Dave to the left, in action!

Guest interview with Dave Estment. **All images below were taken by and are owned by Dave Estment.

We are absolutely delighted to share Part II of our guest interview with wildlife photographer Dave Estment. In this second part of the interview, Dave offers his insider tips on how to photograph wildlife on an African safari vacation.

If you want to know the specific details of shooting phenomenal wildlife photography then you definitely want to check out this interview with Dave. He is an exceptional photographer, videographer, and photography mentor.

If you missed Part I of this post, click here to view it.

Q: What are some of the best photography tips you have for safari goers who are on a bumpy game drive? Specifically, how can they capture the best images with the movement variable?

Before I advise you on what to do, let me give some advice to your game guide. He or she (female guides are quite common these days, and they are generally very good), as a qualified professional, is obliged to make your drive as interesting as possible. This includes taking into account the photographers on the vehicle. So make it a point to let them know who the photographers are in your group. In most cases, they will correctly position the vehicle for you to ensure the sun is behind you and the subject is well positioned. Most important, they will turn the engine off to minimise vibration and allow you the best chance to get the great image you are after.

Springbuck

By the same token, if there are non-photographers on the vehicle, be aware that they do not want to wait all day for you to set up your shot, so please be considerate and remember that photography can be a selfish pastime.

It is also a common courtesy for everyone on the vehicle to be quiet at a sighting to prevent the animals from panicking and to have them behave naturally for the benefit of all. Talk and laugh as much as you like between sightings, but you will be assured a far more enjoyable experience if everyone keeps quiet and still when in the company of animals you wish to spend some time with.

Now let me describe what I call the BIG FIVE.

1. PREPARE YOUR EQUIPMENT BEFORE YOU LEAVE ON THE DRIVE

Ensure that . . .

• Your batteries are fully charged and that you have spares (do not forget spare flash batteries!).

• Your camera bodies have the appropriate lenses attached for the type of shooting you are planning to do.

• You have the equipment directly at hand to enable you to respond immediately to any opportunity that may present itself. In the bush, things happen really fast, so stay calm and try not to panic. EVER. Get the shot!!!!

• Your memory cards have been formatted, or that you have enough space available on them to capture all the images you may wish to take.

• You have accessories like speedlights, tripods, etc., freely available.

Young male lion

2. THE FIVE KINGS

This is important. Practice being aware of these five essential settings, and check them before and during each shoot or game drive:

Camera Mode – A good default setting is Aperture Priority (A). Adjust your aperture to the largest option your lens allows, preferably F4 (not F2.8, as that makes your depth of field too shallow). This will allow the highest possible shutter speed for the available light, minimizing blur during a snapped-off shot. You can, of course, use the other modes, but ensure that you know and understand their uses. Program mode (P), or idiot mode, is an option, but be careful not to allow too slow shutter speeds in this case as the camera will compromise if you allow it to!

ISO Setting – Based on the old ASA settings from film camera days, this allows you to shoot in low light situations at acceptable shutter speeds, by using higher ISO settings such as 3200. But always remember this does compromise the images in terms of graininess, so the rule of thumb is to use the lowest possible ISO (100 or 200) in the circumstance.

Quality Setting – JPEG or RAW?! Good question. If you are a budding pro, RAW every time. If you don’t have time for conversions, go JPEG Fine. Just remember, RAW enables you to correct white balance and a number of other parameters without any loss of quality, and you can convert to JPEG or TIFF when you have made any adjustments you may need to. In JPEG, you can’t, and you will be limited to your generic image adjustment program (the best is Adobe Photoshop, in my humble opinion). Fine, medium, or small image quality? Always fine, as you can downsize, but you cannot upsize a low-res image.

Exposure Compensation Setting – Remember, your camera will generally select an average exposure based on the entire frame content, which is fine if everything is equally lit. BUT if you have a backlit or fore-lit subject, you need to either over or underexpose your camera’s setting to correctly expose your subject. A backlit subject will appear as a silhouette in an averaged exposure, which means you need to compensate by overexposing, and vice versa for a fore-lit subject. In the case of a backlit subject, use a fill-in flash, which works very well to allow an evenly lit exposure.

White Balance – You can use Automatic in most circumstances with the more modern cameras, but it is far from foolproof. Try to be aware of the lighting conditions, and use the setting most appropriate for the current situation. White balance works on what is known as Kelvin temperature, going from the ‘COLD’ (Blue) end of the spectrum, to the ‘WARM’ (Orange) end of the spectrum. It can become complicated, but generally, the defaults supplied on most cameras work well.

Just remember to reset White Balance as often as conditions change. For example, when it goes from bright sunlight to cloudy to shadow, you would adjust three times, or end up with a bluish or orange tint to your images. OR just use the Auto setting, and hope for the best! If you have shot in RAW, you can fix it!

Whitefaced Whistling Ducks

3. FOCUS IS EVERYTHING!

No matter what anyone tells you, if you do not have the focal point of any image perfectly in focus—whether it be just the eye of an animal, or some hairs on a macro subject, or whether it be the focal point of a wide-angle landscape—it is not a perfect shot. PERIOD! Apart from the other parameters requisite in a great image, if the focus is not exactly there, do not waste your time with it.

In a panned, slow-shutter-release shot of a leopard chasing its prey, or a panned high-speed shot of a raptor to freeze the beauty of its feathers and the finer detail, the focal point must be right. Not the tip of the raptor’s wing if you were aiming to focus on the eye, not the bush behind the leopard when you were aiming to focus on it and the prey’s eyes. This will totally detract from the image you wanted to portray.

Honestly, this is probably the most difficult skill to master in photography, so practice, practice, practice!! It is the single most important ingredient that will distinguish your work. And remember, autofocus helps a lot, but it is not the Holy Grail by any stretch of the imagination. The human eye, well trained, is the answer. No question.

Pale Chanting Goshawk

4. GET CREATIVE

In these modern days of digital photography, we no longer have to worry about the price of film, which was a huge cost consideration in the old days. Now you can buy memory for next to nothing, so USE IT!

Do a photographic course with your local college, then practice ALL the different techniques you learn about, and start mixing them up. You can have huge amounts of fun by deliberately experimenting with different permutations of shutter speed, aperture, ISO, exposure compensation, etc.

Be totally honest with yourself and your peers about your results—focusing on what you are happy with, what you are battling with, etc. Most importantly, remember that there is never a stupid question, so share ideas.

5. BUY THE BEST EQUIPMENT YOU CAN AFFORD

There is no doubt that modern compact point and shoot cameras can take really nice pics, but do not believe for a second that they can compete with higher-end or professional equipment. Shutter-lag, sensor technology and size, lens quality, and functionality are just a couple of issues to take into account when selecting equipment for wildlife photography.

Wildlife is a difficult genre to master, and using the best gear that your budget and degree of passion allows will certainly give you the best chance to do well at it. Ask a pro for advice, not the salesman at your local store, as you may end up with what they want to sell, not what you actually need!

Yellow-Billed Hornbill

About Outdoor Video and Photographic

Outdoor Video & Photographic (OV&P) is a joint venture between Dave Estment and his wife Naomi, based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Dave handles the outdoor and action photography, while Naomi runs the studio (OV&P Studio), specializing in modeling portfolios and product photography. Videography, they share.

Website: www.ovandp.co.za

Email: dave.e@mweb.co.za

Mobile: +27 82 882 7272

More of Dave’s wildlife photography can also be viewed on his wife’s blog: Naomi’s Notes (www.naomiestment.wordpress.com)

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