Continuing on our epic adventure in Madikwe Game Reserve, we decided to head south to one of the most picturesque parts of the reserve. A very large open plains area in the south western parts of the reserve. The weather was starting to turn, and a large cold front was approaching the reserve. The result was a sky full on cumulous clouds, and this was going to great, creating a sense of drama, when coupled with the open plains. We first found some Giraffe at a very productive pan, and decided to try some reflection shots.
We reached the Southern plains area and found several antelope species we hadn’t seen yet, Gemsbok (Oryx), Red Hartebeest and Tsessebe. The clouds that we anticipated didn’t disappoint, and the dramatic scenes we were expecting, fell right into our hands.
We also found Avery relaxed Elephant bull on the plains, who allowed us to play with some wide angles, for those extra dramatic shots.
The afternoon was a wash out, with a very large storm drenching the parched dust. This gave us the opportunity to review some of our images.
The next afternoon, we made our way to a sodic area in the south east of the reserve, and had some really nice sightings of Elephant and Rhino, coming to eat the nutritious soils. Giving us the time to really play with some interesting slow shutter techniques.
One of the other, lesser known gems of Madikwe is the birdlife, and the Sandgrouse population in particular. The northern Kalahari Sandveld hosts all 4 species of Southern African Sandgrouse, and one water hole in the northern parts of the sand veld, is the best place to see all four in one session. We made our way, and positioned ourselves for the morning drinking procession.
In the afternoon, we stuck to the eastern parts of the reserve, and found a Brown Hyena, and some Elephants at a water hole. The plan through was to do some Astral Photography with a Shepards Tree, a very iconic tree for the Madikwe Game Reserve.
For the next 3 days, we revisited some of our favourite places that we’d had some really good luck with. And tried to get something a bit different, and tried a few different things.
I will be running some Photographic Safari’s to the Madikwe Game Reserve in 2021.
If you are at all interested in joining me for a very interesting and productive photographic experience, please leave a comment or drop me a mail and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.
