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Went on an African Safari. Got Professional long glass, etc. Got Lightroom too. Here are the results. (imgur.com)

submitted ago by brooklynite

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[–]jukeefe 20 points21 points ago

I'm no pro photographer, but I thought this photograph was unbelievable, definitely my favorite.

Looks like you had a great time!

[–]brooklynite[S] 6 points7 points ago

I'm glad you enjoyed and it was more than a great time - it was a life changing experience!

[–]Skudworth 27 points28 points ago

I have to disagree. This photograph was easily the best of the set.

[–]importantnameselectn 2 points3 points ago

The one that reddit deserves.

[–]LastAXEL -1 points0 points ago

Link's broken for me! I must know which one you thought was best! aaahhh.

[–]acethree 30 points31 points ago

Great stuff! My wife and I went to Kruger a few years ago, and had the times of our lives.

I brought: 100-400 dust trombone w/1.4, 70-200 f4 IS, 24-70 2.8L, 10-22.

Here's a short album of mine: http://imgur.com/a/2BvrF

[–]brooklynite[S] 5 points6 points ago

Looks like a great time and you did Cape Town too!

Thanks for sharing

[–]deepestbluest 5 points6 points ago

upvote for "dust trombone"

I've always liked that term, alone with "magic drainpipe" when lovingly referring to Canon L-glass

[–]deserted 7 points8 points ago

Why did the Cheetah cross the road?

[–]rexy666 14 points15 points ago

to be photographed and seen on Reddit

[–]brooklynite[S] 18 points19 points ago

They're leopards and the answer is probably to find food!

[–]doingitaverage 8 points9 points ago

I don't get it.

[–]RESERVA42 7 points8 points ago

Beautiful photos. You mentioned the glass... so what camera? I'm just curious if it was APS-C or not.

[–]brooklynite[S] 6 points7 points ago

It was indeed a C - D7000. Crop sensor actually comes in handy in situations like this because if you can extend the reach without losing the speed you're doing a huge favor in long shooting situations.

[–]RESERVA42 3 points4 points ago

By stalking your post history a little, I discovered you are a recruiter... what kind of recruiter?

[–]brooklynite[S] 3 points4 points ago

Financial Services. It's how I pay for this stuff!

[–]RESERVA42 4 points5 points ago

I have absolutely no idea what a financial services recruiter does. But good on you for traveling so much and taking such excellent photos.

[–]brooklynite[S] 10 points11 points ago

I find people that work in FS for jobs that my clients engage me on and find candidates who want new roles and shop them around. Thanks for the kind words!

[–]mbrown9412 1 point2 points ago

That's what I've got! It's a fantastic body. What lenses were you using?

[–]Burotino 13 points14 points ago

Nice photos. I think your composition needs some work. Too many shots cropped with the subject in the center. Otherwise, technically great pics.

[–]brooklynite[S] 12 points13 points ago

One of the troubles with shooting live animals in the wild (as I know now firsthand) is that it's really tough to frame the subject before the subject moves. Small movements can cut stuff off entirely so a lot of times it's do your best, don't cut anything off and pray for the results!

[–]DontPokeThatPlease 9 points10 points ago

I was always told that due to the nature of higher-resolution photography now, you should be composing with the intention of cropping some of that 20-odd megapixel image down in post. Always be a little generous - remember it's easier to take away part of the image than it is to get part back!

(Saying that I thought most of your composition was fine!)

[–]brooklynite[S] 5 points6 points ago

Thanks! I would consider cropping now, the D7000 is 16.1 MP and surprisingly, you see a lot of digital noise when you take a small crop you're actually taking a larger percentage of surface area and then the grain crops up. Thanks again for the kind words.

[–]corinmcblide 2 points3 points ago

that's sorta my theory when i shoot. i have a canon 5dmk2 so its a full frame sensor and 21.1 MP. the raw files are 5616x3744 so there's a lot of room for cropping. and since i'm not planning on printing them out large scale, i can still crop down to a 1920x1080 image and it's still going to look sharp.

[–]lightstaver 0 points1 point ago

A certain amount of cropping is fine but you want to keep it to a minimum. The main thing for a professional photographer is practice, anticipation, and patients. I worked as a photographer for a while and I found that you got to seeing the photo that was going to come out of a situation before you took it so I was mainly working to make it work and taking a LOT of photos so you had some to choose from once you could devote more detailed scrutiny to it. I walked away from a two month expedition with over six thousand photos and narrowed it down to around 100 and that was a good ratio.

