We have been lucky enough to have been to Botswana twice already in 2007.
Elsewhere on the site, you can see a short trip report from the April 2007 expedition: http://www.shutterspeedtravel.com/botswanaapril.asp
You can also see the portfolio of all our shots from this and our January expedition: http://www.shutterspeedtravel.com/gallery.asp?Cat=101&Reg=23
While we have been to many African countries, Botswana is different in a number of ways:
1. The Okovango Delta is truely amazing. From April through to August there are clear skys and lots of water. This brings opportunities (shooting Lions swimming across channels on their way to hunt Buffalo!!!!) and challenges (navigating landrovers through deep water is tricky (and your feet are in water which is seeping into the vehicle fast!) The greens and blues are very, very rich and are very different to the dry browns that we usually see in the dry season in Kenya and Tanzania. So it's 'soft' Africa - viewing Lions in lush green grass with bright yellow flowers is very different.
2. One place we always go to is an island where there is a herd of over 1,000 Cape Buffalo ... there are also several prides of Lions. The Lions have adapted to the enviroment by learning how to swim. They also prefer to hunt in the day. Their diet is almost exclusively Buffalo. Hence, when we are there we get up before dawn, track down the Buffalo as soon as we can and usually the Lions will be close by. Then we just sit and wait for the Lions to start hunting. We have seen more Lions killing here than in all our other expeditions put together.
3. Most of the reserves we go to are consessions opererated by reputable outfits. They have exclusivity over access to the reserve and control vehicle numbers. In those reserves with one lodge, there will generally only be three vehicles. In others with more than one camp, there may be six vehicles. The advantage is that anything interesting will not be swamped by vehicles; which in some of the reserves in Kenya and Tanzania can be a problem. The reserves are usually very accommodating and often send out a landrover to our vehicles with our lunch, so we can stay out all day!
4. Access to Botswana is fine. We usually fly to Johannesburg, catch an early morning flight up to Maun in Botswana and then transfer to a light aircraft to hit our first reserve, getting there in time for a late lunch and an afternoon drive. Moving between reserves is usually by light aircraft so we are not enduring long, tiring transfers.
5. Botswana is not cheap, but what you get is very special and as you can see from the shots on our web, you do get very close to the action!
Julie and Adam
Botswana April 2007 Trip
Peli Cases - June 2, 2007
In the "old days" we were all able to get away with carrying quite an amazing amount of kit onto international flights: a 600mmF4 over the shoulder, a camera backpack and a plastic bag with duty free, books and magazines. The current security restrictions at Heathrow have changed all that. Today you are only allowed one piece of luggage 56cm by 45cm by 25cm.
For our recent Botswana expedition Julie and I decided to give Peli cases a try. Prior to this trip we had not been that keen on them, possibly because of their weight. However, Peli cases have another big advantage, they are completely waterproof. When we were in Botswana in January we were caught out in an open landrover in a torrential storm and were lucky to get away with no damage to our kit. (Julie did lose an ipod unless anyone has any ideas on how to resuscitate a drowned ipod.)
So we went down to http://www.camerasunderwater.co.uk/company/London.html by the Thames in London where they have a good range of the cases in stock. We opted for the 1510 which had dimensions of 56cm by 35cm by 23cm and so are within Heathrow's restrictions. The 1510 has a handle and wheels, handy for the long walks at airports!
The cases are really fantastic. Taking all the padding out I was able to fit in the 600mm F4, two Canon EOS1Ds Mark II bodies, a wide angle lens, two JOBO storage devices and various chargers and adaptors. I planned it that the contents of the Peli would give me everything that I needed photographically so if I lost the check in baggage, I would smell, but could take lots of photographs!
Another advantage was that in the Kalahari there was lots and lots of very fine dust. Keeping the cameras in the Peli cases really helped reduce the nightmare of dust on the sensors.
So a very genuine thumbs up on Pelis - (unfortunately we are not being paid for this!)
Adam
New Shutterspeedtravel Blog - June 2007
We have been looking at different ways to keep in touch with you because some people have said they are interested in our views on new kit coming on the market, others are more interested in our views on different wildlife destinations and our recent trips, whilst others are interested in how we process our photographs. So we decided to add a blog to Shutterspeedtravel's site as a way we can get information out quickly.
So here it is! We will add information on a regular basis and aim to add information at least every two weeks. For those of you who know us, we really appreciate your feedback. So please continue to send us your comments on what you think and what you want.
Thank you.
Julie and Adam