Lilac-breasted Roller Bird
Photo was taken in Kruger National Park, South Africa
Photo was taken in Kruger National Park, South Africa
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Feb, 2015Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
I took this photo while on safari in Kruger National Park, South Africa. I just recently became interested in wildlife photography which was stimulated by my travels and the encouragement of my husband who is a much better photographer than I am.Time
I took this photo early in the morning from the SUV our guide was driving. The SUV was almost like a blind and kept us from scaring the birds away. Our guide told us that birds and other animals don't feel threatened so much by people in a parked vehicle as they do by people outside a vehicle. I think that this was the prettiest bird I have ever seen outside of a zoo! What a great experience!!Lighting
It was such a bright, sunny day and the bird was in just the right spot that no special lighting was necessary. We (my husband and I) were there in the latter part of June, 2014. The weather was wonderful every one of the fifteen days that we were in South Africa and Botswana.Equipment
I used a Canon Rebel T3 with an EFS 55-250mm lens. No other equipment was used.Inspiration
I was ready to photograph any and every animal I saw and I saw a lot in South Africa and Botswana. This bird was so beautiful, I was determined to get a good photo of it. This is the best one of many that I took of just this bird. It was our first trip to S. A. and Botswana and a dream of a lifetime for my husband. I didn't expect to be so intrigued with Africa or enjoy it as much as I did. I think that my husband and I had smiles on our faces almost the entire trip. We had so much fun!!! We thought that this would be a "once in a lifetime trip" but now we are planning another trip as soon as possible!Editing
I think the only post-processing I did on this photo was a little cropping and maybe I lightened it up a bit.In my camera bag
When I'm ready to do some serious photography, I take my Canon Rebel T3 with my wide angle lens and my EFS 55-250mm lens. When I don't want to carry that much weight I have my Canon ELPH 115 IS because it is small and fits in my purse. Cameras are getting better and better, so now I'm looking for one that will take better long distance shots.Feedback
The best advise for capturing wildlife shots is to get out early in the morning when the animals are most active. If the animals are close, don't make any sudden moves that may startle them. As stated above, a vehicle makes a great blind and the animals don't seem to notice a person. I would recommend a good SLR so you can rapidly shoot one photo after another because you can never tell how or when the animals will move. Take a lot more photos than you think you need. Sometimes, only one or two will be great out of twenty or more shots.
