon tripod – ballhead: Really Right Stuff
beanbag

When in the Serengeti lately, most of the pictures he took he used the Nikon 600mm lens, which is a bit of his favorite lens. When on location, Markus tries to capture the specific character and beauty of the landscape in a typical, unspoiled manner. He wants to document it, and show in his images the true character of the region.

I always ask photographers , if they are fans of other photographers or if they have an idol. Markus told me, he does actually not. Well, maybe with one exception, which is Ingo Arndt, one of the best know German masters of wildlife photography.

His project together with Greenpeace “Naturwunder Erde” (“earths natural wonders”) is about showing the beauty and vulnerability of our planet, and will lead him quite a bit around to some stunning places, like described above. You can follow this project on Markus´blog wildview.de (and on this blog, too), and on Facebook.

In loser aber regelmässiger Folge wird safari-photographer.com über ausgesuchte Natur – und Tierfotografen berichten. Den Anfang macht Markus Mauthe, den ich eigentlich wegen seines hervorragende Serengeti Berichts angeschrieben hatte. Aber dann sah ich, dass er ein Klasse-Fotograf ist, und das war die Idee für den Beginn der Reihe “wildlife photographers”. Seine Nikon Kameraausrüstung ist oben beschrieben, sein grosses Projekt “Naturwunder”, zusammen mit Greenpeace” könnt ihr auf seinem Blog verfolgen. Die Links zum Blog als auch zu Facebook kommen im Anschluss. Für die deutschen Leser interessant sind sicherlich auch die Vortragsreihen und Workshops, welche Markus veranstaltet, mehr dazu auf seiner Homepage.

Mkomazi National Park Tansania: Informationen nicht nur für Selbstfahrer

Posted by dc on July 25, 2012
Posted in: Safari tips, Selbstfahrer, Tansania, travel Africa, wildlife. Tagged: , , , . Leave a Comment

Der Mkomazi NP ist der jüngste aller tansanischen Nationalparks und befindet sich für Selbstfahrer günstig gelegen an der sehr gut zu befahrenden Asphaltstrasse B1 zwischen der Küste (Pangani/Tanga, Dar) und Moshi bzw. Arusha.  Im Ort Same befindet sich die Abzweigung von der Hauptstrasse (von Moshi kommend hinter der Tankstelle links), wenn man die Schranke erreicht hat, ist man richtig. Nach der Schranke geht es auf Schotter bis zum Parkeingang weiter.

Mkomazi National Park, Tanzania.

Von Moshi aus sind es ca. 113 Kilometer bis Same. Polizeikontrollen gibt es im Prinzip nur zwischen Moshi und Arusha und östlich von Moshi im Statbereich. Abgefragt werden diverse Steuern/Versicherungen für das Fahrzeug sowie der obligate Feuerlöscher und die zwei Warndreiecke. Bei Mietfahrzeugen sollten die obligaten road taxes Bestätigungen und Versicherungen etc. kein Problem und am Fahrzeug per Aufkleber angebracht sein. Aufgepasst: Neuerdings ist wohl auch ein Verbandskasten Pflicht! Wir wurden lediglich einmal angehalten (haben etwas Konversation gemacht und mehr nicht) und ansonsten freundlich durchgewunken.

Von Same bis zum Zange Gate sind es sieben Kilometer. Der Zange Gate ist momentan der einzige Zugang zum Park. Die Eintrittsgebühren sind 10.000 TZS  pro Tag für das Fahrzeug (es sollte ein tansanisches Kennzeichen haben) sowie 20 USD pro Person Parkeintritt zuzüglich 50 USD pro Person Camping Fee, wenn man im Park übernachtet.

Wichtig: Der Parkeintritt kann im Moment (Juli 2012) nur bar in US-Dollars bezahlt werden, Kreditkartenzahlung ist in Mkomazi noch nicht möglich!

Der Park ist sehr wenig besucht, ich schätze das es so um die 200 Besucher im Jahr sind (aufgrund der Besucherzahlen von Babus Camp). Im Besucherregister am Zange Gate war der letzte Eintrag vor mir zehn Tage alt, es waren ebenfalls Deutsche, und davor Schweizer.

