Photography and the African safari
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When you go on your African safari, don’t forget your camera. But which camera or camcorder is best for an African safari? A video of your African safari experience is certainly a great way to keep the memories lasting, but also take a good camera on your African safari. The small size and amazing functionality of cameras today are perfect for African safaris. Below are a few things to consider when choosing which photographic equipment to bring on your safari.

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(Camera Lenses and Binoculars)
(Digital Storage / Film and Digital ISO)

DIGITAL VS. FILM
Digital vs. Film:  The following are my thoughts on the "Film versus Digital" decision for those of you who may be considering a purchase of new equipment for your safari or other travel.

Bottom line:  If you are planning to purchase a new SLR camera for your trip, go digital. Period. Get the best one you can afford; optimally one which accepts different lenses (as opposed to those with a non-removable built in zoom lens). I would certainly not recommend purchasing a film-based SLR instead of a digital SLR.

I currently use two Nikon D2X bodies for my safaris and I'm very happy with this camera.  I shoot all my images in Raw format and use Adobe's Camera Raw software (and also Adobe Lightroom) to optimize the images (see my software section below).  The following is a short summary of MY thoughts on switching to digital or staying put with film for now (I believe that almost everyone will eventually switch; however, some people still play their vinyl records instead of CD's).

Reason NOT to switch to digital format (YET)…
Cost / Investment
A professional-level digital camera the equivalent of the Nikon F5 (pro film camera) is currently priced at over $4,500. This is a large investment in a camera given that newer, more advanced and better versions of the same camera will likely appear within 12 to 15 months or even less. The current top of the line Canon digital, the EOS-1DS Mark III (which delivers over 21 million pixels maximum) is priced at $8,000!  Film cameras on the other hand are really no longer being designed for the future…the future is digital. However, more affordable, mid-level DSLR's like the Canon EOS 40D (10.1MP for $1,300) or the Nikon D80 (10.2MP for $875) are superb cameras for a safari when paired with a decent lens or two.

Reasons to switch to digital format…
The reasons to switch are mounting, and other than those who have an aesthetic connection to using film (especially black and white photographers), the justifications for remaining with film are becoming few and far between.  The following are some of the pertinent reasons to "go digital", especially for those going on a safari.

1.  Image quality
In the not so distant past, I felt that the quality of a digital camera image for producing large (i.e., magazine page size) prints was still not quite as good as what was possible using high quality, fine grain film (like Fuji Velvia). However, since using the new Nikon, I now believe that digital images have finally caught up with film in terms of overall quality.  This is not to say that ALL digital cameras will give the same results, but the high-end and even "prosumer" DSLR's (like the Canon EOS 40D or Nikon D80) have, I feel, now equaled the results of fine-grain film.

The CCD (or CMOS) technology used in DSLR's is, in my opinion, just as good in capturing tonality and details across the full range of light, as a high-end film SLR.  DSLR's are perhaps even better at capturing details in the highlights. Some will argue otherwise, but almost all will agree that the technology is advancing and still has lots of room for improvement, while film has matured and will likely not go any further.  One potential downside of the digital sensors though, is that they are far more "demanding" on your lenses and your technique.  By this I mean that they are "less forgiving" than film in terms of picking up color or luminosity noise.  Film has several layers of emulsion to absorb the light and so noise is more likely to be less noticeable on film.  Result: Quality lenses are even more important when using a good DSLR.

2.  Immediate ISO speed changes are possible
With a digital camera, one can change ISO settings (the digital equivalent of film speed) at any time... no more changing out an entire roll of film if the lighting changes.  This has obvious advantages.

3.  Immediate Results
You can edit your shots and see the results immediately using the camera's built in viewer or on a laptop if you've brought one along for image editing.

4.  Film and Developing Costs
During my "film days", I typically spent $1,000 or more for film and processing on one of my African safaris. This is based on about 4,000 - 5,000 images using slide film. This is not cheap, I'm sure you'll agree. Digital media is somewhere around $50 to $125 for a 2-gigabyte CompactFlash card. Even assuming you have two or three of these and a digital storage device to upload the images to when the cards are full, you save money almost immediately. No more film, no more running out of film, no more left over film, etc.

