Mara Sunset

Sunset on the Masai Mara in Kenya is a magical time. The light to the west changes through all shades of yellow, orange and red as the ball of the sun sinks to the horizon. For many animals, it signals the time to take more care: the hunters are arousing from their daytime reverie and thinking about supper. For others, it’s just another day over.

Another shot from my pre-digital days. Canon EOS3 with Canon 300mm f2.8 lens using Fuji provia film.

Happy Geishas

These ladies were not real geishas, just two of many Japanese ladies one Saturday morning in Kyoto taking advantage of a festival to dress up and wander the streets of the old town. They were loving the fun of the spectacle and a warm October day.

Taken in pre-digital days on Fujichrome Astia 100 transparency film with a Canon EOS3 and Canon 70-200mmf2.8L lens. Scanned with a Nikon Super Coolscan 5000 ED scanner.

Il Campo, Siena

Dusk over the Campo, Siena with the Town Hall and Bell Tower centre stage. This most famous of all town squares is magical at all times of day and all times of year. It is usually packed with tourists so I was lucky on this chilly December evening to catch it more or less deserted.
Canon 1DMkII with 17-35 2.8L at 17mm, ISO 400 f2.8 1/20

Black Rhino

All rhinos are endangered, so many having been massacred by poachers for their horns. There are now many game parks in various African countries endeavouring to bring numbers back up to levels where the threat of extinction is diminished, but it is an uphill battle and every year seems to bring bad news.

These creatures are truly magnificent – primitive, primeaval, and with a rugged, powerful beauty. It is a privilege to be close to them, albeit from the security of a vehicle: they are not to be underestimated.

This fellow was one of over 50 roaming Lewa game park in Kenya. He caught the scent of an orange that one of our party had peeled and was desperately trying to find the source of the tantalising aroma. Fortunately for us, he lost the scent and finally wandered off.

You can read more about the Lewa Conservancy at www.lewa.org and you can follow them on FaceBook.

Black Rhinoceros or Hook-lipped Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)

Canon D60 with Canon 300mm 2.8L IS with x2 extender; ISO 200 f5.6 1/1500

Wildebeest Sunset

An oldie, this one, but one still worthy of a dusting off.

This wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou), or Godfrey the Gnu as we named him, was more interested in keeping an eye on us than watching the magnificent sunset going on behind him. He might also, of course, have been keeping a wary eye on a couple of lions that were lazing in the evening sun not far from us.
However, he was an obliging fellow: he stood still as the sun went down behind him and it wasn’t until the sun disappeared from our view that he seemed to shrug and wander off along the ridge.
Taken twelve  years ago in the Masai Mara, Kenya in my pre-digital days.
Canon EOS 3 with Canon 300mm f2.8L lens and x2 extender using Fuji Provia transparency fim. Scanned with a Nikon Super Coolscan 5000 ED scanner.