If you want to capture amazing photos of wild predators in action, head over to South Africa. The favorite filming destination for wildlife photographers, the southern regions of the Dark Continent are home to some of the world’s rarest animal species such as cheetahs, leopards and rhinos and if you are daring enough, you may get a chance to see them during a safari in one of the continent’s picturesque national parks. But before you close the door and set out on your wild African adventure, make sure you have all the essentials for the trip safely packed and ready for use. Here are top five tips on how to capture Africa’s wildlife during a safari and create pictures worthy of the title of a photography masterpiece.

Bring along tons of digital storage

As you will probably be busy filming fascinating creatures during the safari, ample storage space for your images is a must-have. Africa is known for sluggish internet service, so do not rely on cloud storage or fast network posting, and pack multiple microSD cards which you will be able to swap on the fly. Or better still, bring along an external storage device with a fail-safe backup system that will enable you to transfer the files without the need for a PC and minimize card replacement hassle. Another option is to have your laptop always at hand as it will allow you to transfer images faster, organize them on the spot, upload them to an online photography platform such as EyeEm and minimize the risk of data loss.

Go for long lens shots

When filming animals on a safari, you probably will not always be able to get close enough for a good shot. This is why bringing along a set of different lens is not only recommendable but also necessary for capturing quality pictures. If you intend to use prime lens only, go for 300mm lens and above – but if you want sheer photography eye candy, bring along a 100mm telephoto zoom lens just to be on the safe side.

Pack lots of power

An often neglected aspect on photography tours, additional power for your electronics can be a major problem in wild Africa. To avoid battery drain on the go, pack a power inverter or solar panel to charge your gear in areas with no stable electricity supply. Also, make sure you bring along tons of extra batteries – a hefty power brick stock will have all your bases covered in case other charging options go awry.

Make notes at the end of the day

In order to keep you pictures organized and remember every detail of the trip, take notes about the experience at the end of each day or during breaks of the safari. A notebook and a pen are a convenient way to capture the names of animals, locations and other details about the trip you consider important – and the good old-fashioned ink and paper also allow you to capture your own thoughts and emotions about the adventure.

Hire a pop-top vehicle

Though roll-tops are a great ride for people looking to film birds and sky, most photographers prefer pop-tops for filming animals and the surrounding scenery. Pop-tops do have a limited filming area, but they provide ample shade during the ride, and this can be a precious asset on a long safari day of a hot African summer. Check with your operator which types of vehicles they have on offer, compare the prices and pick the one that suits your budget and photography style best.

Africa’s national parks are the best destination for an exciting photography tour. If you want to capture fascinating wild creatures on film, consider embarking on a safari across the untamed landscapes of South Africa – it is an experience you will remember for the rest of your life.

Author bio:

Oliver Hyde is an experienced business consultant from the UK. His job allows him to travel, which also happens to be one of his greatest passions. Recently, he discovered the truth behind the saying “The only man I truly envy is the one who has not yet been to Africa… he has so much to look forward to.” Being a wanderer, he rarely stays at the same place for a long time, but Africa stole his heart. He had been travelling through the continent for more than a year. You can follow his travel adventures on Twitter.

Where is Mount Mabu?

I watched a documentary about this rainforest and it caught my imagination. Fancy using today’s technology ‘Google Earth’ and discovering a forgotten rainforest deep in the mountainous north of Mozambique! The video below is an interview with Dr Julian Bayliss about the discovery back in 2005 and further links to news articles from the time. Extraordinary stuff!

Mount Mabu and its surrounding virgin rainforest in northern Mozambique covers approximately 7,000 hectares. Mount Mabu is approximately 1,700 m (5,600 ft) high. Although it was known locally, the Mount Mabu forest and its extremely diverse wildlife were unknown to plant and animal scientists until 2005. It was ‘discovered’ by scientists from Kew Royal Botanic Gardens by browsing Google Earth’s satellite view to look for potential unknown wildlife hotspots in Africa. It is frequently referred to as the ‘Google Forest’ and the ‘Butterfly Forest’.

Lonely Planet Zambia Mozambique & Malawi

Map

TravelTipsPlus Google Map of Mount Mabu

One Great Reason to Visit Mount Mabu

One great reason to visit this travel destination is because no one else rarely does!

Dr. Julian Bayliss: The Lost Forest of Mount Mabu

For More Information

• Wikipedia
• Related Article about the discovery

Travel Photo of the Week: Amethystine Python

During our lovely break to Port Douglas we took a day trip northwards to explore the Daintree Rainforest region to Cape Tribulation. After crossing the Daintree River we stopped at the superb Daintree Discovery Centre. A must if you are in the area! The centre has won a multitude of awards in both general tourism and ecotourism. The highlight is most definitely the aerial walkway which takes you into various levels of the rainforest canopy and finishing off with a climb up the canopy tower to view of the rainforest treetops.

Whilst ambling along the elevated boardwalk with a small cluster of visitors, a young lady beside me called ‘Snake‘. We all stopped in our steps wondering where this snake was. As it turned out it, it was right in front of us and intertwined with the rainforest vines – very well camouflaged. The snake was an Amethystine Python and a small movement had caught the lady’s eye. Very well spotted we all thought! The small movement turned into further movements until it’s head poked out for some classic photos to be taken. What a good sport!

I recently took another little power-break with the family and headed out of Melbourne to one of our favourite little spots, ‘Wood Duck Cottage‘ in Yea. We’re so lucky to be able to drive no more than an hour and have State Forests, bush walks and farm life to enjoy.

During our 4 day break and when on a little walk near the cottage, we came across this little fellow who was ambling along in the drain way by the unmade road. As you can see, he blends beautifully with the dry mud, leaves and grass. This was one of many photos we managed to get of the echidna but we also got one when he had his little nosed tucked up beneath him, in a tight ball and said “You can’t see me!”