adamczaff

Meru

NIKON D750

settings

Aperture f/16 ISO 400 Shutter 1/160 Focal Length 500/1

location

Kenya

Jan, 2020

Views

314

Likes

+35

Awards

Zenith Award

Curator's Selection

Top Shot Award 21

Spring 21 Award

Celebrity Award

Contest Finalist in Image Of The Month Photo Contest Vol 53

Top Choice

+15

Absolute Masterpiece

+14

Outstanding Creativity

Peer Award

Superb Composition

Magnificent Capture

All Star

Emotions

Impressed

Top Ranks

Top 10 rank

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Top 10 rank week 1

Top 10 rank

Top 20 rank

Top 20 rank week 2

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Same photographer See all Behind The Lens

A family of elephants make the daily trek to the watering hole in Meru, Kenya.

A sea turtle rests on the shore near Kona, Hawaii

Multonomah Falls outside of Portland Oregon, 2019.

5:30am pigeon feeding in San Marco Square in Venice, Italy

Nacho Figueras head to head with a Veuve Clicquot polo team player.

La Fontelina Beach Club in Capri, Italy.

Rolex Farr 40 World Championships in Long Beach.

Behind The Lens

Location

Meru, Kenya.

Time

This image was taken at dusk as the elephant was making it's way back from a watering hole.

Lighting

This photo was taken in winter, when the vegetation in Kenya was waning due to a lack of rain. As such, it was quite dusty, which added to the orange haze you see.

Equipment

Nikon D750 with a Nikon 200-500mm VR FX f/5.6 E ED VR (handheld).

Inspiration

I took this photo while on safari in Kenya with my wife. There's something almost human about elephants and the way they care for their young, which would make anyone feel an emotional connection to them. Given their declining population (350K African Elephants in 2016 - a 30% decline from 7 years earlier) and the dangerous predicament they're in with the current appetite for ivory, I wanted to capture them in their natural habitat as much as possible. While there are arguments for the conservation efforts which zoos provide, it would be an absolute travesty if we saw a day where the only elephant you could see was behind a cage. The current yearly loss estimate of elephants to poaching is about 8% (or 27,000 elephants).

Editing

I try to keep post processing to a minimum. The extent of my post processing revolves around cropping the image and pulling a bit of color saturation out, as well as making sure the subject of the image is clearly defined.

In my camera bag

I usually travel with 1 or 2 camera bodies (Nikon D750 and D850), as well as a Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, a Nikon 16-35mm f/4 lens, a Nikon 50mm f/1.8 lens, and a 200-500mm f/5.6 (for wildlife and/or sports). I also always keep a tripod with me, as well as a speedlight, remote shutter, and various ND filters.

Feedback

When it comes to nature photography, my motto is that it's all about being in the right place at the right time (without disturbing the animals of course!). Patience is definitely rewarded. I also try to challenge myself to think about what behavior is unique to the animal, and how I can best capture that behavior. I also love to incorporate the animal's eyes in the photo (if possible). It adds to the emotion and conveys their wild nature. Finally- anytime I can capture parents with their offspring, I usually come up with a pretty dynamic image, full of juxtaposition between the animal's natural aggression and it's parental instincts.

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adamczaff

adamczaff

Meru

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow adamczaff

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