Category: CHRISTIAN SPERKA PHOTOGRAPHY

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Trails Guiding Course – Walk No.1

Well, I did it!

Everyone – that knows me – knows that walking is not my forte. But I enjoyed my first Trails Guiding Course walk and I not even too tired. We tried to find Rhino or Buffalo but were not successful tonight. Nevertheless we saw a beautiful small flower (Impala Lily) and a group of the smallest predator on the Sabi Sands Game Reserve (Dwarf Mongoose).

PS: All pictures on the walks are being taken with a Panasonic Lumix DMC-ZS-10. I do not carry an SLR on the walks. Also, if you like to know more about the Trails Guiding Course go to http://www.africanaturetraining.co.za. A great experience, even if you do it for fun and not for professional reasons.

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Large and Small

This morning we had two visitors in the camp. A breeding herd of Elephant and a Chameleon.

The herd walked around the camp and then they took dust baths on the road nearby.

The Flap-necked Chameleon spent its time sunning next to the road.

Enjoy the pictures!

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Bush Accommodation!

Well, after a nine-hour car ride from Kwazulu Natal to Mpumalanga I have arrived at the Nkombe Camp on Sabi Sabi.

This is a picture of my home for the next seven days. The camp is in a big five area, so I expect quite a few nightly visitors around the camp. I will set up a trap camera (with motion sensor) in front of my tent to capture all wildlife that passes through at night.

Here are also three pictures I took from the car while I was driving. The first gives an impression of the scenery, the second of the special road condition (You are not supposed to stop, so speeding is no problem 🙂 and the third of bovine road blocks!

 

It was an interesting and enjoyable, but very long, trip. Now I am tired. A quick bucket shower, then dinner and an early night!

PS: My 3G USB internet modem works great around the camp. Modern times in the bush 🙂

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Rifles, Trails, Landis and Snakes

End of this week I will be leaving Thanda for almost a month to attend four different educational courses.

I will attend a Advanced Rifle Handling Course (to learn how to handle a rifle in a dangerous game encounter) and a Trails Guiding Course. Both course are held by Africa Nature Training (ANT – http://www.africanaturetraining.co.za). The aim of the Trails Guiding Course is to learn – in many contact sessions – how to guide and view dangerous game on foot (Lions, Elephants, Buffalo, Leopards, Rhinos, Hyenas and Hippos).

A Land Rover Experience is also on the program. The goal is to learn how to better handle a Land Rover in off-road situations. And last but not least I will attend a Reptile and Snake Handling Course.

The Advanced Rifle Handling and the Land Rover courses will be held around Pretoria, the Trails Guiding course will be held at Sabi Sabi Game Reserve and the snake handling course will be near Hoedspruit. So will be getting around a bit 🙂

During this time I will have limited internet access, so my blogs may be not as frequent as usual, but I will try to keep you updated on my trails guiding adventures!

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More of Mkuze …

As promised here are a few more pictures from my day at Mkuze Game Reserve.

Have a great week!

White Rhino (with mudded horn)

White Rhino

Brown-hooded Kingfisher (bathing)

Brown-hooded Kingfisher

Purple-crested Turaco

Cape Turtle Dove (landing)

Blue Waxbill

Crested Barbet

 

Technical Data – for photographers 🙂

Rhino – Picture 1 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm – 1/2000sec – f/4.5 – ISO 400 – +/-0eV – freehand

Rhino – Picture 2 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/2.8-300mm – 1/1250sec – f/2.8 – ISO 400 – +/-0eV – freehand

Kingfisher – Picture 3 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L 28-300mm – at 150mm – 1/2000sec – f/5.6 – ISO 800 – +0.67eV – freehand

Kingfisher – Picture 4 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm + 1.4Ext at 700mm – 1/500sec – f/5.6 – ISO 200 – +/-0eV – freehand

Turaco – Picture 5 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm + 1.4Ext at 700mm – 1/500sec – f/5.6 – ISO 200 – +/-0eV – freehand

Dove – Picture 6 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm – 1/5000sec – f/4.5 – ISO 800 – -0.67eV – freehand

Waxbill – Picture 7 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm + 1.4Ext at 700mm – 1/800sec – f/5.6 – ISO 200 – -1.00eV – freehand

Barbet – Picture 8 – Camera Canon 1D Mark IV – Lens Canon L f/4.0-500mm – 1/3200sec – f/4 – ISO 400 – -0.67eV – freehand

 

 

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Force of Nature, Rhino Spa and Purple Beauty

As I am having this weekend off I went today into Mkuze Game Reserve and spent the whole day at the hides on the reserve. I got many very good pictures and will share a few of them with you over the next few weeks (on “Slow Thanda Days” :-)).

For today I have picked three pictures.

The first is titled “Force of Nature”. Four White Rhino made their way straight to the waterhole. From the angle this picture is taken they certainly look loke a force of nature.

The second picture is of a White Rhino bull having a “Rhino Spa” mud treatment. He enjoyed himself thoroughly walling on the side of the waterhole.

The third picture is of Purple-crested Turcao, one of my favorite birds in South Africa, a “Purple-crested Beauty”.

More pictures will follow tomorrow. Have a great Sunday!

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G&T at Sunset

Today we took all volunteers up to a nice spot to have a G&T at sunset 🙂

A very enjoyable way to end a day!

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Roar!

Today’s post is my first small video project since I have arrived in South Africa. Mid of last week all my remaining equipment arrived from Amerika and I am now able to produce videos.

During this morning’s game drive I took a short video segment of one of our male Lions roaring. A Lion’s roar – heard a few meters away from the animal – is one of the most astonishing sound experiences on earth. One cannot only hear the roar but one can feel the vehicle vibrating from the sound. The sound on this video is only a meek representation of the real thing 🙂

Have a great week!

PS: This male was recently introduced to the reserve. That is the reason why he still wears a radio tracking collar.

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Kingfishers

For the Kingfisher lovers among you – as promised 🙂

PS: I got pictures of seven of the ten Kingfisher species in Kwazulu Natal. I will try get pictures of the other three species (Grey-headed Kingfisher, Striped Kingfisher, Half-collared Kingfisher) in time 🙂

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Outtakes

When I was selecting, sorting and filing the images I took since I arrived at Thanda I came across a few pictures I liked very much, but which did not make it onto my blog at the time. So here are four of these “outtakes”.

The first is of a small bird trying to reach the pollen on a Mountain Aloe. It is a Long-billed Crombec.

The second is of a small Vervet Monkey sunning itself in a tree.

The third is of two juvenile Lions of the Thanda North Pride “staking” a Warthog across a waterhole (for the Warthog lovers among you: the Warthog was never in danger from these two 🙂

The fourth picture is of a bunch of Red-billed Oxpeckers riding on the back of a Buffalo. The Buffalos, like most large mammals, love the Oxpeckers because they eat the Ticks of their back.

I hope you enjoy this set of “outtakes”!

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