Die Campingplätze im Park sind sehr rudimentär, es gibt nur ein permanentes Camp, das Babus Camp, ca. 12 Kilometer nördöstlich vom Gate und gut ausgeschildert. Offizieller Preis für das Babus ist 250 USD pro Person pro Nacht inkl. Vollpension. Das Camp ist zweifelsohne sehr schön, Service und Essen sowie die Zelte sind sehr gut, aber der Preis ist zu hoch.  Hier ist also Handeln angesagt!

Das Babuscamp stellt ggf. auch einen Guide, Kosten sind ebenfalls Verhandlungssache, für Gäste des Camps geht das mit einem Trinkgeld.

Ansonsten bietet Same ein kleines Motel (das Elephant Motel), eine Tankstelle, sowie eine Bank mit Geldautomat, welcher aber nicht an Cirrus/Master/Visa angeschlossen ist. (Nächster Geldautomat: Moshi). In Same gibt es kleine Läden auch für Selbstfahrer, und die Leute dort sind freundlich!

Der Mkomazi Park ist ein Überlaufgebiet vom Tsavopark in Kenia. Die Landschaft des Parks ist typische Savanne mit Buschland, die umliegenden Hügel sind bewaldet, es gibt viele Baobabbäume.

Die Tracks sind Schotter- bzw. Erdpiste oder Gras, also überhaupt kein Problem ausserhalb der Regenzeit. In der Regenzeit gibt es grosse Strecken mit Black Soil, welche dann unpassierbar sind.

Die Tierwelt des Parks ist noch im Wachsen, und sehr scheu. Es gibt eine grössere Anzahl von Zebras und Elenantilopen um den zentral gelegenen kleinen See herum, sowie einige Giraffen. Elefanten bevölkern die umliegenden Hügel, sind aber schwer auszumachen, angeblich sind es ca. 1.000 Stück. Die kolportierten Ory und Gerenuk sind am nördlichen bzw. östlichen Teil des Parks zu finden, in Richtung Kenia, und vom Zange Gate eine halbe Tagesreise entfernt.

Die in einer Aufzuchtstation geschützten Spitzmaulnashörner sind für Besucher nicht zugänglich und bewegen sich auch noch nicht frei im Park. Ähnliches gilt für die Wildhunde, die nur zum Teil schon frei im Park herumstreifen.

In der Nähe des westlichen Endes von Mkomazi gibt es mindestens zwei adulte Geparden (habe ich mit eigenen Augen gesehen), die dort auch, nach Aussage des Guides, permanent sind.

Löwen gibt es im Park, ausser durchstreifenden Exemplaren, welche von Tsavo kommen, nicht.

Die Vogelwelt ist allerdings sehr reichhaltig, und soll insbesondere im Februar aussergewöhnlich sein, wenn aus den umliegenden Gebieten und Bergen sich die Vögel in Mkomazi versammeln, weil dort dann das Futterangebot sehr gross ist.

Mkomazi NP up on the hills. Mkomazi, Tanzania.

Essential photo gear when out there in the field

Posted by dc on July 23, 2012
Posted in: Ausrüstung, photo gear, safari gear. Tagged: , , , , , , . 13 comments

After spending some days in the bush in Serengeti and Mkomazi National Parks, I truely know now what is needed as photo equipment when being mobile and outdoors and away from energy resources like electrical power. Here is a short list:

  • Dust protection and cleaning equipment: some parts of Africa and other remote areas of this planet are, well, very dusty. Especially when there is no rain around. Than they become muddy. So, prepare to clean your gear every evening or when back in camp from the game drive. Important is as well, to provide a dust or water proof bag for your gear- there needs to be at least one place, where your camera gear cannot get dusty anymore.
  • Lens protection filters: it may come not as a surprise, but I need to emphasize on this: Invest in some protection filters for your valuable lenses. I tried some, and like the filters by B+W very much. They seem to fit better to my Canon lenses than other filters and are of superior quality: very durable, no effects on the images. I use the F-Pro filters by B+W, well, what can I say. Made in Germany.
  • Car charger for camera batteries: That really saved my life when in the Serengeti, as we had no electrical power except in the car. With a car charger for your camera batteries, you can charge one battery at a time when on game drive. That worked perfectly. Some cars (Landrover, Toyota) give you the option to choose between 110v and 220V, so in case your battery charger comes from the US, that should be no problem. Ask your safari provider to have plug adapters, or better, bring them with you!The chager i have works with a car charger adapter as well with plugs for UK and central Europe. The UK plugs mostly work in (East) – Africa, too.
  • Mobile photo storage: First of all, bring as many as memory cards as possible. Second, bring as much  memory storage additionally as possible. If a Notebook/Laptop would mean to much hassle, a photo storage and viewer device would be the best solution. These simple but small and powerful devices are e.g. from Epson, Hyperdrive, Jobo or Nexto DI, and can save up to 500 resp. 750 GB. Plus, they work with batteries and do not need electrical power for some time.
  • See also here which photo gear I am using when in the field

Walking Safaris Kenia und Tansania

Posted by dc on June 11, 2012
Posted in: Walking Safari. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a Comment

Diese Art der Safari und Naturerfahrung ist noch relativ neu im touristischen Spektrum, und deshalb auch noch nicht sehr weit verbreitet und angeboten. In den Parks und Schutzgebieten, in denen eine Zu-Fuss Safari möglich ist, wird gemeinhin eine einfach zu bewältigende Strecke im Buschland zurückgelegt, und das Gepäck meistens parallel dazu per Jeep befördert. Im Vordergrund steht das Naturerlebnis, das ungefilterte Erleben von Flora und Fauna. Die Big Five wird man auf einer Walking Safari eher weniger zu Gesicht bekommen – für die Tiere stellt ein Mensch zu Fuss eine deutlichere Bedrohung dar ein als ein Fahrzeug – deshalb weichen sie einer laufenden Gruppe Homo sapiens rechtzeitig aus.

Tansania:

  • Northern Circuit: In den grossen Parks des Nordens wie der Serengeti und Tarangire gibt es noch keine Walking Safaris. Möglich sind Tagestreks allerdings in Verbindung mit der Besteigung des Mount Meru im ausgesprochen malerischen und abwechslungsreichen Arusha Nationalpark (Link). Dort kann man die Hänge des Meru erwandern, über hochgelegene Wiesen geht es bis zu den Montanwäldern am Rande des vierthöchsten Berges Afrikas. Büffel, Antilopen, und mit etwas Glück Paviane und Kolobusaffen sind anzutreffen.
  • Im Grenzareal zum Kilimandscharo, einem sehr wildreichen Gebiet (Durchzug vieler Tiere von Amboseli in Richtung Serengeti und Tarangire) gibt es vermehrt Anbieter (Link) mit eigenen Camps und grosser Erfahrung auf dem Gebiet der Walking Safari.
  • Im Ngorongoro Schutzgebiet, zwischen den Vulkanen des Kraterhochlandes, gibt es einige sehr schöne und bewährte Treks (Link). Je nach Jahreszeit, in Verbindung mit der grossen Migration der Gnu- und Zebraherden der Serengeti, kann man hier grossartige Tierbeobachtungen erleben. Die Gruppe wird meist von Massai begleitet, deren Dörfer unmittelbar auf dem Weg liegen. Das Gepäck wird auf einigen Teilstrecken mit Eseln befördert, und der heilige Berg der Massai, der Ol Donyo Lengai, kann ebenfalls erklommen werden.
  • Southern Circuit: Im Süden des Landes ist die Auswahl an Möglichkeiten grösser. In den Udzungwa Mountains, einer Bergkette südöstlich von Dar es Salaam, gibt es den bekannten Manihana Trail (Link). Ebenso werden in den beiden riesigen Schutzgebieten Selous Game Reserve (Link) und Ruaha National Park (Link) walking Safaris von verschiedenen Anbietern durchgeführt. Im sehr abgelegenen Katavi Nationalpark ist es ebenfalls möglich, dieses einzigartige Naturerlebnis zu buchen.

