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Ox-Pecker on a giraffe. Lake Manyara - Tanzania
Picture of the year 2015 - Lion World Travel Calendar Competition.

Ox-Pecker on a giraffe. Lake Manyara - Tanzania
Picture of the year 2015 - Lion World Travel Calendar Competition.
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cameraCanon EOS 5D Mark II

settings Aperture f/5.6 ISO 640 Shutter 1/320 Focal Length 700/1 

upload_dateDec, 2015

Views

2027

Likes

Awards

Contest Finalist in African Wildlife Photo Contest
Featured
Runner Up in Discover Africa Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Discover Africa Photo Contest
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Peer Award
VLJ_PHOTOGRAPHY gman176 keithns12 PhotosByJEM jorgealbertopealozapealoza vincentdovey davidjprosser +141
Superb Composition
Shireensphotography klaushenrikandreasen coxcraig simplee_rachel PabloPerezGonzalez LexyPhoto vivek_gujar +29
Outstanding Creativity
throughmycamera Alwolfe jlappen FlowerGlow Liesl natosed marinaantonova +13
Top Choice
robclayton J.C.Celmer Tracyj Denise_Marshall kathleencollins JMPDeAlmeida BrianaK +11
Absolute Masterpiece
wudalibabu amarbristirsahar stephens1140 Anfel Svenergy72 Steve_Thomas hotfoot +8
Magnificent Capture
Hood Dawn_Villwok_Joerg LindaT jamesjohnston_3471 naturisk
All Star
akphotographystudio candiscamera GEMitchell LucyCMorr
Genius
markusfiedler bkcrossman
Superior Skill
jamiesarkett

Top Ranks

Animals In The Wild Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Animals In The Wild Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
An Unforgettable Adventure Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Talent AwardsTop 10 rank
Explore Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank
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Explore Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Wildlife Portraits Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Wildlife Portraits Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
African Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank
African Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 2
African Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
The Animal Kingdom Photo ContestTop 20 rank
The Battle Of Professionals Photo ContestTop 30 rank
The Battle Of Professionals Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 3
The Battle Of Professionals Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 2
The Battle Of Professionals Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Discover Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Discover Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank month 1
Discover Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 3
Discover Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 2
Discover Africa Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1

Categories

5 Comments |
wiesiah
 
wiesiah April 21, 2016
Amazing! Free ride, I love it!
kylewchick
 
kylewchick December 17, 2016
This is a really inspiring photograph! thanks for sharing it
lorrainelozzasweeney
 
lorrainelozzasweeney May 03, 2017
Brilliant shot
Alwolfe Platinum
 
Alwolfe November 30, 2017
Awesome shot!
Alireza_zahirisorouri
 
Alireza_zahirisorouri December 14, 2018
Nice

Submitted to Photo Contests

Tags

#africa #Ox-Pecker #giraffe #tanzania #Lake Manyara #award winner
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Behind The Lens

Location

The image was captured at Lake Manyara National Park in Tansania

Time

This was taken during during the eatly afternoon - four of us and our guide had decided to do a detour to the park on the way back to Kilimanjaro For the flight home.

Lighting

The lighting was bot terrific because of the time of day - sometimes you have to work with what you have. Not all hours on safari are during the "Golden Hours".

Equipment

Canon 5 D MK ll - Canon 500mm f4 with 1.4 TC. No tripod, shot from top of jeep using a Kenesis bean bag to steady the lens.

Inspiration

Everything about the wildlife in Africa is inspiring. I love Oxpeckers as they hitch rides. I had seen hundreds over the week usually on Cape Buffalo. This was the first I had seen on a giraffe.

Editing

Very little, just a small bit of cropping. Shooting with a prime provides good practice in determing which subject will make the best composition and "fit" in the frame. At any given time you may have dozens of possible shots and must guage the best one quickly. With a prime you must "zoom with your feet". This isn't possible in an enclosed Land Cruiser.

In my camera bag

In the last two trips to Africa I have carried two bodies and 3-4 lenses. The. Canon 500 and TC as well as a 70-200 non- IS zoom and a 17-40 for wide angle. All L series. I keep the 500 on my full frame body and the 70-200 usually stays on the backup body for subjects just too close for the big lens. I always backup from the camera to an Ipad 128 gb Mini - then back the mini up to thumb drives or SD cards via a wireless Ravpower device. In South africa the jeeps are open, so a monopod unextended and placed between your legs is best. In East Africa the jeps are enclosed with pop-up tops that allow for 360 degree shooting. A bean bag is best.

Feedback

Practice framing on objects at different distances so you can best choose which subject to capture. Composition is key, the less you need to crop the better your resolution will be.

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