On this page you will find a variety of articles specifically related to African Wildlife Photography. These include photo safari tips, techniques and equipment as well as interesting animal behaviour and sightings observed on our photo safaris in the African Bush.
Links to these articles will also be added in the quarterly photo safari newsletter.
Posted on 31st Aug 2017 in ALL VIDEOS|Video Trip Reports|
All VIDEO footage was taken on a 12 day photo tour to Etosha National Park in Namibia and Tswalu Kalahari Reserve in South Africa. This unique photo safari was led by Stu Porter. VIDEO by Stu Porter
Posted on 15th Aug 2017 in ALL VIDEOS|Video Trip Reports|
All VIDEO footage was taken on a 12 day photo tour to Etosha National Park in Namibia and Tswalu Kalahari Reserve in South Africa. This unique photo safari was led by Stu Porter. VIDEO by Stu Porter
Posted on 29th Jul 2017 in ALL VIDEOS|Photo Equipment|
Our Photographically modified 4x4 Toyota Land Cruiser Safari Vehicle LAUNCH trailer VIDEO by Stu Porter
Posted on 28th Jul 2017 in News|
We are very proud to announce the launch of our first Kenyan photographically modified safari vehicle, which will be available for use on both our scheduled and custom designed photo safaris within Kenya. Our previous clients will know how we have pioneered the way to provide photographic supports on vehicles for photographers. Our professional adjustable photobar and beanbag systems that we use on safari vehicles in Botswana, Kruger, Mala Mala, Namibia and Tanzania offer a comfortable solution...
Posted on 2nd Sep 2015 in TIPS & Techniques|
Creating panoramic images of Landscapes is a widely used technique - but what about panoramic images of wildlife subjects ? This is a short article that explains when, how and why you should use this technique if the opportunity to do so arises. WHEN ? If you are too close to your subject to fit it in the frame with your telephoto lens then this technique can work for you - yes you can move further away or even use...
Posted on 1st Nov 2014 in Stories From The Bush|
My personal favourite part of the Kruger National Park, Northern Kruger has an appealing and different atmosphere all of its own. This part of Kruger is extremely beautiful with Fever Tree Forests, Baobab Trees and the beautiful Shingwedzi, Mphongolo and Luvuvhu Rivers. Silwervis and Rooibosrant dams provide great water birds and a stop at Letaba rest camp on the Letaba River will offer some of the best bird photography without even leaving the camp. My personal favourite is the...
Posted on 1st Sep 2014 in Stories From The Bush|
Samburu National Reserve in northern Kenya is a unique place to photograph African wildlife. It has a very dry climate, cool in the evenings and early mornings but it can get very hot during the day. A number of unusual species are found in theis reserve which is one of the reasons I love to visit Samburu. You do not have to drive very far to find amazing landscapes and wildlife encounters. When you first arrive at Samburu (normally around...
Posted on 1st Aug 2014 in Stories From The Bush|
I first visited the Kruger National Park with my family in 1983 - since then a lot of things have changed as far as the tourist elements are concerned, but the park still remains the flagship of the South African National Parks and a conservation success story. Set aside to conserve ALL the species found within the park, we often complain that we cannot drive off road, there are not enough tourist roads in some areas and the congestion at Cat...
Posted on 1st Jul 2014 in Stories From The Bush|
This will be our 4th year of running photo safaris to the world famous Mala Mala Private Game Reserve in South Africa and it has been a real privilege to have been lucky enough to spend time with the animals in this reserve, especially the Leopards. Through my experiences in the african bush, there is no better place on the planet to photograph Leopards in the wild. I have certainly photographed Leopards in all the locations I run tours to,...
Posted on 1st Jun 2014 in TIPS & Techniques|Stories From The Bush|
In my mind the winner of the "Best Ruffle" competition amongst the eagles of Africa is undoubtedly the BATELEUR EAGLE (Terathopius ecaudatus). This is a strikingly beautiful Eagle which obtains its colourful adult plumage at around 7 years. Identifying this eagle is quite easy as it has a very short tail (ecaudatus in Latin) The words "Bateleur" in French and "Gaukler" in German both describe this bird as an acrobat or street performer - a basic description of the way the...
Posted on 1st May 2014 in Stories From The Bush|
I thought I would post a short blog on an interesting sighting we had last year in the Moremi Game Reserve, on the eastern fringe of the Okavango Delta. As usual our mornings start early on safari and we were huddled around our morning campfire to keep warm and enjoy a nice cup of coffee and a few rusks. We were interrupted by a Lion roaring very close by. We went to see if we could spot the culprit, and...
We couldn’t have enjoyed our trip with Wild 4 more. We were made to feel extremely welcome right from our very first e-mail contact, something which continued throughout our trip and beyond. We’d like to thank Stu, Justyna, Ann, & John for being such wonderful and enthusiastic hosts. Being looked after by such a friendly and caring family was a delight and we were very reluctant to leave after two weeks.
Stu is a very knowledgeable, hard-working and helpful guide, always on hand with useful pointers and offering us plenty of encouragement to experiment with our photography. Having a whole row each of a specially adapted safari vehicle was a real find, ensuring we didn’t miss out on any of the action. Being able to stay out in the bush all day was also a real bonus. While many other vehicles drove off after only a few minutes, we were able to spend hours observing groups of lions and other wildlife.
As this was our first African safari, Stu suggested we spend the first few nights at the Big Cats reserve and this proved to be a magical experience, with some great close-up action that resulted in some beautiful shots. It is a great place to hone your existing skills & learn some new ones.
Given the opportunity we would go again tomorrow without any hesitation. Simply perfect!
Arnoud & Lynsey Van Foreest, NETHERLANDS
We recently travelled to South Africa for a safari led by Wild 4 African Photographic Safaris. To put things simply, we were completely blown away. I had been on safari before, and had expectations that I thought were reasonable, but Wild 4 completely exceeded those expectations in so many ways.
First of all, Justyna handled all of our travel and trip details with exceptional professionalism and always responded to even our most basic questions quickly and in a very detailed manner. Once we had arrived in South Africa, we were met by our guide Stu Porter, who I cannot say enough good things about. He is so organised and cordial. Stu was spotting things that we couldn’t believe that he was spotting, which almost always led to an amazing wildlife experience that we never saw coming. His knowledge and understanding of the wildlife and ecosystem was outstanding, and he went to great lengths to insure that we had the best chance of capturing a great photo, without compromising the rules of the park or the integrity of the animals and ecology within it. His understanding and respect for the wildlife and surroundings made the trip so much more than just a “drive around and look at whatever we see” kind of experience.
I know that you can never predict what kind of experience you will have when you go out into the wild, and often it’s up to nature to decide what events you will be a part of, but in all honesty, I can’t imagine a better guide than Stu Porter. We will be doing our future trips to Africa with Wild 4, and cannot recommend them highly enough. Thank you so much for what a lot of people call “the trip of a lifetime”, although we feel that this is only the beginning of many trips of a lifetime. Thank you, Wild 4!!
James Smith, USA