Kenia:

  • Mount Kenia: Der Trekking Klassiker in Kenia ist sicherlich die Besteigung des zweithöchsten Berges des Kontinents, des Mount Kenia. Mit 5199m und seinen schroffen Gipfeln stellt er eine nicht zu unterschätzende Herausforderung dar. Rund um das Bergmassiv sind in den Montanwäldern interessante Treks wie zum Beispiel über die viertägig zu bewältigende Naro Moru Route oder die fünftägige Chogoria Route möglich.

Weitere Parks und Schutzgebiete für Walking Safaris und Trekkingrouten sind:

  • Tsavo und Shimba Hills: Hier gibt es erst sehr wenige Anbieter, aber immerhin. Die Parks sind tierreich und sehr gut erschlossen. Diese Treks sind interessant auch für Tagesausflüge aus der Mombasa Region.
  • Hells Gate National Park: Schöne, bis zu zweitägige Trek sind hier möglich. Der Park liegt unweit von Nairobi und eignet sich zu besuchen, wenn man nur ein paar Tage Zeit hat, und sich nicht zu weit von der Hauptstadt entfernen möchte.
  • Ngong Hills: Dieser Trail kann auch ohne Guide und Veranstalter bewältigt werden, und ist sehr leicht mit öffentlichen Verkehrsmitteln von Nairobi aus zu erreichen.
  • Maralal National Reserve/ Loroghi Hills: Durch das Grassland der Ebenen und mit wunderbaren Aussichtspunkten am Rande des afrikanischen Grabenbruchs (Rift Valley)bietet sich hier ein in bis zu fünf Tagen begehbarer Trail an, in einem sehr abgelegenem und einsamen Gebiet
  • Mount Elgon: Dieses an der Grenze zu Uganda liegende Kratermassiv bietet mit seinem urwüchsigen Montanwald einige der besten Trekkingerlebnisse des Kontinents. Der höchste Gipfel (4.321m) liegt bereits auf ugandischer Seite, der zweithöchste Gipfel (4.287m) des erloschenen Vulkans auf kenianischer Seite der Grenze. Das Areal bietet einige sehr abwechslungsreiche, mehrtägige Treks an, und ist von Nairobi (400km Entfernung, ca. 6 – 7 Stunden per Bus) recht gut zu erreichen. Es gibt keinerlei Camping Infrastruktur am Berg. Jeder Trekker muss sein gesamtes Equipment mitbringen bzw. von seinem Tour Operator ausleihen.
  • Cherangani Hills: Östlich des Mount Elgon gelegenes, einsames und wenig frequentiertes Gebiet mit kaum vorhandener touristischer Infrastruktur. Genau deshalb zu empfehlen!
  • Aberdare Range: Im zentralen Hochland, nördlich von Nairobo gelegen, bieten die Aberdare Berge und der gleichnamige National Park einige sehr schöne Trails.
  • Loita Hills/Massai Mara: Die östlich des bekanntesten kenianischen Nationalparks gelegenen Loita Hills sind das zentrale Stammesgebiet der Massai. In dieser wildnisreichen Gegend können sie Tierbeobachtung als auch Zusammentreffen mit den Massai auf wunderbare Art und Weise verbinden. Die Anreise von Nairobi dauert fünf bis sechs Stunden, die Massai Mara ist in unmittelbarer Nähe, und eignet sich somit sehr als ideales Gebiet für die Fortführung des Treks als „klassische“ Safari mit dem Fahrzeug. Die Massai Mara ist der auf kenianischem Gebiet gelegene nördliche Ausläufer des Serengeti Ökosystems. Besonders in den Monaten September bis November, wenn die grossen Herden auf ihrer jährlichen Migration in der Mara sind, ist dieses Gebiet eines der fantastischsten Safariareale unseres Planeten.

Siehe auch: Beste Nationalparks in Afrika für Fotografen