Paul Marcellini Photography

I am shooting an assignment for Where Guestbooks for the Tampa area. I went up and explored the Hillsborough River area 2 weekends ago and had a great time. There was a controlled burn to the east that gave us some smoke in the mornings, allowing for these great light rays as the sun rose. It was a beautiful area and really a good time to get away.

Masai Mara was our last stop of the safari. We actually stayed in 2 lodges, the Mara Sarova, and the Mara Serena. These were in opposite ends of the park which provided different opportunities. The Mara was finally the Africa I was expecting. It was miles of grasses, but more elevation change than I expected. There were also patches of shrubbery, where we came to find many animals using for cover. The Masai Mara is 1510 square kilometers and is essentially the northern extension of the Serengeti in Tanzania. It is the place of the Great Migration of millions of wildebeest, zebras, and gazelle. We hit it in the low season, when the animals were in the Serengeti, but there was still plenty to see, without the crowds of people.

These guys were just waiting for the crowds to leave and night to fall.

Watching the Sun Set

The KING

Lilac-Breasted Rollers

Lioness in the Morning Light

Alert Impala

Mara Giraffe

And a few Treescapes

A European Roller(Coracias garrulus)

Secretary Bird

Blazing over the Mara, the view from our lodge

Who's Watching Who?

Dueling Teenagers

Africa was an awesome experience, I really hope to get back someday.

This was stop three on the safari. What I liked about Samburu was the feeling of being out there, really in the wild. Lake Nakuru National Park is right outside the city of Nakuru and even within the park you can see houses on the cliffs. It was a bit of a let down at first but once I saw all the photo opportunities I got over that pretty quick. Lake Nakuru is a soda lake and is home to sometimes 1.5 million flamingos. Most are Lesser Flamingos but we did see some Greater Flamingos as well. They feed on an algae that grows in the lake and have had some recent problems due to effluent flowing into the lake. White Rhino were also introduced and we saw many.  We did not see a Black Rhino but I guess you can’t have it all. It was cloudy and rainy most of our stay which i was happy for as it allowed for longer shooting in softer light. Problem was it lowered the light levels a lot. This is where I really saw how well the 5d2 performed and how bad the 50d was. The 50d lost me some shots but I am still happy with what I came away with.

I also loved that we could leave the vehicle near the lake in this park. I was hoping for some flamingo close-ups but they are quite nervous birds here. The lake was also surrounded by the f=Fever Trees, named because they harbored mosquitoes which got early people sick with disease. These trees were beautiful and this was the most wooded area we visited. A good place for leopards, with lots of habitat, and lots of hiding places, so we did not see one.

First, here is the man and machine that made the safari possible. Fred and the Land Cruiser.

A Courting ritual of all males

There were also these beautiful Great White Pelicans(Pelecanus onocrotalus). They actually look pink in breeding season.

And of course the White Rhinos(Ceratotherium simum)…

A big male with a long horn, which is actually made from matted hair. The White Rhino gets its name from a mistranslation between English, Dutch and Afrikaans. The name was actually supposed to be wide, referring to the lips.

These Olive Baboons(Papio anubis) were everywhere and I kept forgetting to shoot them but finally got some of this little one.

I liked this Waterbuck in the soft light and rain. It really saturated his colors.

These guys, were building nests right in front of the lodge. They were quite busy and noisy. Speke’s Weaver(Ploceus spekei)

I had to be quite sneaky to get close to this African Fish Eagle(Haliaeetus vocifer) who didn’t seem interested in sharing, but the gull sure hoped.

Hey there ole buddy ole pal...

And lastly, the Rock Hyrax(Procavia capensis), a relative of the Elephant actually. This was on the side of a very high cliff.

A great place, maybe a bit busy for my tastes, but still a great stop in Kenya.

Samburu was one of my favorite stops. It was very dry, the river was actually dust. But, it was a scrubby environment with vehicle height bushes and huge River Acacias. This was great because it hid the animals and you could be surprised with every turn.

From Wikipedia:

“The Samburu National Reserve is located on the banks of the Ewaso Ng’iro river in Kenya; on the other side of the river is the Buffalo Springs National Reserve in Northern Kenya. It is 165 km² in size and 350 kilometers from Nairobi. Geographically, it is located in Samburu District of the Rift Valley Province.

