Saseka, by Wild Images:
How DPNow Pictures of the Day are selectedWild Images, whose real name is Callie de Wet, is no stranger to the DPNow Picture of the Day, being an
early find when we started POTDs.
Callie's DPNow gallery is full of excellent wild life shots from the South African bush. Callie has very kindly provided some detailed text about the picture we have chosen today and about his life and love of wildlife:
"This picture was taken on a trip to SabiSands in 2005. This is the best place in the world to see leopards in the wild. It is next to Kruger National Park, with no boundary between the reserves. Open vehicle drives twice a day make it possible to get very near to these cats. They are exposed to these vehicles from the time they are cubs, and they even make use the vehicles as a blind to sneak up on to the impalas.
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Saseka, by Wild Images:
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Click on the picture to see a larger view in Peder's gallery.
(Free forum/gallery registration required)
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"This lady is called Saseka. I was privileged to photograph her two years apart, each time with a small cub. (For the doubting Thomases, the first cub was killed by lions). Here, she is resting on an ant hill with the late afternoon sun full on her handsome profile. I love mug shots - in your face detailed photographs of birds and animals, showing their every feature. You can even see the tick on her lower neck. I have other pictures of her where she features in full, but this shot was a deliberate full frame picture of only her head.
"Somewhere in the early 1960s, my love affair with photography was kindled, by a slide of an African Wildcat kitten, on the SWA/Botswana border, licking the blood of a freshly killed springbok at a campfire. I was born and bred in SWA, now Namibia, and wildlife was always part of my life. As a kid of around three, I saw my first lion killed because lions were treated as vermin in the early 1950s, and direct competition to the cattle farmers. As I grew up, wildlife and nature were always an intricate part of my life.
"Over the years, my infatuation with Mistress Photography just became more enticing, alluring and satisfying. I used to shoot slides for nearly 30 years, but then the Golden Age of Digital and fast, autofocus lenses made photographs possible that was never possible before. Once again, I was charmed off my feet with results I could not imagine getting in the 1990’s.
"My first camera was a Kodak Instamatic, my first Nikon an EM. Today, I shoot only Nikon DSLR ( D70; D80 and D200) with Nikkor lenses 200-400 VRS F4; 70-200 VRS f2.8; 100 mm F2.8 Micro and the 18-70 mm standard lens that came with the D70) I use a Wimberley tripod head, Manfrotto tripod, SB800 flashes and bean bags.
"So, in brief, I am a South African, in my mid fifties, married to the same lady for over thirty years, we spend every holiday we can in the bush, she is my spotter, and the one who normally sees the spotted cats first.
"Here is the shooting data from the picture of Saseka:
Nikon D70
2005/08/08 17:04:18.1
Lens Sigma 80-400 F5.6 USM
Hand-held
Focal Length: 400mm Exposure Mode: Aperture Priority
Metering Mode: Multi-Pattern
1/160 sec - F/8
Exposure Comp.: 0 EV
"This is the quintessential feline, the spotted enigma of the African Bush, the most sought-after of all the large cats by the majority of wildlife photographers; a pure, adrenaline rush, every time one encounters these beautiful animals in their natural environment. To end with the words of one of my fellow photographers : 'Happiness is a leopard in my viewfinder.'"
I don't think I can really add any more to Callie's words, except that if you would like to have a chance of getting your photography featured on DPNOw's POTD, you need to ensure you have a well stocked DPNow photo gallery. They are free, you just need to register with the DPNow forum, where we hope you will also join in the lively debate about everything photographic and more!
DPNow POTDs are selected exclusively from photos uploaded to the
DPNow photo gallery. If you haven't already done so, why not register for free access to both the DPNow discussion forum and photo gallery and show some of your own photos? A POTD could be one of yours one day!
