Hi First name / everyone as you read this newsletter about Savuti, I am already on my way back there again! So whats so special about Savuti? While I often share my love and history with this unique park, my reasons for the recent trips are more focused. As I am sure you guessed from my last few newsletters, I have rejuvenated my love for capturing animals in their environments. For that reason I really want to make the most of the green season before the grass turns brown and the trees begin to drop their leaves. 

 

The bright greens and dramatic clouds create such visually interesting scenes that it is hard not to find a beautiful composition this time of year. Over the last six months I have pushed myself to try and capture pre thought out images. This newfound focus makes it vital to make the most of seasons and behaviour linked to them. 

 

While this months newsletter is more of a trip report, I hope that my ramblings reflect on the visual theme that is being captured in my images recently. I hope you enjoy newsletter #32!

 

- William

Not all trips go to plan. Driving into Savuti I already knew that the images I was after would be hard to get. With Savuti having very little rain in comparison to Kasane, the lush green season aesthetic was just not there. To add insult to injury, on morning two of the five day trip my car broke down! Sitting stranded in the marsh, disappointed would be an understatement. It was hard not to have thoughts about heading home early (well if my car would actually start).

 

With the amazing help of a bush mechanic we were able to remove and then repair my broken alternator. A rather amazing feat in just a few hours, regardless of being in the middle of nowhere! This support by strangers is exactly what being in the bush is all about, and this kindness salvaged the trip. 

 

With a new found drive… I tried to make the most of the less than ideal landscape. With the grass already waist high, why not use that to my advantage? If the initial goal was to capture the environment, why fight it? Adapt to it! That is exactly what I tried to do.

This is a reminder that not all trips match expectation, and the greater the expectation the harder it is to let yourself be absorbed in the moment. No matter what happens, being in nature always provides interesting and impactful experiences.

TWICE IN A ROW?

Well it happened again… sort of. This time with an iconic Savuti lion, on exactly the same termite mound! Maybe I should just stake out that spot and wait for the animals to come to me!? Taken just a month apart, what I love about this moment is the way it shows how much the grass has grown.  

Years ago, before I even started photography, I saw a pencil sketch by Bowen Boshier of a baobab tree with a bushbuck below it. This artwork was one of an art series based on baobabs, with hidden animals somewhere in the scene. These beautiful artworks always stuck in my mind. About fourteen years later I found myself looking at a beautiful baobab tree thinking; wouldn't it be fun to try and capture a similar scene. 

Knowing how much elephants love baobab trees, it was simply a matter of waiting for one to approach. I love the result, especially how this young elephant is dwarfed by the huge baobab tree. Do you think I should try and do a series of these images?

I am sure you know how this section works by now, but for those who are new; I try to share an image each month that didn't work. The premise being that there is something large or small that ruins an image for me, from technical issues to human error. Sharing the images that normally wouldn't see the light of day, I hope to encourage others to accept their failings. No matter how “professional” you are, we all make mistakes!

This months "if only" isn't necessarily a failed image, but rather a photograph that I have ruined in my head. Believe it or not I deliberately focused on the grass. Initially I liked the way that the grass tells a subtle story of the environment this time of the year. But, once I got an idea in my head, it was hard to love it for what it is. The thought was “if only there was a dragonfly on the grass!”. 

 

That being said, this brings up an important topic for me. I advise all budding photographers, wildlife or otherwise, to keep a photographers sketchbook. Whether you draw in, it or simply keep notes, this is a great way to hone in on ideas. While you cannot control nature, the more you note down ideas, the more likely you will be able to create those images. If you would like me to cover this topic more in-depth in a future newsletter, please let me know!