[–]DontPokeThatPlease 0 points1 point ago

In fairness it depends on what medium you're shooting for - as long as you're never really going below 300DPI for print you can crop to your heart's content. It's always nice to take that perfect photo in-camera but due to how photography has evolved, a little extra breathing room gives you more flexibility at no negligible cost.

[–]werwer335 0 points1 point ago

did you try to politely ask them to stay quiet?

[–]r42 4 points5 points ago

So... how much does it cost to go do this?

[–]brooklynite[S] 5 points6 points ago

It's not cheap. Fixed costs being variable depending on where you are coming from, figure ~$1000/couple/day all inclusive with a professional driver and good accommodations.

There's nothing in Kruger between the public camps (where you self drive and cook your own food) and the private concessions, which are very, very nice lodges.

[–]gordonj 3 points4 points ago

If you self-drive it's probably only about $200-300 per day for a couple, possibly cheaper if you can get some good tips. There's plenty of other places to explore in southern africa too. I spent 7 weeks in Botswana, Namibia and a bit of South Africa sleeping in a tent on top of a 4X4, and it was awesome!

[–]brooklynite[S] 4 points5 points ago

I'd say you're about right on that cost, without the car you'd have to rent.

The thing is - you need a guide. Guides don't just know the roads, they know HOW to spot animals and most importantly, how to TRACK them.

[–]gordonj 5 points6 points ago

That's the reason we took the car. It was still expensive (~100/day + fuel), but it's accommodation + storage and facilities as well. I'm sure a guide certainly would help, especially if they know the area well. Luckily for me I grew up in southern Africa, so I kinda knew where I wanted to go, and I'm not too bad at spotting animals. We managed to see loads of animals anyway, and I always enjoy the searching part itself. You never know when you're about to see something awesome! One of the highlights was a guided trip into the Okavango delta on dugout canoes. It included all meals, equipment and a guide for 2 nights, and it was actually relatively inexpensive (200-300pp). Activities were game walks and canoe trips, all with the guide.

[–]r42 1 point2 points ago

Looks pretty amazing though; would love to even see that stuff let alone get such good photos from it.

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Oh absolutely!

[–]irenedakota 0 points1 point ago

You can do it far cheaper by staying in the b&b lodges outside Kruger. Most are within 20 minutes drive of a gate. Of course you lose that 'in the wild' feeling.

[–]benwubbleyou 4 points5 points ago

I just want to say you did an amazing job in your post work, nothing looks too over exposed (That first photo with the cheetah was incredible), and every color just pops perfectly, you own this.

[–]brooklynite[S] 3 points4 points ago

Thanks a lot! This Lightroom thing is new to me (I am not really a fan of editing my shots, prefer to try and capture them properly) but because of haze and light conditions early morning and post-sundown I thought a bit of boosting here and there was necessary. Thanks for looking!

[–]DantesDame 2 points3 points ago

Much to my husband's chagrin, I am a "purist" when it comes to digital photos and I despise post-production work. However, I can understand that it can help when used in moderation.

How much would you say that you had to adjust in your photos to get them to what you wanted? Did you have some that were 100% right off the card or did they all need some sort of tweaking?

[–]hank101 0 points1 point ago

My faves are the ones with the wild boars, very cool. Feels like I just flipped through a years worth of national geographic, awesome pics! My only critique is that some of the yellows are a little harsh, no offense, I know the sun was setting and it was the golden hour, but I would take them down by one notch (only on one or two pics of the tigers?).

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Thanks for the feedback! I can certainly play with some tone and fix those issues.

The big cats are some of the toughest sightings and that's why there are disproportionately few of them, unfortunately!

[–]acethree 2 points3 points ago

I rented the 100-400 when we went, but almost purchased it. Apparently (at the time I went, at least) photography equipment in S.A. is absurdly expensive. A lot of tourists will purchase lenses, setup a local buyer, use the lens(es) on safari, then sell it to the local for essentially the same price as they originally bought it for (assuming it's still like-new).

The seller gets a free lens to use on their vacation, and the local buyer gets a fantastic discount on like-new equipment.

Not sure that's still the case, though.

[–]teralaser 0 points1 point ago

Nice. Which glass ?