5.  Transportation of film
Let's face it, carrying 100+ rolls of film in your carry-on baggage is not fun. Getting any amount of film through airport security and x-rays with a hand check is now virtually impossible. Even if you buy the film overseas and have it developed before coming home (which is what I did for my last few "film trips"), you still have to lug it around in your luggage from camp to camp.  Even shooting in Raw, with image sizes of 20MB, I can get 200 images onto a 4GB Compact Flash card.  This is the equivalent of over 5 rolls of 36-exposure film.

6.  Post processing overhead
Scanning of my slides (to convert them to digital), labeling all the slides and filing them ...we're talking LOTS of hours. I'm happy to do away with all of this. The digitally stored image file includes all details or metadata for the image (date, time, aperture, shutter speed, etc.); no more labeling, just upload to your PC.  Of course there's still a considerable digital work flow which will occur for digital images, but it is still less work than working with slides.

7.  Existing Equipment
Most of the lenses I own and have used with my film cameras are compatible with the new Nikon digital bodies.  Only my wide-angle lenses had to be replaced due to the "field of view crop" factor (see item 8 below).

8.  Image magnification / Field of View Crop
This one's perhaps a bit more complicated...
Most of the digital SLR's today use an imaging chip (CCD or CMOS) that's about 40 percent smaller than a 35mm film frame (which measures 24x36mm). The results of these smaller sensors being used in the digital SLR are a "field of view crop" or lens magnification factor of approximately 1.3 to 1.6 (depending upon the camera) times the focal length of your lens. I will not attempt to explain the physics of the reasons behind why this is true, but suffice it to say that the smaller sensors use only the center 2/3 portion of the image created by the lens.

Therefore, if you use lenses designed for 35mm cameras, the effective focal length of the lens increases by about 50% when used on a digital SLR. So, if you use an 80-200mm lens on a digital body, the lens will have a field of view of 120-300mm and a 300mm lens becomes a 450mm lens and so on. The effective aperture (maximum f/stop) remains the same. All of this extra magnification can be either good or bad (if you want wide angle shots, the additional focal length is undesirable), depending on your needs.

Most African safari photographers will usually benefit from additional focal length since good quality telephoto lenses are both expensive and heavy to lug around on African safaris and we all wish we had a bit more magnification to get closer to our wild subjects.

A few final comments:
One less obvious benefit of all this is that since a digital sensor is capturing only the middle portion of the image, the image quality will (should) be better (all other things remaining equal) since camera lenses typically have better optical performance (sharpness and contrast) at their centers than at their outer edges.

For those photographers who would still like to be able to get those beautiful wide angle landscape or people shots (this includes me!), the additional focal length is not always good news. A 20mm ultra-wide lens becomes a not-so-wide 30mm lens. You'd need a 13mm lens to get that same ultra-wide coverage on a digital SLR, but no one makes such a lens. A few companies make 14mm lenses, but they are very expensive.

Finally, there are now several digital SLR cameras (Canon EOS-1DS, EOS-1DS Mark III, Canon EOS 5D and Nikon D3) which offer a "full frame" digital sensor. These cameras have 24x36mm image sensors (the same size as a frame of 35mm film) without any field of view crop (focal length multiplier). Simply put, a 16-35 mm lens on a "full-frame" digital SLR's will provide the exact same field of view as it would on a "traditional" SLR with film. Note that these are top-of-the-line cameras - not cheap!

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VIDEO PHOTOGRAPHY
Camcorder:  A video of your African safari experience is also a great way to keep the memories lasting and more and more guests are bringing their own video cameras (or camcorders) on an African safari. The small size and amazing functionality of today's video cameras makes them a great way to record your African travels. There are a few things to consider when choosing a video camera... Like the world of still photography, video has gone digital as well. The options are endless and I won't try to put a full glossary of terms here. Here are some things to consider:

Mini DV:  The latest camcorders now use Mini Digital Video Cassettes (DVC). The Mini DV tape format is approximately 56% smaller than an 8mm tape, so Mini DV digital camcorders are smaller than comparative Digital 8 models. Mini DV was developed as a future digital video format in 1994, while the 8mm technology that Digital 8 uses was developed a decade earlier, in 1984. The DV format is supported by over 56 companies worldwide, ensuring compatibility with other DV equipment, while Digital 8 is currently supported by only two companies (Sony & Hitachi). The Mini DV tapes are not expensive and come in various lengths.

