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xelas

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@@xyz99

 

Sri Lanka in August 2016 for 3 weeks. And Namibia in May 2017 for 2 1/2 weeks. Thanks for your encouraging words about our trips :) (and reports).

 

 

"Bring the cook....now, that's a problem..." do I see a business opportunity out there (anyone is looking for a driver&cook ^_^ ) ??

Edited by xelas
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"Bring the cook....now, that's a problem..." do I see a business opportunity out there (anyone is looking for a driver&cook ^_^ ) ??

 

Sound in wind and limb, one careful owner. Low maintenance. Clean licence. Can cook. Has own bottle opener. Free any time.

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(continued)

 

This morning highlight happened half way between Bedinkt and Langklaas waterholes. A lonely car was parked along the roadside. We stopped to ask why. There was a cheetah lying in the riverbed about 200 m away. Nice!

 

Cheetah in the grass

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The cheetah was enjoying the time, raising its head on several occasions. As experts have told us, never leave the sight too quickly. So after about 15 min (only later we realised that was as quick as it gets) a herd of wildebeests approached the position of the cheetah.

 

Wildebeests approaching

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As in the front only adult bulls were visible, the cheetah did not show any interest.

 

Adults only?! Not my day

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But as soon the 3 calfs emerged, it was obvious that the mood changed.

 

Ahhh, there is my meal

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Suddenly the attack exploded! The cheetah run was incredibly fast. The wildebeests did not even noticed the attacker until the last moment. From distance it was obvious that the cheetah has targeted on of the youngsters, and that, after initial panic, the adults returned to protect it. Here is the whole sequence captured:

 

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Was the hunt successful or not we have not been able to decide immediately as the huge cloud of dust obscured the scene of crime. When the dust settled down, cheetah was not visible anymore, and the wildebeest were running in the distance. Zvezda counted all three calfs so it must have been an unsuccessful hunt.

 

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Not only the cheetah sighting was closer than the one from last year, we have also witnessed the hunt from start to end! Life is good!!

 

​This event showed us why Kgalagadi is rightfully famous as one of the best places to photograph cheetah hunting. Both riverbeds are flat with minimal obstacles that might obscure the line of view in the critical moment. There was dust, of course, yet IMO it only adds to the overall drama of the event.

 

(to be continued)

 

 

 

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Towlersonsafari

What a fine day! And it does look so different with all that greenery!

Edited by Towlersonsafari
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@@xelas Wonderful cheetah sequence! I'm sitting with my morning coffee enjoying reading this. Looking forward to the next post.

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michael-ibk

Cheetah hunt! Now we´re talking business. :)

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@@xyz99

 

Sri Lanka in August 2016 for 3 weeks. And Namibia in May 2017 for 2 1/2 weeks. Thanks for your encouraging words about our trips :) (and reports).

 

 

"Bring the cook....now, that's a problem..." do I see a business opportunity out there (anyone is looking for a driver&cook ^_^ ) ??

 

If you drive and cook, you're hired on our next trip. I mean it :)

 

And on a 2nd thought, maybe we'll hire Zvezda the photographer, too. Great cheetah sequence!

Edited by xyz99
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Great sequence. On shots 8&9 you can make out the cheetah and one calf in contact but as there was no body, and she could not lift something that size, I think the adults drove the cat off. But it just shows the value of savouring a sighting and not just shoot and scoot!

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@@xelas no more moaning about me"taking up" all of the cheetah sightings then???

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@@Towlersonsafari

An excellent day ... and that was only the morning part!

 

@@Pennyanne

Now is the time for the second cup of coffee :).

 

@@michael-ibk

No. The cheetah was "talking business" :lol: . We were mere observers. In awe.

 

@@xyz99

Just let us know well in advance. We are already fully booked for 2016 :D !

 

@@Galana

Indeed!

 

@@Tdgraves

No more moaning! Maybe only a little one, about the leopard??

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Alexander33

I love the shots of the jackal with the wildebeest carcass. Lucky indeed. Exciting cheetah sequence!

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(continued)

 

After this action packed high octane episode, nature calmed down completely. The sunlight brings the colour green to an impossible level.

 

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Temperatures started to climb and four-legged animals withdraw to the shady parts. Only birds of prey remained visible. Usually on top of the trees

 

Greater Kestrel

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Why all birds of prey are looking at me?