[–]brooklynite[S] 5 points6 points ago

Nikon 70-200 f2.8. Also used a Nikon 1.4x TC.

[–]benwubbleyou 1 point2 points ago

my school has that lens. It takes stunning photos! Do you notice that it sort of desaturates the picture somewhat? Or is it the possibly the processing of my photos in lightroom...

[–]Redditor_on_LSD 1 point2 points ago

Is it the VRI or VRII? There are some differences in contrast and interestingly, the focal length (VRII isn't a true 200mm)

[–]Ninj4s 0 points1 point ago

the focal length (VRII isn't a true 200mm)

Explain?

[–]Redditor_on_LSD 0 points1 point ago

Scroll down about a quarter of the way

[–]benwubbleyou 0 points1 point ago

Just checked, I am using a VRII, ah ok, I noticed that the contrast seems to die off on the lens as a whole.

[–]bndcksts 1 point2 points ago

Where were you? I'm assuming part of the Kruger Natl park. I was there 2 years ago, it was awesome

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Correct indeed, sir!

[–]Biermann 0 points1 point ago

These are wonderful.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Thank you so much!

[–]ofcoursemyhorse 1 point2 points ago

Those be some awesome shots dude.

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Thanks so much!

[–]osiris1976 1 point2 points ago

Good decision to rent some good long glass. Too many people take trips like this, figure they'll save a few hundred bucks and don't bring the right gear and regret it for the rest of their lives. It's bad enough when you don't have the right lens in your own backyard, but out on Safari... if you even half love photography you pretty much owe it to yourself to load up.

Good job on the photos too. I can't really offer any critique since I haven't shot in that situation (yet).

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Absolutely. Even bringing my own 70-300 wouldn't have yielded the same results.

[–]horadriccube 0 points1 point ago

Im gonna use some of these as lockscreens on my phone ;]

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Enjoy!

[–]kozicka 1 point2 points ago

I like them, I've been to Kenya a few times so know it can be a case of you get what you can with wild animals.

One thing I would say is that on my monitor the images might need the shadows boosting, seems to be a bit of detail lost there which would be fine but I can see it a lot on your subjects themselves.

e.g.: http://i.imgur.com/qnaE0.jpg the histogram is quite a bit to the left, I'd bring the exposure up a stop or so to get the details back in the face, I wouldn't worry too much about over exposing inconsequential parts of the shot, get the exposure right for the subject :)

Same in these: http://i.imgur.com/sZK4E.jpg http://i.imgur.com/FZ131.jpg http://i.imgur.com/Yejnb.jpg

Also they do look a bit over saturated (yellow as someone mentioned).

Otherwise some nice shots which I think if you tweak a bit further will give you some nice prints to frame :)

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Thanks a lot for all the feedback - I've played with exposure and highlights settings and my big complaint is always digital noise that's introduced... I am going to look at some more of these and tweak further with your pointers! Thanks!

[–]kozicka 0 points1 point ago

Can't tell what settings you were using as there's no EXIF data, thought you would be OK for noise on a D7000? Lightroom noise reduction should work well enough? I have a D300s and ISO noise is usually OK and fixable up to 1600.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Noise is still noise - the high ISO settings on the 7000 are good but nothing's perfect. Lightroom NR kills and definition around edges and I'm not a fan.

Any full frame sensor I think will have better NR than an APS-C

[–]venegirl 0 points1 point ago

Wow these are some amazing sitings! I was the limpopo area for a couple months this summer and never saw leopards during the day like that (though others in our group had a couple mating near by them one day). And did you get sick of seeing impala after a while? We had to count them in our smaller reserve and it was definitely dreaded. I only had a couple days in the actual Kruger park, I had one of the most amazing days of my life there.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

It's funny because our guide talked down on impala and I saw why as our trip progressed - they really are everywhere. Contrary to his opinion, I really found them to be fabulous animals. Not scared of people, photogenic, powerful looking and they traveled in packs.

[–]venegirl 1 point2 points ago

Haha I definitely love them. They have been described as the perfect antelope because of how graceful they look and how they are the image people have in their head whenever you mention an antelope. They just aren't so great if you have to age and count every group you come across :) What surprised me was that Addo Elephant Park on the southern coast had absolutely no impala and instead had many more kudu. It was a very strange experience not seeing impala everywhere on a safari after getting used to it for months.

