Photography by Randy Hanna

Yes, it is 6 days before wheels up and the start of another wonderful photo safari into Tanzania.  This Feb will bring a farily small but very focused group of photo safari enthusiasts to the wilds of Africa.  At this point I always start checking weather and migration status realizing that the rains in the the Serengeti will drive the herds in a variety of directions.  It is not uncommon for these herds to move some 30 miles or more per day to reach the fresh grass that is reach in nitrogen, which will spawn the brith of hundreds of thousands of young wildebeest.  From the current weather patterns, it looks like we will be right in the middle of the migration.  Seeing millions of Wildebeest across the Serengeti Plains is a sight that simply can not be  adequately described in words.

For a great summary of the migration check out WATCHwild.com.  This link presents a great annual summary along with a flash based interactive map of the migration path.

For now, I am busy doing some dry runs on packing and figuring out how to address the new bag restrictions associated with travel from Europe to the US (see previous post).  For the first time, I am seriously consdering checking my Nikon 600mm.  Not very happy about that, but I guess that is why I have insurance!  I am also in the final days of delivering a number of large high-res prints in support of a beauty salon in Seattle.  It has been a fun and challenging time in the studio and I continue to learn more and more about throwing light in the studio.

Looking at my safari schedule, I will have very limited email access so live postings will not be as frequent as usual.  Those of you that have my sat phone, use it if you need it.

With lots of personal events happening this past year, I intend to find time to do some personal reflection as I sit around the camp fire looking at the stars and pondering life.  Other than Namibia, I can think of no other place that I have been to that has clear skies and stars so bright that a flashlight is not needed during the night hours.  What a great place for reflection.

Cheers and happy Photo’ing

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Effective 4 January 2010

For travel from all foreign locations to the United States,
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has issued new security measures for all flights departing from any foreign location and traveling to the United States. These are in addition to the normal screening that all customers go through to enter secured areas. All customers should allow extra time for check-in and the boarding process and, as always, should check their flight status before departure.

Specific cities/countries carry additional restrictions. 

As an example, for travel from Amsterdam, Netherlands, to the United States Effective December 30, 2009, customers departing from Amsterdam Airport (AMS) en route to the United States will be limited to one carry-on bag, which may not exceed 45 linear inches or 114 linear centimeters (length + width + height). Medical assistance devices will be allowed in addition to the single carry-on item.

I have looked at several airline sites and have found considerable disparity, or a serious lack of updated information concerning this new requirement.  The most comprehensive information seems to be from United at http://www.united.com/page/article/0,6867,53307,00.html#amsterdam

I am now giving serious consideration to taking the appropriate container to Africa, then using DHL to ship back to my office.  This will keep a very expensive piece of glass out of the hands of the TSA animals.

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