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Then there was another 30 minutes of slow driving and slow sightings before we found this one

 

Tawny Eagle

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It was kind enough to gave Zvezda an opportunity to try her skills on BIF. This below is the whole sequence of how this huge bird take off

 

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Yes, there are some wing clippings; but lucky for you as otherwise you would need to buy the NG magazine :):D !

 

Eagle in the Sky (*)

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(*) Wilbur Smith is Zvezda's preferred novelist

 

On the way back to the Nossob Camp, at Cubitje Quap, this lovely sight was worthy of stopping and photographing.

 

Black-backed Jackal

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(to be continued)

Edited by xelas
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@@xelas, great Cheetah in flight sequence, I love that it is completely camouflaged in the scrub at full throttle and the Wildes' don't even see it coming til it's out in the open. Jackals really are beautiful, photogenic animals and that is a lovely photo with the reflection. really enjoyed the Tawny Eagle, well done Zvezda, who needs NG, it's all happening right here on ST.

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michael-ibk

The Leopard is waiting for me, and only for me. ;):P

Edited by michael-ibk
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@@xelas - I've said it before and I'll say it again...I love your wife's photography! It's really inspiring.

 

Can I ask what camera body do you use?

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Great cheetah action, with wonderful photos to complement it. That is quite something to witness!

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@ImSA84

 

Thank You, in her name. I have stated our gear in the opening post. Here is a copy/past from there:

 

Photo equipment (all Nikon):

Bodies: D610 and D7100

Lenses: 20mm f1.8, 24-120mm f4, 70-200mm f4, 300mm f4

Teleconverters: TC14II and TC17II

Gear strategy: to use TCs on both bodies all the time to enable lens switching and to prevent sensor dusting.

D610 + TC14 for best IQ

D7100 + TC17 for longest reach

SD cards to last 8000 shots without deleting any. Both cameras were set to RAW+JPEG; JPEG is Zvezda's request as she wants to check out the photos each evening on her iPad. RAW were 12-bit lossless compressed, JPEG were Small with Medium compression.

There is exif data visible for each shot; there are different free apps that allows you to see it.

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What a wonderful report thanks @@xelas.

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@@xelas - great stuff with the cheetah sequence. One of those heart in mouth moments for everything involved - predator, prey and observer. I really like the jackal drinking but the eagle take off sequence - wow. I haven't even started taking pics of birds yet so I have a long way to go to get see something like that.

 

kind regards

 

deano.

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(intermezzo)

 

Being exhausted by all events of this morning, and still missing some sleep hours, we drove back to the camp. Zvezda prepared a soup last evening which we finished. Then she watched-up for those missing "beauty hours" and I took the opportunity to snatch the camera and went out to find if there are any willing subjects.

 

In reception I have asked the man if there are any owls in the camp, and where they can be found. "Look up the trees." was not very helpful answer. So I wandered around some trees but the only bird I have found was this one

 

Burchell's Starling

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So no owls. lets find some smaller creatures that might like the heat of the day. Again returning to the same ranger and asking for where to start the camp's trail hike, another negative answer: "The trail is closed due to construction." Indeed there is ongoing construction of new cabins/chalets. Those will be positioned where the old exit road was, looking out on the Nossob riverbed left of the present hide. The construction itself did not posed any other disturbances beside the trail being closed (and maybe a more helpful ranger would show me a shortcut around the construction site). Those chalets are still in its very early stages ... like in the form of a pile of bricks!

 

Nossob Camp construction site

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The hide was the only location that gave me any hope for getting a couple of photos also myself. At the end, I had to be happy with only two more.

 

Cape Crow

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Fork-tailed Drongo

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After that also me I found better to close my eyes for an hour or so instead of chasing the birds wildlife which was not there.

 

The good news was that those three photos, done with AF-S 70-200 mm f4 zoom lens + TC-E 17II teleconverter (with 200-500 mm FOV on a DX body), came back pretty sharp for my very basic handholding technique. If the subject will fill the frame to about 50%, using TC-E17II teleconverter will still yield sharp enough photos for web posting.

Edited by xelas
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As you say they came back pretty sharp and tight. Loved the bricks!!

Your lack of wildlife activity should be telling you something. Hunters sleep during the midday heat! :unsure:

Thanks for keeping us entertained.

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