Photography in the Desert - (Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park)

(Southern Africa - Botswana, S. Africa)


Preface

Southern Africa is still relatively safe for travellers, including the Kalahari region covered here - but Africa is changing rapidly. Some countries I visited years ago are no longer safe for travellers.

Recently, the British government advised travellers to be extremely cautions when visiting some of the regions they specified.

Before travelling to Africa it is best to consult your respective government agency asking for travel advice concerning safety.

( I do not identify countries, or regions within a country because the situation can change. It is up to each person to make sure they are well informed with up to date facts ).


Introduction

"WHERE the water has dried up" - this is indeed a fitting name for a desert. And that is what some believe to be the meaning of Tswana, the word for Kgalagadi, or Kalahari.

"A lifeless waste" is the description that may readily come to mind when one thinks of a desert. But this does not fit the Kalahari, which covers a large area of the northern Cape Province of South Africa, the eastern part of South-West Africa, and the central and western part of Botswana. The Kgalagadi isn't a true desert; it receives 200mm of rain yearly and in February 2009, received an unusual 700mm of rain.

This is the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, one of the largest parks in the world. It is one of the most pristine areas on earth; one reason it has kept this way is that it's very far to drive from major cities.

Some sections of this region are flat and sandy and covered with shrubby vegetation, large thorn trees and grass. Other parts consist of miles of undulating dunes with the same kind of vegetation.

Temperatures vary greatly from -11 degrees C on cold winter nights to 42 degrees in the shade on summer days when the ground surface temperature reaches a sizzling 70 degrees C.


Photography in the Desert

To photograph successfully in the Kalahari Desert requires good preparation. You are not allowed to camp or stay in your vehicle outside the designated fenced rest camps.

There are unfenced wilderness camps with no shops, these you have to book well in advance to stay there, and the only way to reach them is by driving a 4X4 high clearance vehicle.

The East Side of the Park facing Botswana is unfenced. The animals can travel unrestricted for hundreds of miles. For you to go deeper into the Kalahari, you will need a pass from the rangers. The last I heard is that a pass will only be given to a party of at least two 4X4 vehicles for safety reasons.
 
There are certain advantages to photographing from a vehicle: it provides a comfortable and mobile hide with ample space for the equipment.

The windowsill is a good platform for camera brackets and beanbags. Rear-view mirrors should be bent back if possible.

Try to drive slowly when searching for subjects to photograph, having your camera ready to shoot at short notice.


Rivers

The Nossob and Auob are ephemeral rivers, meaning that they only flow for a short period during a very good rain season. A portion of the Auob River is said to flow approximately once every 11 years. The Nossob perhaps twice every 100 years. The Nossob river last flooded in 1963 and the Auob River in 1973, 1974 and 2000. They do however, carry rainwater in the wet season and there is moisture beneath. Most animals travel and live around these two dry rivers and it is in that area too that most photography takes place.

Before leaving England, I was worried about dust entering the camera but as it turned out the dusty conditions didn't pose any problems. When changing lenses I did it inside a transparent plastic bag. When not in used, the cameras were always covered, it's a good idea to keep the camera inside a plastic bag when not in use.

I failed to take into account how cold the winter nights in the desert are, with temperatures below zero and ice on the vehicle and tent, getting up before sunrise in a tent, is to say the least unpleasant. I managed to do it everyday for 17 days. An early start is important because that is when the wildlife is active, sometimes I returned to camp at mid-morning without a single usable photograph. But that is wildlife photography - a lot of time is spent waiting, or just missing a potential good shot for not being in the right place at the right time.

Communicating with other visitors is helpful and eventually will bring rewards. For example, the picture of the Cheetah with the three cubs came about because someone in a vehicle came over to where I was, searching for some birds and told me that a few kilometres south a Cheetah had made a kill.

Immediately, I set off to the spot he told me. The roads are dirt tracks, in places you need to negotiated them with care. During the rainy season, the water digs deep into the track making channels that the sun bakes into hard grooves creating a bumpy ride. The suspension of cars is vulnerable to a constant bombardment from the uneven surface.

On arrival, there were a few other vehicles with the occupants taking pictures of the Cheetah. From an awkward position inside the 4X4, I managed to take a few quick shots before the animal moved the carcass behind a tree taking her cubs along to feast on the recent killed Springbok.


What equipment to take?

My rule when travelling is to go as light as possible. I don't carry equipment just in case I need it. Before leaving, I research the area from books, Internet and other sources so that I know what kind of photography is possible, then I take what I need to fill that need.

Some photographers work differently - they fill their bags with a lot of photo gear just in case. It’s a personal choice - I always found that simplifying where possible has proved to be the most practical and effective way to photograph, especially when operating from inside a vehicle.

I will not dwell too long discussing equipment except to say that I took a DSLR and a spare compact camera, three lenses, a tripod for low light photography, (this was the heaviest piece of gear,) lots of memory cards, light meter, flash, filters, all packed inside a photographic bag.


Tips

The most important tip is to carryout a thorough in-house research of the area to be visited and its wildlife before leaving. I cannot over emphasize how useful such advance knowledge will be in the success of the journey.

Photography in a Safari is best done around the sunrise and sunset times. This means having you and your equipment ready for an early start. Visit water holes, especially in the dry season when water is scarce. Switch off the engine and just wait.

Although the African light is very bright you should not have difficulty having adequate shutter speed to photograph from inside the vehicle. Nevertheless, I always switched off the engine remaining very still when shooting.


The extraordinary abundance and diversity of nature makes the Kalahari an enviable arena for photographic artistry.