ANNEMARIE DU PLESSIS

@annemariedupwildlife Canon 1DX MKII Canon 70 – 200 mm lens

ANNEMARIE WRITES: I recently did a game drive on a farm in Limpopo, where we saw lions in the veld about 30 m from our vehicle. One of the lionesses moved closer to lie in the shade and next thing a young male ran up to her, straight towards my lens! Luckily I was ready for the action. Wildlife photography demands that you have the right equipment and that you know how to use it. There’s no time to change settings, unless you’re happy to take photos of dust settling after the action… Your camera should always be in your hands and not in your camera bag. It should be switched on, with the correct settings dialled in. Study the behaviour of the animal you want to photograph so you can predict which situations will lead to action. Good light is also important if you want to use a fast shutter speed to freeze the motion. It should be at least 1/1250 second or faster, especially if you’re using a long lens. Your aperture should be as wide as possible, depending on the light. (In this case, mine was f2.8.) Keep your ISO as low as possible and set your camera to burst mode with continuous focus. Try to stay calm when something does eventually happen. Even if your heart is beating way too fast and you have the shakes, keep your camera still and press that shutter button!

TOAST SAYS: Great advice Annemarie, but it’s easier said than done. The more you practise – and the more time you spend in the veld – the better your wildlife photos will be. This beautiful photograph has amazing detail and sharpness and it shows that patience does indeed pay off. It looks as if the lion is about to jump off the page!