It was day three of our quest to capture the essence and soul of the elusive and oh-so-scarce-to-see Bearded Vulture in the Drakensberg of South Africa. We were gloomy, as the fog was thick and there was no sign of sunshine or any shadows around the hide at Giant’s Castle in the Northern Drakensberg and I was not sure that I would even see any of these magnificent birds in the sky.
Gelukkig het die koffiefles en warm beker my vingers en hande van vriespunt weerhou en my genoeg krag gegee om te bly kyk en hoop vir tog net een verbyvlug. Die vorige twee dae was omtrent aasvoël-loos maar daar was genoeg vermaak van die Jakkalse wat die bene probeer wegdra en die Kraaie of Rawe wat senuagtig gepik het aan die vleis-slierte wat nog aan die bene gesit het.
Die mis het begin lig en ek het amper van my stoel afgeval toe ek die donker kol sien verbyswiep minder as 5m bo die ‘hide’…..I glued my hands to my camera, waiting almost with bated breath for another fly-by! Much to my relief the Juvenile Bearded Vulture was very curious (or perhaps it was on entertainment-duty that morning?) to see what scraps of bone were ready for the taking and it passed by several times. It was difficult to fathom whether it was checking out the bone-strewn feeding space, or these curious figures haunched behind those strange-looking objects that clicked ever so often when it flew past.
Wonder bo wonder het die mis begin wegbrand voor die son en binne ‘n uur was daar sonlig en skadus! Verskeie volwasse Aasvoëls het sporadies hulle nuuskierigheid gewys en wonderlike geleenthede gebied vir in-vlug foto’s van hierdie pragtige voëls.
Na my mening is die onontbeerlike voorvereistes vir goeie voëlfotografie dat daar aksie of beweging moet wees, asook dat die foto nie “cluttered” moet wees nie. A background that blends and does not distract the eye of the viewer away from the subject is essential. Thus, a shallow depth of field (a large f/stop), high shutterspeed (probably in excess of 1/2000 sec) and keeping your subject in focus are all non-compromisable factors that contribute to (but not necessarily guarantee) a great image. Always ensure that your subject makes eye-contact and that the eye is in focus!
Apart from all the photographic kit you may own or borrow, never, ever, ever leave home without a bucket of patience! As I said earlier, we spent the best part of three days in the hide, fired almost 500 shots and returned home with fewer than 10 really great images.
For the techno-phobes, I used a Nikon D700 with a 500mm f/4 lens, set on f/6.3, with a shutterspeed of 1 / 800 sec and ISO 400 on a Lexar Ultra XG CF-card to capture this beauty. Of course, I go nowehere without my 2kg-homemade-PVC-beanbag! Don’t despair if you don’t get a killer-shot on your first outing, it is all about practising, so keep shooting and push your own limits!
Hoe dit werk: jy bespreek maande vooruit jou dae vir die ‘hide’ by KZN-Wildlife se sentrale besprekingskantoor – jy mag maksimum 3 dae in ‘n ry bespreek – en dan hoop jy die weer speel saam. Die koste is per persoon met ‘n minimum van 3 persone per dag in die ‘hide’ en jy bespreek die ‘hide’vir jou en jou groepie –eksklusief! Bespreek ook sommer blyplek by Giant’s Castle, want daar is nie tyd om van buite af in te ry na die ‘hide’ in die oggend nie. Jy meld aan by die kantoor die vorige aand, kry jou sleutel tot die ‘hide’ en ook jou emmer vol bene. Moet liefs NIE die bene in jou oornagplek berg nie, geen veearts sal hierdie koei kan red nie! Natuurlik betaal jy vir die dag, al spandeer jy een uur of heeldag in die ‘hide’en al sien jy niks, of al reën dit.
Had I been unlucky enough not to have seen a single Bearded Vulture on this trip, the experience of being in Nature, surrounded by the total silence of the Berg and breathing only clean air, makes every trip to the Vulture Hide at Giant’s Castle worth the effort and time!
Erna Liebenberg