In the middle of the reserve, the Ewaso Ng’iro flows through doum palm groves and thick riverine forests that provides water without which the game in the reserve could not survive in the arid country.

Samburu Reserve was one of the two areas in which conservationists George Adamson and Joy Adamson raised Elsa the Lioness made famous in the best selling book and award winning movie Born Free.

Samburu Reserve is also the home of Kamunyak, a lioness famous for adopting oryx calves.”

Grevy's Zebra Canon 50d, Lens (mm): 500 ISO: 400 Aperture: 4 Shutter: 1/2000 Exp. Comp.: +0.3

The Grevy’s Zebras were beautiful. They made the Burchell’s Zebra almost seem plain.The Grevy’s have a tighter striping and larger ears.

Canon 5d2, 100-400, Lens (mm): 310 ISO: 400 Aperture: 6.3 Shutter: 1/500 Exp. Comp.: -0.3

Reticulated Giraffe, Canon 5d2, 100-400, Lens (mm): 220 ISO: 250 Aperture: 8 Shutter: 1/800 Exp. Comp.: -0.7

Canon 5d2, 100-400, Lens (mm): 340 ISO: 400 Aperture: 7.1 Shutter: 1/1600 Exp. Comp.: -0.7

The giraffe subspecies in Samburu is the Reticulated, which has a more defined pattern. At first I liked it best but have come to appreciate each for their differences.

Vervet Monkey, Canon 50d, 500 f4, ISO: 400 Aperture: 4 Shutter: 1/100 Exp. Comp.: +0.7

These guys were running around most lodges we stopped at. Always getting in to trouble. Local Masai “warriors” were even hired as monkey chasers in a few places. They were pretty good with homemade slingshots made out of tires and such.

Red-Billed Hornbill, 5d2, 500 f4, 25mm ext. tube, ISO: 800 Aperture: 4 Shutter: 1/160 Exp. Comp.: -0.3

Superb Starling, 5d2, 500 f4, ISO: 800 Aperture: 4 Shutter: 1/160 Exp. Comp.: +0.7

The birds knew when meals were and always came to the lodge looking to steal some bread.

Little Bee Eaters, 5d2, 500 f4, 1.4x, Lens (mm): 700 ISO: 800 Aperture: 5.6 Shutter: 1/200 Exp. Comp.: -1.0

Oryx, 5d2, 100-400, Lens (mm): 400 ISO: 400 Aperture: 7.1 Shutter: 1/2500 Exp. Comp.: -1.0

I was happy to see the Oryx, as they aren’t the most common or accommodating animals.

Grant's Gazelle, 50d, Lens (mm): 500 ISO: 200 Aperture: 5 Shutter: 1/2000 Exp. Comp.: -0.3

The vast landscape

The gingerbread or doum palm is one of the few that has a branching trunk

We also visited the a Samburu tribal village. They make their huts out of goat dung, mud, and branches. It was actually nicely insulated to the heat.

5d2, 16-35, Lens (mm): 16 ISO: 3200 Aperture: 2.8 Shutter: 1/80

Elders doing the wedding dance

Well I have returned from Africa safe and sound. Found out about the Swine flu about 1/2-way through the trip and I figured we were safer in the bush for the time being. Anyways, our first stop was Amboseli. We arrived an did and afternoon game drive and then a morning drive. Our guide then left for about an 8 hour drive to meet us at Samburu National Reserve. We flew out the day after that.

From Wikipedia, “Amboseli National Park, formerly Maasai Amboseli Game Reserve, is in Kajiado District, Rift Valley Province in Kenya. The park is 39,206 hectares (392 km²; 151 sq mi)^[1] in size at the core of an 8,000 square kilometres (3,100 sq mi) ecosystem that spreads across the Kenya-Tanzania border. The local people are mainly Maasai, but people from other parts of the country have settled there attracted by the successful tourist-driven economy and intensive agriculture along the system of swamps that makes this low-rainfall area (average 350 mm (14 in)) one of the best widlife-viewing experiences in the world. The park protects two of the five main swamps, and includes a dried-up Pleistocene lake and semi-arid vegetation.”

This is the dry lakebed with a lone giraffe, he seemed lost.

