READER PHOTOS
READER PHOTOS • TIPS • PORTFOLIO
A moonlit rhino, a burnt-orange sky – has your photo been published this month?
LINDA MARAIS
Canon PowerShot SX120IS
LINDA WRITES: I live in the village of Kleinemonde in the Eastern Cape, just up the coast from Port Alfred. My neighbour has beautiful roses in her garden, and that’s where I saw this eyed-flower mantid. I saw it again in the rose bushes every day for about 10 days, and then it disappeared.
This is a nymph. The adults are more green and have fake “eye” markings on their wings to frighten any potential threats.
SHELLEY SAYS: What an interesting creature! It’s perfectly camouflaged on the pink rose – most of us would have walked past oblivious. Luckily Linda is so observant.
This photo is all about contrast: The hot pink rose contrasts beautifully with the soft green background, and the prickly texture of the insect contrasts with the smooth petals. Linda got down low to take the shot, and the mantid is clearly defined as a result. Had she taken the photo from above, it might have got lost against the rose petals. It’s a master of camouflage, after all!
Unless you invest thousands in specialist gear, a compact camera like Linda’s Canon PowerShot is often your best bet for macrophotography. Experiment with macro mode and get as close as you can without scaring your subject away. As in this case, the result is often spectacular.
JENNY ROOD
IG: @rood376
Nikon D600
Tamron 15 – 30 mm lens
JENNY WRITES: Everything was quiet at the Okaukuejo waterhole in Etosha National Park. The elephants had drunk their fill and left, the giraffe had come and gone and finally it was the rhino’s turn to drink. He walked into the water and stood with the lone tree behind him. It was such a poignant scene – almost as if he was the last rhino on earth. He stood so still that I was able to use a 13-second exposure, with a tripod of course, and didn’t pick up any movement.
SHELLEY SAYS: Jenny’s photo caught my eye immediately as I was going through the e-mails. The rhino only has his reflection to keep him company in the darkness. The spotlight at the waterhole lights the scene perfectly, as if the waterhole is a stage and he’s about to sing a solo. Because Jenny left the shutter open for so long, she was able to use a relatively low ISO of 640, which means that the image has hardly any grain. She could have gone even lower if she’d used a wider aperture, but she chose f18 and the result is that everything in the scene is pin sharp.
We love receiving creative visions of nature. Congratulations on your winning shot, Jenny!
HELENA HARMSE
Nikon D500
18 – 250 mm lens
HELENA WRITES: I took this picture outside Swakopmund, at a place called Vierkantklip. It was such a beautiful sunset. I took a few pictures as the sun got low and only noticed the birds when I reviewed my photos later. I guess it was a case of being in the right place at the right time. I want to learn more about photography, so I’m definitely enrolling for your online course.
SHELLEY SAYS: Like a gin and tonic with lots of ice at the end of a long day on the road, a great sunset shot seldom disappoints. Helena got all the compositional elements right, even if she only realised it afterwards! The horizon, placed a third from the bottom of the frame, leaves so much space for the fiery sky, and for the sun to sink into the water. The waves introduce a nice contrasting texture, and the birds flying through the frame (a third of the way from the top) add that finishing touch.
Do sign up for our online course. You’ll learn loads! Visit takebetterphotos.gomag.co.za
HEIN MOUTON
Nikon D3400
Nikon 100 – 300 mm lens
HEIN WRITES: A visit to the Kruger National Park in 2018 sparked my interest in photography. I’d bought a Nikon D3400 with a
100 – 300 mm lens just before we departed, so I didn’t have all the buttons and dials figured out yet. I played it safe and mostly shot using auto mode.
We stayed in Marloth Park and did day trips into the Kruger. On our last day, we came across a herd of impala near the Crocodile Bridge gate. I used the “Guide” function on the camera; when one of the antelope stood still and looked right at me, I was ready to take his portrait. My settings: shutter speed 1/320 second, aperture f5.3, ISO 200.
SHELLEY SAYS: Guide mode on newer Nikon cameras is great if you’re still learning how to use your camera. It’s like having an assistant to help you get the photo you want, much like Clippy, the little paperclip in the old Microsoft Word. (Am I giving my age away?)
