mcdouglas09

Giraffe Family

Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda.

Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda.
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NIKON D810

settings

Aperture 4/1 ISO 400 Shutter 1/350 Focal Length 300/1

upload_date

Aug, 2016

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Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda. I was on an early morning game drive observing the local wildlife as they began their day and grazed throughout the Savannah.

Time

Every day on a Safari is an early day when you want to catch animals while they are active and searching for food. Once the sun is too high, the temperature rises very quickly and they slow down and look for shade. This particular shot was approximately 30 minutes after sunrise, as the giraffe family were on their way to the water hole in the background.

Lighting

Early morning light is my favourite time of day to shoot, especially in Africa where the colour of the sunrise is so warm. It really complimented the golden brown of the giraffe patterns and brought out the highlights in the greenery. Additionally, the horizontal lighting is much better than from overhead as it prevents awkward shadows on the wildlife that can ruin a great shot.

Equipment

This is was shot with a Nikon D810 with a 300mm F/4 PF ED VR. Handheld from the Landcruiser as we stopped the jeep.

Inspiration

There were many giraffes in the area, which all looked beautiful, but this group was a small family with baby, mom and dad. I really thought it was special to see the three of then so close together, as typically the males are solitary and do not hang around the young ones. I waited for the right moment and was able to capture this great angle and family portrait!

Editing

Very little post-processing was needed for this image. The lighting was fantastic, the background was well lit and subjects perfectly exposed. I increased the contrast and clarity a tad and also slighted lightened some shadows in the background.

In my camera bag

When out in the wilderness, I typically travel will my 300mm F4 VR (with 1.4 Tele) for wildlife but also include a 16-35mm F4 for landscape. If I know I am going to be much closer to animals, I will sometimes bring my 70-200mm F2.8 but have not had that for very long so I don't have many shots with it yet.

Feedback

Capturing wildlife in photos is easy, once your on location. The challenging part is capturing the expression or emotion of animals, which is what truly makes a picture interesting. One must not only have a great deal of patience, but also try to understand the animal's behaviour and predict their next reaction or movement. Emerging yourself in their environment and waiting for them to accept your presence will usually reward you with the opportunity to capture their natural behaviour and expression.

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mcdouglas09

mcdouglas09

Giraffe Family

Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda.

Behind The Lens

See more amazing photos, follow mcdouglas09

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