[–]fudgemunk 0 points1 point ago

great pictures. I went on an African safari (Masai Mara, Serengeti, Ngorongoro, Lake Nakuru, Amboseli) and gorilla trekking (Rwanda) this past august. Here are some of my shots:

Just a bunch of shots from all over the trip

Aftermath of the Great Migration

Gorilla Trekking in Rwanda

Used Nikon D700 with an AF-S Nikkor 18-300mm F3.5-5.6G ED VR lens.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

OMG the baby gorillas. Amazing.

This is quite a different trip than mine!

[–]lowisathesecond 1 point2 points ago

I am so jealous about the leopard! I was in Tansania, but in first place to climb the Kilimanjaro. I had a little Safari, too - but I weren't able to take very good photos since the interesting animals like lions often were far away. I wish i had leopard-pictures like yours. http://www.flickr.com/photos/lowisaftw/sets/72157629496666701/detail/ these are my pictures - and sorry for my bad english

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

I love "Kindergarten"

[–]lowisathesecond 0 points1 point ago

Thanks :)

[–]Veeno 0 points1 point ago

This is absolutely stunning- thank you so much for sharing! I didn't want the album to end.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

I am so glad you enjoyed!

[–]european_impostor 0 points1 point ago

Check out what some of the locals have been doing: http://www.mazdawildlifephotography.com

[–]TandemSegue 0 points1 point ago

Pretty sure you just took pictures of Harrisonator's dad's sketchbook

[–]goezzel 0 points1 point ago

awesome! where did you go?

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

South Africa and Swaziland - primarily Kruger for the safari, then the entirety of Swaziland, KwaZulu Natal, Durban and Cape Town.

[–]theJUIC3_isL00se 1 point2 points ago

Great shots!

Although it was mentioned already, I feel the need to reiterate that a lot of your shots seem too cropped. I actually like your wide angle shots much more.

Overall, great work. I am very jealous of the D7000. Although I shoot Canon, the D7000 almost tempted me to the dark... er... yellow side. :)

[–]calesta_the_iezu 1 point2 points ago

I hope you don't mind, but I snagged http://i.imgur.com/1FzNg.jpg and http://i.imgur.com/2Tess.jpg as wallpapers for my laptop. I love big cats and the first pic I mentioned is absolutely stunning!

[–]brooklynite[S] 2 points3 points ago

Enjoy!

[–]Wowsandles 0 points1 point ago

Those are awesome.....you have just made me homesick :(

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Are you from RSA?

[–]Irethfrest 0 points1 point ago

Thanks for this, it made my day!

[–]soyabstemio 0 points1 point ago

Excellent pics! Thanks for sharing.

[–]samwo 0 points1 point ago

In my head the whole time - http://youtu.be/gtU0nD61GEo

[–]tik_ 0 points1 point ago

How long did it take to upload all those to Imgur?

[–]TheHoneyBadger23 0 points1 point ago

These pictures were fascinating! Absolutely stunning!

[–]brownsound44 0 points1 point ago

beautiful shots :)

[–]SavageNutDump 0 points1 point ago

Fantastic pictures. I just now realized how stupid zebras look. Not because of the stripes, but that dopey-ness of their faces.

[–]willief 0 points1 point ago

Dude, trim it down to like a dozen phenomenal images.

[–]ohheykt 0 points1 point ago

Does anyone else have the urge to watch the Lion King now?

But seriously, great photos!

[–]dahliaface 0 points1 point ago

You should post a few of those to r/pics. They're incredible.

[–]birdnerd 0 points1 point ago

Any ID on the snake and/or the nightjar?

[–]doubleknot 2 points3 points ago

Nice, thanks for sharing. I enjoyed http://i.imgur.com/2A4CPh.jpg http://i.imgur.com/Fnljnh.jpg Back out just a bit, here. http://i.imgur.com/lpuyEh.jpg http://i.imgur.com/FlnX1h.jpg

I would've liked this one, I think, if Big Boy hadn't been cropped. Still nice, though. http://i.imgur.com/lcLqmh.jpg

I think this is nice, but I would've liked to have seen more of their necks. Maybe shot in portrait orientation. http://i.imgur.com/ct8g2h.jpg

Nice. I'm sure it will grow on me. I'd like to see if the image would hold up if you had cropped the elephant somewhat tighter. Still nice.
http://i.imgur.com/XaYSeh.jpg

All good. Cheers.

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Thank you for the feedback!