There are two options for taking pictures in this mode: Easy or Advanced. Choose the former and you can switch between auto, moving subject, portrait or night. “Advanced” allows you to choose various ways to soften the background, freeze motion or show water flowing. The camera basically explains how to get the effect you’re after.
For this shot, I’m guessing Hein chose the portrait option and the camera selected a wide aperture of f5.3. Doing so blurred the background and made Mr Impala stand out beautifully.
LEN LOADER
Leica V-Lux (Typ 114) 24 – 400 mm lens
LEN WRITES: It was December 2018 and I was taking photos of cloud formations above Table Mountain from Lovers’ Lane in the suburb of Plattekloof. I was getting ready to pack up my tripod when I heard the sound of an aeroplane behind me, coming in to land at Cape Town International Airport. I was in the perfect position to capture the scene. I watched the screen of my camera and waited until the plane moved into the frame, then I pressed the shutter button.
There were fires in the area at the time, which caused the orange glow in the sky. I increased the colour saturation a bit to emphasize this, but otherwise I left the photo as is.
SHELLEY SAYS: This photograph borders on the abstract: The plane angled towards the ominous cloud, with the orange sky all around. It’s lovely. Anticipating the direction of your subject’s movement can result in a great shot. I’ve often visualised a particular photograph, then I’ve sat and waited for my subject to walk, run or kick a ball into the frame. It takes some patience, but I’ve learnt that if you wait long enough, you’ll almost always get your shot. That’s what Len did: He knew the direction the plane would approach, framed his shot and waited.
Pre-planning might not always work, but it’s worth experimenting. Maybe try it with your cat before you try it with lions in the Kgalagadi!
STEFAN KRUGER
IG: @stefan_kruger_photo Nikon D5100
Tamron 70 – 200 mm lens
STEFAN WRITES: I’m from White River in Mpumalanga and work as a safari guide in and around the Kruger National Park. I took this photo in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve near Hoedspruit.
It was during a night drive with my guests: Our tracker with his eagle eyes spotted this chameleon and we all got off the vehicle to take a closer look. ( This is allowed in the reserve.) I helped the guests get photos, then I took a couple myself. I used my Nikon D5100 and a Tamron 70 – 200 mm lens, but I can’t remember my exact settings.
SHELLEY SAYS: Luckily for us, the camera data is recorded in the image file so you don’t need to remember your settings! Stefan’s ISO was 1250, with a shutter speed of 1/640 second and a wide-open aperture of f2.8. He also used spot metering – when the camera only takes a light reading from a very small area, typically in the centre of the viewfinder. Spot metering is extremely accurate and is not influenced by other areas in the frame, which is great when you have a subject illuminated by a powerful, direct light like a torch or a spotlight.
I love how the bumpy scales of the chameleon are so clearly defined against the black background. Notice how the scales decrease in size from the chameleon’s neck to the tip of its tail. Such detail! Thank you, Stefan.
HUGO HAUMANN
Nikon D500
Nikon 80 – 400 mm lens
HUGO WRITES: My wife Elmarie and I toured Botswana with Bhejane 4x4 Adventures in July. I’ve always wanted to photograph a fish-eagle catching its prey. One afternoon, we went on a river cruise on the Kavango (the Okavango in Namibia) and we spotted a fisheagle perched on a branch. I was quite nervous when the bird took off because I knew I wouldn’t get a second chance.
My camera was ready, with these settings: shutter speed
1/2 000 second, aperture f6.3, ISO 320. I used continuous focus mode, spot metering and group-area AF mode. After I pressed the shutter, I was shaking with excitement to see whether I had managed to get the bird in focus.
SHELLEY SAYS: Hugo sent in quite a few spectacular photos; it was hard to choose only one! Getting this particular shot took some serious technical skill, especially considering that he was on a boat at the time.
The wings of the fish-eagle are extended fully, and its talons are dipped in the water, frozen in action. The scene is also beautifully lit by the setting sun. I’m not sure if Hugo cropped his photo, but a little more of the bird’s reflection would have been nice to see.
I love that feeling of excitement when you press the shutter button. That “Yes, I got the shot!” feeling is the best one in the world. And Hugo certainly got the shot.