The wildebeest and zebra migration that occurs annually in Kenya is truly one of the planet’s most wonderful of spectacles. The sheer number of bodies that cross the Mara River is an event that should be on all nature and wildlife enthusiasts’ bucket list.
I got the chance to photograph my first migration when I joined a David Lloyd photo tour in August of this year. Being my first visit to the Mara, I arrived with high expectations and was simply blown away. The vastness of the Mara is only surpassed by the sheer number of Wildebeest that swarm the grassland during this time (see my blog on the Wildebeest)
After a fun 2 hours getting through passport control at Nairobi Airport, a comfortable evening at a hotel in the city, we took a 1 hour flight to the Mara whilst our luggage followed by road. You get hit by wildlife from the get go and we had to let 2 sleeping lions lie as the squawking radio told our driver that a crossing was in progress at the camp.
We rushed to the Entim camp alongside the Mara River only to arrive after the majority of the animals had crossed. The sheer noise as the majority of the wildebeest encouraged the last stragglers to cross was fantastic and I had my first photos.
During the days that followed we witnessed and photographed 4 big crossings and I got many of the photos I had visualised before arriving. We never saw any big crocodiles at the crossings but the sheer number of seething bodies meant that some tired and older wildebeest didn’t make it and were swept away to awaiting mouths further downstream.
The Maasai drivers and guides that we had really know their stuff and along with their fantastic wildlife knowledge goes the ability to put the vehicle in great photographic positions. Whether we wanted stunning sunsets, driving skills to approach very shy species or simply not screeching to a halt when you saw something, they understood how to give us the best chances of some great photos.
I saw many new species that we don’t get in Southern Africa and was lucky to get some shots of the lot. The migration aside, I loved the close encounters we had with the Bat-eared Foxes and the great fun we had taking the safari vehicles through the swollen river – not all vehicles made it through the first time and it all added to the Safari feel for those that were experiencing Africa for the first time.
The main tip I can share is quite simply….Just get there
Below are quite a few photos from this great trip. Hope you enjoy them.
Burchells Zebra: Canon 1D Mark IV, 24-105mm (at 82mm), 1/4000sec, f/4, ISO200
Secretarybird: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4, ISO1000
Wildebeest herd: Canon 1D Mark IV, 24-105mm (at 50mm), 1/4000sec, f/4, ISO200
Wildebeest Crossing: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/2500sec, f/4, ISO200
Crossing: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1000sec, f/4,5, ISO200
Leap of faith: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1250sec, f/4, ISO200
Wildebeest herd: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/500sec, f/4, ISO200
Leopard: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/500sec, f/4, ISO640
Mara Sunset: Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105(100mm), 1/1000sec, f/4, ISO160
Twin Giraffes: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1600sec, f/4, ISO800
Dik-dik: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/400sec, f/5.6, ISO800
African Hawk-eagle: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/1000sec, f/5.6, ISO320
Topi Sunset: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/320sec, f/4, ISO400
Lioness yawning: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/60sec, f/5.6, ISO4000. I love this Camera in low light, the lack of noise at high ISO is fantastic
Water Exit: Canon 5D Mark II, 100-400mm (at 320mm), 1/640sec, f/5.6, ISO1250
Marabou Stork feeding: Canon 5D Mark II, 100-400mm (at 400mm), 1/1600sec, f/5.6, ISO1250
Cheetah: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/160sec, f/5.6, ISO200
Lion Cub: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/200sec, f/5.6, ISO200
The cranes of the Mara: Canon 5D Mark II, 24-105mm (at100mm), 1/320sec, f/9, ISO200
Defassa Waterbuck: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1250sec, f/5.6, ISO200
Kori Bustard: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1250sec, f/4, ISO200
Eland: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1000sec, f/4, ISO200
Bar-earedFox: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/500sec, f/4, ISO200
Temincks Courser: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1000sec, f/4, ISO200
Yellow-throated Sandgrouse: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4.5, ISO200
Mara Lion: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/250sec, f/4, ISO400
Mara Lion: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/100sec, f/4, ISO400
Kongoni: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4, ISO4000
Spotted hyena: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4, ISO500
Hyena Cubs: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/400sec, f/5.6, ISO500
Tawny Eagle: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/400sec, f/5.6, ISO500
Thomson gazelle fight: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/1600sec, f/5.6, ISO500
Lion Cub: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+1.4x conv (700mm), 1/640sec, f/5.6, ISO200
Hippo Skull: Canon 5D Mark II, 100-400mm (at 340mm), 1/8000sec, f/5.6, ISO1250
Hippo Pool: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1600sec, f/4, ISO200
Olive Baboon: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/500sec, f/4, ISO200
African Buffalo: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/400sec, f/4, ISO200
African Buffalo: Canon 5D Mark II, 100-400mm (at 365mm), 1/1000sec, f/5.6, ISO320
African elephant bull: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1250sec, f/4, ISO400
Giraffe: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm,1/800sec, f/4, ISO400
Snarling cub: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4, ISO400
Mara king: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/640sec, f/4, ISO1000
Mara herd: Canon 5D Mark II, 100-400mm (at 190mm), 1/1250sec, f/5, ISO1000
Burchell Zebra: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/4000sec, f/4, ISO200
Lilac Breasted Roller: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/2000sec, f/4, ISO200
Mara Male Lion: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/3200sec, f/4, ISO200
Damn Flies: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/4000sec, f/4, ISO200
Black back Jackal: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/4000sec, f/4, ISO200
Close-up: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+2x conv (1000mm), 1/320sec, f/8, ISO420
Grey-backed Fiscal: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/2500sec, f/4, ISO200
Griffon Vulture: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1250sec, f/4, ISO200
Cheetah: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1600sec, f/4, ISO400
Impala Herd: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+2x conv (1000mm), 1/640sec, f/8, ISO640
Black-headed heron: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/1600sec, f/4.5, ISO1000
Ruppell's Long-tailed Startling: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/500sec, f/4.5, ISO400
Mara Lioness: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm+2x conv (1000mm), 1/200sec, f/8, ISO400
Mara Lion: Canon 1D Mark IV, 500mm, 1/2000sec, f/4, ISO800
Something else I learnt is that the area is called the Masai Mara National Reserve and the wonderful people that live and work there are called the Maasai. This is why you tend to see different spelling across various documents.
Please have a look at David’s website as he is co-leading some trips again next year with Will and Matt Burrard-Lucas, they are going to be fantastic tours.
vinayak - Great pictures as always. Got an emergency patient so have to rush, will get back later for a more in depth look.
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