A few elephants in the marsh. 50d, 500 f4, 1.4x, Lens (mm): 700 ISO: 800 Aperture: 6.3 Shutter: 1/400 Exp. Comp.: +1.0

A tawny Eagle with prey, the guide thought, probably a cuckoo. 50d, 500 f4, ISO: 640 Aperture: 6.3 Shutter: 1/400 Exp. Comp.: +0.3

5d2, 100-400, Lens (mm): 220 ISO: 400 Aperture: 8 Shutter: 1/400 Exp. Comp.: +1.0

Yellow Baboon. 50d, 500 f4, 1.4x, Lens (mm): 700 ISO: 800 Aperture: 5.6 Shutter: 1/500 Exp. Comp.: +0.3

A mother Yellow Baboon and baby. 50d, 100-400, Lens (mm): 200 ISO: 640 Aperture: 5 Shutter: 1/320 Exp. Comp.: -1.3

I was able to jump out quickly for this one. Scanned for lions first. The guide called every kill a "Lion Restaurant". 5d2, Canon 16-35 2.8 II, Lens (mm): 16 ISO: 800 Aperture: 8 Shutter: 1/125 + 1/40 Exp. Comp.: -1.3

We left the lodge, turned the corner and bam, this is what we got. A stunning scene and great way to start the safari. 5d2, Tamron 28-75, Lens (mm): 75 ISO: 800 Aperture: 7.1 Shutter: 1/30 Exp. Comp.: -0.7, 2 stop gnd

A pair of Crowned Cranes. 50d, 100-400, Lens (mm): 390 ISO: 400 Aperture: 5.6 Shutter: 1/2500 Exp. Comp.: -0.7

A young hyena at the den. 50d, 500 f4, 1.4x, Lens (mm): 700 ISO: 400 Aperture: 5.6 Shutter: 1/400 Exp. Comp.: +0.7

Lone Wildebeest

I leave for Kenya tomorrow. I still don’t believe it.  I don’t know what I will do when I see my first lion. I have so much gear, I don’t know how I will make the weight limits. I will be taking:  50d, 5d2, 500 f4, 100-400, 200 2.8, 16-35, Tamron 28-75 2.8, 1.4x, laptop, 2 harddrives, and books. Maybe I can fit some clothes in too.

One of my personal favorite shots, Fading Away, took second in PopPhoto’s June “Your Best Shot” contest. I’m honored to be a winner and happy for a little cash in my pocket. =) Just bought a 82mm slim polarizer, ouch that hurt. Here is the shot:

I haven’t gotten out into the cypress swamps too much but I have a great time when I do. The migrant birds are coming through so I was surrounded with chirps. And the tracks in the mud are always great to study. Otters leave their mark just about everywhere, they sure do get around.

It is a visually intense experience. I don’t think anything else could be crammed in these forests. The epiphytes cover the trees, the moccasins are hiding under the logs, spiders build webs across every opening. Slow moving, but that’s how it should be.

I don’t usually come away with stunners when I go into the swamp, but I always enjoy it.

This shot was midday, backlit and begged for bw. Also one of the few times I brought along a compass. The foreground is gator tracks and tails drags, with a few bird and otter prints mixed in.

These aren’t cypress. These are rather large pond apples(Annona glabra). There are some largish cypress in the area but the old growth is not standing. =( This is the center of a cypress strand, most have a pond in the center, the only remaining water in the dry season

5dII, 16-35II@23mm f13 1/20s iso800

Went searching for a trail to a lake, but stopped on the way in a cypress dome. I was told of a few Barred Owls and quickly found what I assume was the father of some fledglings. I could hear the little guys calling deeper in the dome, but they never let me get close. The mother also stayed with them. This one, however was very tolerant of me and never gave a sign of being uncomfortable with my presence. The giant crayfish at my feet was pretty unhappy though.

Canon 50d, Canon 100-400@310mm iso800 f5.6 1/250s

When walking around I also found this small Water Moccasin(Agkistrodon piscivorus) at the edge of one of the few puddles remaining. The fish were concentrated and made for an easy meal. The species name piscivorous means “habitually feeding on fish”. This was a little guy at maybe 2 feet, still brightly patterned. As adults they are darker and more uniform in color. This one also seemed especially light.

Canon 50d, Canon 100-400@275mm f5.6 iso800 1/250s

A fun day, we are still mosquito free. If only the heat hadn’t returned so quickly.