A Mini DV Cassette (DVC) occupies less than half the volume of an 8mm cassette and holds one hour of video—an amazing 11GB of data on a tape 65 metres long. It’s this small cassette size that makes possible much smaller and more portable camcorders.

Optical Versus Digital Zoom:  Optical zoom is the best you can get. It means that the camera lenses give you a true zoom, without losing image quality. Digital zoom takes a portion of the optical image and enlarges from the center electronically, which creates a lower quality enlargement. A digital camera with a good optical zoom raises the price. As a general rule, try to purchase a camera that has at least a 10X optical zoom. Many cameras, for example the latest offerings from Canon, include an 18X optical zoom and an amazing 360X digital zoom!

Use the digital zoom for fun, but don't expect the higher quality you get with an optical zoom. Optical zoom cameras use more power, since they have to physically move lenses back and forth (versus a non-moving digital zoom camera). The higher the optical zoom (combined with high resolution) the higher the price. Also, once your camera moves beyond its optical zoom limit (and moves into digital magnification), it becomes extremely difficult to hold the camera steady enough to avoid "camera shake".

Image Stabilizer:  Many manufacturers now include a stabilizer feature to their camcorders. Image stabilization corrects camera shake caused by an unsteady hand, for example. This image stabilization system makes for smoother and steadier video even with hand-held shots, at full telephoto, and with shots taken from a moving car. This feature is a great one to have for an African safari as you will have to worry far less about hand holding your camera while filming. However, do not underestimate that you may get tired of holding even a small camera for long periods of time. Consider a small monopod perhaps.

Color LCD Screen:  The screen should fold-out and be very clear. The reason for suggesting a fold-out screen is that you do not want to have to put the camera up to your eye in order to film. You are likely to miss a lot of action happening around you if you are always focusing through a camera lens. With the fold out screen, you can position the camcorder at arm's length in front of you and see what you're filming through the LCD screen.  The screen does suck battery power however, remember to bring lots of batteries. Also, read my section above on rechargeable batteries as it holds true for camcorders too.

Our Video Camera:  For our safaris, we use the Sony DCR-VX2000 digital camcorder. All I can say is - WOW!  What an exceptionally fine piece of equipment this camera is!  I never expected to get the kinds of images we came home with. This is not a cheap camera (the newer VX2100 model is currently priced at about $2,200), but I feel that it creates incredibly sharp and vivid video of DVD-level quality. The image and sound qualities are nothing short of amazing; the camera is easy to use, fairly lightweight and for those who are video experts, not short on features. Nicky took the majority of the video but I got my chances with it as well and fell in love!  Feel free to contact us with any questions, but we both give it a wholehearted recommendation.

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JAMES' EQUIPMENT
Quite a few people ask me about my photography equipment.  What do I bring on safari to Africa?   What lenses do I think they should buy?

As you may already know, I am, and have always been, a Nikon customer.  I would never enter an argument about whether Nikon optics or cameras are superior to Canon or the next company, but I do know that Nikon make superb cameras and optics.  That said, here's what I shoot with currently:

Cameras
Nikon D2X Digital SLRs (2) .  What can I say.  The best camera I have ever used.  Rugged and with all the buttons in about the same places they were on my F5's.  I love this camera.

Lenses
Nikon AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8G IF-ED.  I have used several variations of this lens over the years and, like the others, I couldn't live without this lens.  Very versatile, very fast, great optics.  If you shoot Nikon, this one should be in your bag or at least on your wish list.

Nikon AF-S DX Zoom-Nikkor ED 17-55mm f/2.8G IF.  I have sold my old 20-35mm and 35-70mm and now use this lovely lens. Nikon DX lenses are designed specifically for the APS-size digital sensor used by Nikon (there is still field of view crop, but it will not work on a 35mm film camera). Great lens for people shots and its super-wide zoom range make this one a great lens to use at home as well.

