Kitulo

Wildlife photography

Wildlife photography: Tips and Tricks

Whether you’re trying to capture a photo of a cheetah hunting or a flying pigeon in your city, the most important thing is to be prepared and be ready for anything. You have no control over what happens in the wild. You can’t ask a bird to fly a little slower so you capture the shot you want or a lion to roar in front of your camera again because you were not ready the first time.

You have to use what’s around you and have your camera set and ready. You can spend hours without seeing or capturing anything, but once you do… you will witness something incredible!
Wildlife doesn’t ever disappoint us!

Character and Environment

Another thing to remember when photographing wildlife is the old “push/pull.” Animals have personalities, and you want to show that. But you don’t want to be working really tight with long lenses all the time. You need to show their environment too—habitat says a lot. Back off and use wide-angle lenses to give viewers a sense of where the animals live.

One More Thing

When you’re out photographing wildlife, don’t just pay attention to what are called the charismatic mega fauna—the big animals that get most of our attention. Of course we all want good photos of the big guys, but there are many other forms of life around. Some of them are really beautiful, and all of them are interesting. Whenever you’re out there, whether hiking or sitting in your car waiting for something to happen, look around. You’ll be amazed at what you might discover. Photograph that too!

Practice, Practice & Practice

While everyone would like to be clicking Wildebeests on the Serengeti, you really don’t need much to start practicing wildlife photography. Before you go to a safari, make sure you know how to use your camera. Go to the park and practice until you feel confident. Know your settings.

Composition

Make sure you pay attention to what’s surrounding your main subject in the frame. Try to have clear and simple background so the viewer can really focus on the bird itself.

When you focus your lens, focus on the eyes of the bird.

Wildlife photography shooting, try to tell a story. Some birds fly. An elephant dig in the mud. Some birds eat fish, some eat seeds and wild dog during their  social hunting (co-operative imperative). You can share all that information with the viewer through your photographs.

 

Good luck, and Happy Shooting!

 

Kitulo National Park

Kitulo National Park

Kitulo National Park covers an area of 412.9 sq km (159 sq miles. The temporary park headquarters at Matamba are situated approximately 100km (60 miles) from Mbeya town.Located in Southern Tanzania.

Perched at around 2,600 meters and (8,500 ft) between the rugged peaks of the Kipengere, Poroto and Livingstone Mountains. The well-watered volcanic soils of Kitulo support the largest and most important montane grassland community in Tanzania.

“Garden of God”

One of the most important watersheds for the Great Ruaha River, Kitulo is well known for its floral significance, not only a multitude of orchids, but also the stunning yellow-orange red-hot poker. A variety of aloes, proteas, geraniums, giant lobelias, lilies and aster daisies, of which more than 30 species are endemic to southern Tanzania.

Big game is sparsely represented, though a few hardy mountain reedbuck and eland still roam the open grassland. Locals refer to the Kitulo Plateau as Bustani ya Mungu – The Garden of God while botanists have dubbed it the Serengeti of Flowers, host to ‘one of the great floral spectacles of the world’.

And Kitulo is indeed a rare botanical marvel, home to a full 350 species of vascular plants, including 45 varieties of terrestrial orchid.Which erupt into a riotous wildflower display of breathtaking scale and diversity during the main rainy season of late November to April.

Biological wealth of the Gods garden

Kitulo plateau as bustani ya – a botanist and hiker’s paradise – is also highly alluring to birdwatchers. Tanzania’s only population of the rare Denham’s bustard is resident, alongside a breeding colony of the endangered blue swallow.Other such range-restricted species as mountain marsh widow, Njombe cisticola and Kipengere seed-eater.

Endemic species of butterfly, chameleon, lizard and frog further enhance the biological wealth of God’s Garden.

Park Highlights Include:

  • Locals refer to the Kitulo Plateau as Bustani ya Mungu – The Garden of God, while botanists have dubbed it the Serengeti of Flowers.
  • Wildflower displays peak between December and April. The sunnier months of September to November are more comfortable for hiking but less rewarding for botanists.
  • Good hiking trails exist and will soon be developed into a formal trail system. Open walking across the grasslands to view birds and wildflowers. A half day hike from the park across the Livingstone Mountains leads to Matema Beach on Lake Nyasa
  • The gap of Numbi valley is occupied by Juniper Forest, one of the most extensive in East Africa. Towering up to 50 M these are among the tallest junipers in the world.