m8o in Tanzania '07 - Page 4

*Mechan1k* · 06-24-2008, 04:34 PM

Originally Posted by m8o

... Dunno if you'll check in again Mech. I thought I'd come back to this older post as there's a show on PBS at this very moment called "Seeing in the Dark" about armature astronomy ... pertinent to this post is they stated due to light pollution in recent times, only 1 in 5 people (dunno if it was 'the world' or the 'USA') have ever seen the Milky Way with their naked eyes.

...I take comfort in knowing I'm not alone in that case! Yes, you are very lucky. In my case, the security guard of the 1st camp we were in, Tarangire, who patrolled the long camp along a ridge, protecting us against wild animals with a bow and arrow, had to chase me inside. I could not rip myself away from the view once I look up; my wife, she couldn't care. The guard wouldn't leave until I went inside however, for my own protection. ...I snuck out later...

I am going to have to walk out into my backyard and setup the tripod and wide angle lens one clear night and get some shots then.

Lucky for me I am on property and just over an hour out of the city ... so the night skies are clear.

Jonson PL · 08-03-2008, 05:22 AM

Originally Posted by m8o

p.s. GUILTY AS CHARGED! I did lean towards keeping the aperture wider for both that, and to maximize OOF blur.

My wife if going w/o me with her parents to China this summer. (they're getting old so they are cramming in the last of their major travel these past few years) I decided not to go because:
1) wicked hot in the summer
2) worried about pollution @ this point in time there
3) they'll be passing through as the Olympics start ... it's already crowded; will be insanely crowded.
4) It's mostly a bus tour, when not on the boat (I would have loved the 6 day on the boat part)
5) They're going on for a 3rd week to Vietnam... I had to get back to go to work. And I couldn't book my own flying arraignments or be sure of what seat I would get on the plane. You know as a single flier that I'd get stuck in the middle of 3 seats. As a 6'2" guy, middleaged and a bit overweight (not too badly thankfully) I'm not going to put myself in a position to live that misery for 12 or 15 hours.
6) Care of my 3 dogs and some issues surrounding them.

...so, no epic journey this year. I do want to go to the Galapagos w/just the wife myself; not a tour with the in-laws.

The Pro wildlife shooter Andy Rouse, gives in his book “Life in the wild”, various tips on wildlife photography. On animals in landscape, he writes : “The common perception in wildlife photography is that the bigger the image in the frame the better. Well, I beg to differ. I love photographing my hares small in the frame, so that their habitat dominates the picture. Of cause, this is not always possible and it does need either a spectacular setting or exceptional light, which is not in my power to control. But I am always looking for the opportunity.”

Andy oftens stops down to f/11, to make sure everything is pin-sharp in the image.

On Teleconverters, he writes : “Unfortunately, I really needed to be in closer, but walking towards the mother would have caused her stress and may have provoked an attack. I was forced to use my least favourite accessory – a 2x teleconverter. I use 1.4x teleconverters all the time with great results, but the 2x versions are dark and gloomy cousins.”

Walter did some great bird photography with the Sigma 500/4.5. And others are hoping for a DA* 400/4 or f/2.8 lens, in the next roadmap.

Still looking forward to your pictures of Giraffes fighting, and from the balloon ride at dawn. That must have been an amazing site.