@TOASTCARDS

Toast Coetzer is our travel editor and has worked at go! since the very first issue in June 2006.

TOAST SAYS: This is a very rare chameleon called an Usambara three-horned chameleon, found only in patches of forest in the Usambara Mountains of northern Tanzania. I took the photo at night, using light from a torch held by my guide – who was also remarkably good at spotting these chameleons in the darkness! I was impressed by how well my Samsung S7 Edge smartphone performed – the photograph is pin sharp. Key to this success is how bright my guide’s torch was. If I’d just used my weak headlamp, I wouldn’t have got such a crisp shot. It also helped that the chameleon sat still! I needed the green chameleon to stand out clearly so I moved around until I had a completely black background.

SHELLEY SAYS: The quality of the cameras on the latest smartphones is mind-boggling. Best of all is that you always have your phone with you, which means you always have a camera with you… Like Toast, I’m amazed at how crisp this image is, especially since it was shot at night. There’s hardly any of the graininess that usually handicaps a phone camera in low light. The depth of field is also impressive. The focus starts fading from the chameleon’s arm but its eye is pin sharp! ( Yes, I zoomed in and checked.) 42 likes #gomagsa #yourjourneystartshere #tanzania #roadtrip #africa #usambara #amaniforest #chameleon #endemic #travelgram #exploremore #wilderness #farplaces #wildplaces #wildlifephotography 64 likes #gomagsa #yourjourneystartshere #tanzania #roadtrip #africa #tanganyika #kigoma #lake #congobycar #wilderness #wildplaces #ig_travel #travelgram #instatravel

@TOASTCARDS

TOAST SAYS: I took this photo near Kigoma in Tanzania, at a place called Jakobsen’s Beach on Lake Tanganyika. The lake is crystal clear and you can see the bottom, metres deep, from this boulder that my travel partner Alice Inggs is sitting on. I risked quite a bit to capture this

shot as I was treading water while holding my phone! I wanted the surface to be at eye-level to make the most of the silvery reflections. Alice was a perfect – and patient – model while I pedalled my legs like crazy. I needed her outline to be well above the horizon and I wanted the boulder to seem as if it was rising from the depths like a giant terrapin.

SHELLEY SAYS: What a peaceful and serene image. I wish I were sitting on that rock! The patterns made by the ripples on the water almost mirror the patterns in the clouds above. Lake Tanganyika is one of Africa’s most underrated attractions and its Tanzanian shoreline offers a handful of awesome lodges and campsites. Go there!