Wild zebra
Seen roaming on the savannah, Zimbabwe, Africa
Seen roaming on the savannah, Zimbabwe, Africa
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Jun, 2016Views
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Awards
Contest Finalist in African Wildlife Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Visions Of Africa Photo Contest
Member Selection Award
Contest Finalist in Evocative Wildlife Photo Contest
Featured
Contest Finalist in Living Creatures Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Absolute Masterpiece
Magnificent Capture
All Star
Outstanding Creativity
Superior Skill
Genius
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janicejh
October 31, 2016
I've never been to the amazing Africa, but the color of the grass seems slightly off or just too bright? My only critique. Remarkable capture! I look forward to following and learning from you!
CleusaSiqueira
November 18, 2016
Great shot and place. What i most like was your "Behind the lens". Again congratulations ...hugs
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Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
The photo was taken in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe.Time
I took the photo in mid-afternoon on 2 June, 2016. I was in a safari vehicle with two other passengers and we saw a herd of zebra browsing knee-deep in a sea of beautiful red-gold grass. They looked so peaceful with night-time and the danger of predators still far away. This particular animal was standing on its own, which shows how relaxed it was.Lighting
Although the sun was still quite high in the sky, the grass meant that there were no harsh shadows cast, and in any case the zebra stripes are black. I therefore used no exposure compensation and relied on the natural light.Equipment
This was shot on a Nikon D810, handheld, with a Tamron 150-600mm lens. The driver stopped the vehicle for a few moments to allow me to get a sharp shot.Inspiration
Although big cats and elephants are such popular subjects on safari, zebra always seem so beautiful to me - especially picturesque and photogenic horses! I particularly like their swishing black tails, and waited until the tail appeared in this shot! In my mind, I was thinking that I wanted to capture the serenity of this creature in its dangerous environment.Editing
I shot the photo in raw and cropped it somewhat to exclude one or two blurred zebras in the background which were distracting from the main interest. Other than a bit of dodging and burning and increased contrast and sharpness I didn't feel the need for anything else.In my camera bag
For safari I always take two camera bodies, a Nikon D810 and a Nikon D7100 as both a back-up and a cropped sensor alternative in case I need it - in fact I almost never do, as the safari guides are so brilliant at getting us close to the subjects we want. I used the excellent Tamron 150-600 which had all the reach I needed, with a Tamron 24-70 and a Nikon 18-35 in case I wanted wider shots, eg of sunsets or waterholes. I do take a travel tripod, the Manfrotto Befree, which is light and strong, although I don't often use it on safari.Feedback
My advice for anyone going on a safari trip would be to minimise lens changes, as its always dusty - better to have a second camera body with a different lens ready than to change lenses. You do need a lens with good reach - 600mm on a full frame is the maximum in my opinion, anything bigger could be unwieldy. Take lots of memory cards and download your images each day onto a portable hard-drive - you always tend to take more images than you think you will, as almost anywhere you look on a safari you'll see photogenic potential!