Nikon AF-S Nikkor ED 300mm f/2.8 D IF.  A remarkable lens.  Super-sharp. Very fast focusing and silent motor. Superb results, even when paired with the 1.4x Teleconverter.

Nikon AF-S Nikkor ED 600mm f/4 D IF.  The big daddy.  People generally duck when I pull it out and attach it to the tripod.  A monster, but great for birds and other super telephoto work.  Retains auto focus with the 1.4x TC.  This one is heavy, so do your arm curls and push-ups if you plan to get this one.

Nikon TC-14E II & TC-17E II AF-S Teleconverters.  The latest versions of Nikon's teleconverters.  I use the 1.4x on my 600mm, but only use the 1.7x TC on my f2.8 lenses.  I do not use a 2x TC as I feel that it causes to much image degradation.

Other Photo Gear
Nikon SB-800 Autofocus Speedlight.  Nikon's latest version of external flash.  This one is made for the new DSLR's.  As amazing as those in the past. 

Really Right Stuff Camera Plates.  Tripod mounting plates to make quick release a no-brainer.  I have them on all my big lenses, plus on the D2Xs.  Incredibly precise and finely engineered.  Without peer.

Gitzo G1548 Mountaineer Tripod.  Carbon Fiber construction.  Strong and light-weight.  I use this in the vehicle for my 300/600 lenses primarily.  Mine has been used heavily since I purchased it in 1998 and it seems like it might last forever.

Arca B-2 Monoball w/Quick Release.  Attached to my tripod at all times.  Strong enough for the 600mm.  Never had much of a problem, although it does seem to expand when left in the sun, making it difficult to move at first. I may look into another option some time soon - maybe the Wimberly.  Not sure.  I like the B-2 a lot though.

Camera Bags
Here's how I transport my gear when I go to Africa and also when on game drive...
Pelican 1620 Watertight Roller Case w/foam. Pelican make superb hard cases for transporting camera equipment and I have used this one for many years. Other than some cosmetic scratches and dings (thanks to luggage handlers I suspect), this baby is as good as new.  I tossed out the middle foam layers and left in one layer on top and bottom only.  My Lowepro Pro Trekker AW (see below) fits inside the Pelican perfectly and I secure the Pelican with some heavy duty key locks.  Note that I usually have to wait while the luggage screeners search the Pelican before I head to the gate; after they search it, I make sure they lock both locks before I let it go on its way.

Lowepro Pro Trekker AW. I own several Lowepro bags and this one has been on safaris with me since 1996 - still works great.  For flights to Africa, it holds my 600mm f/4 and 300mm f/2.8, various other lenses and/or camera bodies, plus other miscellaneous items.  Once packed, I put it inside the Pelican and into checked baggage.

Lowepro Rolling Computrekker Plus AW. This is my carry-on bag for air travel to Africa.  It holds my laptop, the 70-200mm lens, both D2X camera bodies, portable hard drives, flash, and other items as well.  It's heavy when loaded up, but fits into overhead.  Lowepro also make a standard version of this same bag (sans the "Plus" designation), which is just slightly smaller and definitely safer for stingy carry-on baggage airports (like London Heathrow and JFK) and especially when flying coach class.  This bag accompanies me on game drives.

Tenba LL600 Large Lens Bag. I'm onto my second Tenba bag now (the first one finally became too beat up after many trips to Africa).  This bag now stays in Johannesburg with my Gitzo G1548 tripod and I pick it up on my way through Joburg before I head on safari.  I use it to transport my tripod and other items and then it holds my 600mm f/4 (with lens hood attached) while on game drive.  I place the bag and lens vertically and it has very sufficient padding.  It is tied to the vehicle with a strap just in case.  I have used this set up for years and find it works the best for me.

