Photography by Randy Hanna

Our excursion to Arusha National Park to find Colobus monkeys today exceeded our expectations. Not only did we find one Colobus family but FOUR of them. Located only within this Tanzanian government park, the Colobus monkeys live only in these hills and are hard to spot because they stay in the trees and are well-concealed with their black and white fur. Diligence paid off today, as we were lucky to see and photograph four of the families – take a look at a few photographs captured today by my fellow photographers:

Photo by Randy Hanna

Nikon D300, 600mm VR

Photo by Randy Hanna

Nikon D3oo, 600mm VR

Larry captured this monkey flying thru the air

Nikon D300, 200-400

Photo by Randy Hanna

Nikon D300, 600 mmVR

Photo by Katherine

Nikon D300, 200-400mm VR

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Mountain Village Resort Guest Quarters, Arusha, Tanzania

Nikon D300, 17-55mm @40mm

After over nighting in Amsterdam and again in Dar el Salaam, we made it to Mountian Village Resort just in time for lunch.   After lunch, I’ll be spending time with four safari-goers that have arrived two days early and getting all of my equipment ready.  Tonight I’ll be discussing how to configure your camera for safari as well as the pros and cons of various settings unique to the Nikon D300 and D90 such as selective and continuous focus, spot vs matrix metering, 3D focus tracking, depth of field controls and de-linking the focus from the shutter.  Tomorrow, we are off for a short mini-safari to Arusha National Park, home to the Colobus Monkey.  BTW, the name “colobus” means “mutilated one” and refers to the missing thumb. Later in the evening,  I’ll be linking up the the main body of the safari group as they arrive at the airport, then back to Mountain Village for a restful night with an exciting day greating us at sunrise.  After a healthy breakfast and a quick safari briefing, it’s off to Tarangire National Park where we  will search for the large Elephant heards that are resident to this area.  Rains have been somewhat below normal in this area, so the game viewing around the water’s edge should be great.

Cheers and happy photographing

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Amsterdam Tulip Market

Nikon D300, 17-55mm

After departing Seattle on the early bus ride to Europe, I finally arrived in Amsterdam early the next morning.  As expected, tulips are everywhere.   It will be an early retirement Tuesday night as the 0700 flight into Africa via Zurich, Nairobi, and Dar el Salaam will come early.  Meanwhile, I’ll spend some quality time later this afternoon putting the finishing touches on some lecture material that I will be presenting to the photography enthusiasts that will soon be joining me in Africa.

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This weekend I leave for Tanzania leading another photo safari and man I can’t wait to get there.  These crazy gray Seattle skies are killing me.  So what is in the bag?  For this trip I will be taking two carry ons.  One Gura Gear back pack (shown here,  and one over the shoulder lens bag for my 600mm VR.  Packed in the Kiboko bag:  Nikon D300 (2), D2x, SB800 flash (2), 70-200mm VR, 200-400mm VR, 10.5 fisheye, 17-55mm, 1.4TC, 1.7TC, EN-EL4a batteries (2) plus those in the cameras, Lacie external hard drives, Hyperdrive Space 250GB (2),  dual battery charger, international cell phone, Better Beamer, remote control timer, CF wallet with cards.  Not pictured are camera cleaning supplies, assorted cords, and a small repair kit.  Oh yes – I almost forgot, I also have one extra shirt, and one change of underwear and socks laid on top of the camera gear.  Tooth brush and other personal items are in the outermost flap.  What is funny about all of this  is that I actually have some room left over.  So what about this bag?  The bag was developed by Andy Biggs, aka Mr. Africa.  I first met Andy in 2007 while on one of his safaris.  BTW, Andy has had a serious impact on my photography skills and has helped me a great deal with my safari efforts.  While on safari in 2007, Andy had an early beta version of his bag along for the ride.  I gave the bag a hard look and made note of those things that I thought made it stand out.  In 2008, Andy sent me a final pre-production bag for trial on my 2008 photo safari.  I must say that the improvements from the beta to the pre-production model were incredible.  For the first time, I had my hands on a bag that was the lightest bag in the industry  and also offered incredible protection for my equipment.  At this point, I need to share with you that my attic is littered with camera bags.  The only thing that I have more of than bags is CF cards, so I have learned a few things about bags over the years – mostly what I don’t like.  The Kiboko bag from Gura Gear performs better than any other bag that I currently own.  When I need to carry two bodies or more  and several lenses, this is my bag of choice.  It is made of heavy duty sail cloth nylon, the type that sail boat sails are made from (that should give you an idea of the strength of this bag), and features a fully adjustable shoulder and belt harness systems.  Being 6 foot 2, this simple adjustment makes the difference between an easy carry and a sore back.  A top and ergonomically correct side carry handle, plus a built in rain fly top off the outstanding construction.  Top notch construction can been seen at every seam, and at every stress point.  The bag is fully reinforced in all of the critical locations.  Ample internal padding dividers are provided, with no need to purchase additional ones.  The double flap design is perfect for those wanting to shoot from the bag.  While on safari, I will simply re-configure the bag so I can have two cameras at the ready plus my 600 VR in my lap.  If you are in search of a top notch, high quality, no non-sense camera and back pack, I urge you to give the Kiboko bag from Gura Gear a hard look.  I think you will find a winner here just as I have.  The down side for me:  After returning the pre-production bag, I had to wait for 4 months until my personal Kiboko bag arrived.  The upside for you:  You don’t have to wait anymore – the bags are in stock and shipping.  Check out the Gura Gear blog.

Cheers and happy photo’ing

Randy

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Mother and Cubs, NDutu Area, Tanzania,

Nikon D300, 500mm +1.4TC

With my departure for my next photo safari in less than 7 days, I simply can’t wait to get my boots dirty again with the dust of Africa.  The above photo was taken on near NDutu Village in the southern area of the Ngorongoro National Park.  I had the wonderful experiance of spending several hours watching this mother with her six cubs.  Our guides estimated that the cubs were about six to eight weeks old.  What a treat.

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