[–]epvdude 1 point2 points ago

These are amazing! You should check out this thing called "instagram", it makes all your pictures look much cooler.

[–]didyouwoof 0 points1 point ago

Great photos! Who was the subject of the large statue/bust toward the end?

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

It's Paul Kruger, the "father" of Kruger National Park. If you fly in to Hazyview or the surrounding airports you'll come in through Kruger Gate and see his bust.

[–]joeshaffer 0 points1 point ago

The words "Trip envy" come to mind.

[–]slapthatdough 0 points1 point ago

Beautiful pictures.

[–]01001111 0 points1 point ago

I went to Africa, too; Tanzania.

These are my pics.

[–]ResoL101 0 points1 point ago

Cool set.

[–]ShowerMeWithKitties 0 points1 point ago

So wonderful to see pictures! Especially the picture of the first bird, I believe a Lilac-breasted Roller. My guide taught me every bird we saw when I had the amazing experience of going To Africa back in 2011.

[–]goodburgar 0 points1 point ago

These are amazing!

[–]Babbzilla 0 points1 point ago

I was just wondering, would it be alright with you if I got some of these pics printed (not sure which or when cause of money and such) and hung them around my home? These are fantastic pictures and really look incredibly professional. I applaud you sir or ma'am!

[–]CornFedHonky -1 points0 points ago

Shakaka

[–]bdust 0 points1 point ago

There are some amazing shots in there, wow.

[–]spearedfish 0 points1 point ago

Amazing stuff, so much nicer to see them in the wild vs. a zoo setting.

[–]Fineus 0 points1 point ago

I hope you don't mind, I've re-posted this to a website I work with.

I've given credit to your Reddit name and linked to this thread, but if you'd like to provide your real name for credit (or if you'd rather I didn't report the shots) feel free to get in touch. My reasons are that they're truly fantastic shots that I'd like to share, not that I'd like to rip you off.

Have a great day and keep up the great work! :)

[–]zira6 0 points1 point ago

Good work.....

[–]SideburnsOfDoom 0 points1 point ago

You saw leopards you lucky person!

[–]brooklynite[S] 1 point2 points ago

Multiple sightings over multiple days. Probably the same male and female too. They are generally and locally territorial - they have a larger general area divided up into some smaller boundaries that they'll stay within, then rotate between them.

[–]SideburnsOfDoom 0 points1 point ago

I was in the Kruger park for three or four days. We went looking for game every morning and evening. Shone lights up all the trees when it was dawn or dusk. Not a single leopard was seen. It was a great trip, and we saw almost all the other big game. But you are lucky.

[–]brooklynite[S] 0 points1 point ago

Again, I totally agree! Sometimes you're in the right spot, others not.

I was light on lion sightings but what can you do!

[–]kulykat 0 points1 point ago

Absolutely fantastic photos.

Once I've finished spending all our money on a horse, veterinary science studies, and possibly babies (by the time I graduate, I'll be screaming for spawn), I will spend many many millions of dongs running around Africa with some very swish glass.

[–]mjbrownie 0 points1 point ago

Nat Geo?

[–]gryphtor 0 points1 point ago

Great stuff. Shoot photos, not bullets.

[–]VanessaSoIll 0 points1 point ago

Beautiful! I love love love giraffes!

[–]Aeri73 0 points1 point ago

how did you feel walking around africa with that expensive glass? no problems or fear of getting mugged?

[–]Rocket_Jockey 0 points1 point ago

Dude, you took me back home with this album. I felt so good to go through and know each of the animals by name without looking it up. It was like seeing old friends again and definitely as close as I've gotten to home in a long time, thank you.

[–]kickstand -1 points0 points ago

Now get a Flickr account.

[–]ivanalbright 1 point2 points ago

looks good. though i'd recommend adding a small watermark/credit of your name or website in the corner or bottom so people who see your photos can look you up later. easy to set up to do automatically in lightroom.

now that the photos are out there, they'll be reposted elsewhere and nobody will know who they belong to. (If I did all that hard work, I'd at least want credit for it, if not the possibility of selling prints to interested parties).

Also it makes it slightly more difficult for people to steal and sell prints without your knowledge. There are a lot of chinese/etc websites that crawl the internet and then sell illegal prints back to the the US of anything they want.

[–]kozmanoo -2 points-1 points ago

Why do I have you tagged as Brooly?

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