Binoculars
Leica Trinovid 10 x 25 BC/BCA.  A guide let me use his back in 1996 in Botswana and I couldn't believe how much better they were than my Nikon's of the same size.  These Leica's are superb, especially in low light situations, but their biggest advantage is that they fold up and fit into a shirt pocket; amazing.  I will likely purchase the larger Leica Trinovid 10 x 42 at some point, as these are a bit better for their wider field of view (easier on my eyes - but much heavier!)

Computer Equipment
I use Apple for my personal and professional computer systems.
Apple Dual 2Ghz PowerPC G5.  By far the best computer I've ever used.  I have 4GB of RAM just to give me more room when editing my large images in Photoshop.

Apple 23-inch HD Cinema Display.  A large monitor like this makes a huge difference when working with large image files.  The increased "real estate" from its high-definition 1920x1200 resolution also allows you to keep more Photoshop pallets open and also do precise edits

Apple PowerBook 1.67Ghz G4 17-inch Laptop.  This laptop has 2GB of RAM.   I use the PowerBook only when I'm traveling. I won't purchase an Intel-processor MacBook Pro until Adobe writes their Photoshop software to work natively on these machines.  In the meantime, this is a lovely laptop.

OWC Mercury On-the-Go 160GB Firewire 800 Portable Hard Drives (4).  I use these portable hard drives when I'm traveling to store 2 copies of each image I make.  Lots of storage in a very well put together package.  Fast Firewire 800 data transfer speeds.

Lexar Professional Firewire CompactFlash Card Readers (2).  Supports Firewire daisy-chaining so that you can connect up to four readers with a single computer connection.  I bring two, just in case.  They're compact in size.

Sandisk 8GB Extreme IV Flash Cards (4).  The Extreme IV CF Cards are fast and I have not yet had any problems. Raw images from the Nikon D2X are over 19MB in size, so I typically get around 400 images per card.  I've come close to filling all four on one game drive, but not quite.

Desktop Slide Scanner
Nikon Super Coolscan 5000 ED.  I have scanned well over 5,000 slides to date with this scanner.  It scans at up to 4000 dpi true optical resolution in 16-bit.  The scanner is also quite fast, even at 4000 dpi (which I recommend, but note that the resultant image file is over 125MB). It has a USB 2.0 interface and also does a decent job of scanning batches up to 50 slides with the optional SF210 slide feeder.  Note that the batch scan feature was a life saver with all the slides I had to scan, but it also locks up due to unknown communication errors regularly.  Still, even with the need to baby sit the batch feeder, it would have taken me 10 times as long (or more) to do each scan one at a time.

Image Storage
LaCie d2 Triple Interface Desktop Hard Drives. My primary images files are stored on these desktop hard drives.  I have multiple hard drives up to 1Terabyte per drive (they keep making bigger drives).  The triple interface refers to USB 2.0/Firewire 400/Firewire 800 connection options. I use the Firewire 800 with my Mac's as this is the fastest.  The drives are small and they make a nice rack to mount them, but if racked, don't leave them turned on all the time as these drives run a bit hot and there's no space between the drives on the rack.

Exabyte VXA-2 FireWire Packet Tape Drive. Tape Backup System (backup software shown below).  Stores up to about 70GB on a single Exabyte VXA Tape Cartridge (they claim more, but image compression only goes so far and I've only ever gotten 70GB).  I store the tapes off site as a secondary backup.

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JAMES' SOFTWARE
Following is a list and some commentary on the different software I use in conjunction with my photographic images. As mentioned above, I am an Apple computer user.

Image Editing
Adobe Camera Raw.  Since I shoot entirely in Raw mode, I use Adobe's Camera Raw (integrates with both Bridge and Photoshop) to do any initial adjustments to exposure, white balance (color temperature and tint), and for noise removal.  Really a masterful piece of software and it works with all proprietary raw formats. Camera Raw can perform white balance and tone mapping adjustments to an image no loss of the original data (the digital negative) that are not possible using Photoshop.

Adobe Photoshop CS3.  The standard image editing program used by nearly all professionals.  Adobe also make a "light" version called Photoshop Elements, which has most of the tools needed by photographers who don't want all the extra "bells and whistles".  Photoshop Elements is also priced substantially lower the full version of Photoshop.

Digital Asset Management
Adobe Photoshop Lightroom.  Adobe's new software which I use interchangeably with Adobe Bridge (Bridge ships as part of Photoshop and is discussed below).  I use Lightroom to perform certain batch tasks like converting Raw images to Jpegs (great for creating email-size images of my son for sending to relatives), creating slide shows of my images and also doing Raw image adjustments (Lightroom uses the same Adobe Raw engine as is used by Bridge and Camera Raw).  Lightroom does some things that Bridge does not (Printing, etc>0, but I believe Adobe is not quite sure where this software fits in with the rest of its image software.

Adobe Bridge. Part of Adobe's Photoshop CS3 software, this is my tool for performing all initial edits (ie, deletes) of my images.  I use this software essentially as a combination file browser and virtual light table for images (it can load and read all types of Raw files using Adobe Camera Raw).  It's the first stop in my digital workflow.

Bridge is highly configurable and you can save various different viewing layouts including thumbnail and preview sizes, metadata views, a multitude of sorting criteria, background colors, etc.  I use Bridge to strip out throwaways, perform batch processes (such as renaming my files for easy ID based on the trip or project), and also to add metadata such as copyright, keywords, descriptions and my contact information. Certainly one of the most used software programs on my computer.

Adobe DNG Converter.  Adobe's DNG (Digital Negative) Converter software is used to convert my Nikon Raw files to Adobe DNG files. I do this format conversion primarily to provide long-term insurance against file format obsolescence because, unlike proprietary raw formats, the DNG format is an open, documented format whose file spec is readily available.   Also, because proprietary raw formats are undocumented, Adobe treats them as read-only files and adds a sidecar file (XMP file) or creates a separate database to store each image's metadata, such as copyright, keywords, etc.  Since DNG is a documented format, it's safe to write the metadata directly into the DNG file itself, thus simplifying my workflow.  Another benefit is that the DNG files are compressed (lossless), reducing file sizes significantly (up to 45% in my case) and saving space on your hard drives.

Extensis Portfolio.  I use Portfolio as my true Digital Asset Management (DAM) system.  One difference between a DAM system and file browser systems (like Adobe Bridge, ACDSee, Lightbox, or the Windows File Browser) is that file browsers work directly with the source files (in my case, large image files).  In contrast, a DAM system is a database that contains thumbnail shortcuts to the original files (thus making the DAM database far less memory intensive). 

For finding images, anything is possible as long as you add the applicable keywords to your image metadata.   For example, if I need to find all my images that have an elephant or all images taken in Namibia, I do this search in Portfolio and it brings up thumbnails of each.

Portfolio can also burn a DVD of my entire image catalog or individual galleries (with a browser only version of Portfolio software installed on the DVD).  Just like my own Portfolio database, the DVD will only contain image thumbnails and all my searchable metadata. I can easily send this DVD to a photo editor, who can then browse and search my images and call me when they want one.  There's no risk of losing high-res images if the DVD goes missing as it only contains thumbnail images.  I can then FTP a high-res version of an image if someone wants to use it.

If you have lots of images, a DAM system is a good investment.

EMC Retrospect. Backup software.  I use Retrospect for making digital tape backups of my image libraries for off-site storage.  I use an Exabyte Tape Drive for my tape backups (see hardware section above).

Slide Scanning
Lasersoft Silverfast Ai Studio.  Slide scanning software for use with nearly any desktop scanner (film and flatbed) made (see my scanner above in my equipment section).  I've used Silverfast for many years and it just keeps getting better.  You'll definitely want to use its calibration software to create scanner profiles for each film type you scan.  To do so, you'll need to purchase calibration targets.  Contact me for my source if interested.

Have more questions? Feel free to call us and we'll answer all your concerns with regards to cameras, digital media, computers, software, etc.

  GO TO PAGE 1
(Camera Lenses and Binoculars)
(Digital Storage / Film and Digital ISO)

Eyes on Africa was selected most knowledgeable Regional Expert for Southern Africa / Safaris by National Geographic Traveler Magazine, 20th Anniversary Special Issue, October 2004.

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