Friday, December 7, 2007

Experience Life At Zambia Wilderness Safari

As far as African safaris go, Zambia is the one that keeps its secret for many years and still keeps some though it is already beginning to take its crown for African safaris top destinations.

Zambia wilderness safari is absolutely an unknown realm when compared with more traditional national parks, wildlife sanctuaries and game reserves. But this still does not negate the fact that at some rate, the wilderness safaris that Zambia posses can be rated as top caliber and may even equal the qualities of other more visited hot African safari picks.

To save you from scouring over magazines, books and online, we have already collected information on some of the premium wilderness safaris, game reserves and national parks in the country. Please read on?

Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park
In spite of its difficult-to-pronounce name, Mosi-oa-Tunya still has something exceptional to scream for, the mighty Victoria Falls. This sight is probably the reason why the park is named as such, which if literally translated we may arrive at the meaning of "the smoke that thunders".

And the name really says the truth. It thunders roughly that the sound along is enough to make you stand awestruck and if you get nearer, you might feel the violent rushing of water.

The park also harbors some of the remaining rhinos that luckily escaped extinction. And if wilderness becomes favorable to you, you may also catch some glimpses of the baboon, impala, giraffe, eland and sables.

Lochinvar National Park
The bird paradise of Zambia. The credit of being a bird's paradise is given to Lochinvar since some 400 plus species of birds live in here. The big games though are scarce which is only limited to some herds of buffalo, hippos, spotted hyena, leopard, zebras and wildebeests.

Kafue National Park
The largest of all wilderness parks in Zambia, Kafue nurses the densest population of wildlife in all Zambia. Thousands of red lechwe, endless hoard of antelopes, sable, waterbuck, puka, roan, oribi, hartebeest, and vast number of predators to name a few. In fact, the only animal that you wont see in her are the zebras.

South and North Luangwa National Park
How would one describe Luangwa Park? It is simply the greatest wildlife sanctuary in the world since it harbors a biodiversity that is second to none with a touch of isolation and unadulterated wilderness, which makes it almost without compare. Being unspoilt by travelers except only for the locals and some fortunate foreign travelers, this park is truly a sight for creation in the making.
This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included. For more information on safari & other useful information, please visit http://safari.articlekeep.com

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Thursday, October 25, 2007

Know What To Expect From An African Hunting Safari

Africa, a place that is naturally endowed with species that it exclusively owns.

The mere sound of the name rings bells of adventure, exploration, realization and hunting. Because of the diversity of hunting safari, it offers as much opportunities for hunting fanatics to explore a range of ecological areas that have their own specialties.

Well, it's hard to imagine how we can exactly describe the purity of Africa. It is safe though to tell you that it is filled with rich resources of plain animals suited for game, predators that follow after their kill, animals grazing on fertile and unspoiled lands and others.

The game aside, Africa gathers the largest, most dense and extreme concentration of plant species and strange animals that seem to have come directly from the sixth day of the creation.

Now going to the bird, at any given time of the year, a single national park can contain an average of 300 to 500 bird species, which make Africa not only a haven of species but also a paradise for naturalists and ornithologists.

The plant and tree species are also diverse that it is impossible to record them all. Some species are as old as several thousand years ago, which again seemed to be the direct link to the Creator.

Al these combined (and the mixture of other components), Africa is one big paradise for man and the creations to enjoy. To flourish and to experience the circle of life. The dance that plays with each organism and specie. And the life that sets the balance between the created and the wardens.

As for the hunting safari, Africa boasts the most excellent sites and species that fuel man's passion for hunting animals in their natural habitats. Though hunting is restricted in some national parks, local governments still assigned African hunting safaris where varieties of games are enjoyed but in accordance with ethical restrictions.

Some common hunting safari animals in Africa are: black wildebeest, gemsbuck, red hartebeest, springbuck, waterbuck, bushbuck, zebras, antelopes, eland, steenbuck, rhebuck, impala, blue wildebeest, warthog, kudu and many other species.

In African hunting safaris, the most common method used is the rifle hunting. However, although it is popular enough there are still unsettled issues concerning the caliber of the rifle. Please check on the guidelines as suggested by you tour operator.

Next to the rifle hunting is the bow hunting, which for the present is not as customarily used as the rifle hunting. Experts see the future of bow hunting though as the standard to restrict any other issues that must be dealt with the more common form of hunting.

This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included. For more information on safari & other useful information, please visit http://safari.articlekeep.com


 

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Wednesday, August 29, 2007

The Best Wildlife Camera To Take On Safari

Good wildlife camera equipment on safari can make the difference between pictures you will be proud to show your friends and family when you get back and ones where it's difficult to figure out exactly what you were photographing because it's only a fuzzy black dot surrounded by green vegetation.

I take wildlife photographs for a living and I have had to quickly figure out what the best cameras and lenses are to get the job done effectively.

Digital or Film - Which is better for a safari?

Wild animals are very unpredictable. That's one aspect of safari photography that makes it so exciting because you never know what you are going to get but this also means that the number of pictures you need to take to get a keeper increases.

And if you use film that can become very expensive whereas with a digital wildlife camera you can take as many as you want and then just delete the ones where the lion has ducked behind a bush, the cheetah has blurred because the autofocus locked onto a twig in front of it and the exposure of the hippo was way off because of the reflected sunlight in the water.

You can also make consistent use of bracketing to get the perfect exposures without worrying about cost or running out of film which can be a problem in certain remote areas of Africa where safaris take place.

So more is better in this case but what about quality? The fact is that digital quality is fast catching up to film unless you fall into the professional category and are going to be selling your safari pictures or entering them into competitions. In that case it might be better to stick to film because the trained eye will be able to spot the difference but in most other cases digital quality is more than adequate.

Digital also gives you valuable feedback while you are still on safari so that you can try and improve on that elephant picture with the ear cut off the next day. You also have a lot more control over the final product because you can use software like Photoshop to enhance and fine tune your pictures.

Digital SLR or Compact Wildlife Camera

A safari is the dream trip of a lifetime and it's a great opportunity to get some fantastic wildlife pictures but it's not necessary to buy the latest and greatest digital SLR and lenses to get them unless you are planning to take nature pictures for a living or are a serious photography enthusiast and are going to make regular use of the camera and lenses after the safari anyway.

The cost of a digital SLR wildlife camera is high compared to a compact but that is only half the story. The lenses that you need to purchase for decent wildlife photography often cost more than the camera itself making it a very expensive business indeed.

And a bulky camera body and multiple interchangeable lenses do add to the weight of your luggage and the inconvenience of carrying everything around with you.

Digital compact cameras on the other hand are not extremely expensive and the results that you can obtain from them are almost on a par with a digital SLR camera and you don't have to worry about any additional lenses if the compact you buy has a decent zoom covering the range from 80mm to about 300mm. There are a few of them on the market that do have lenses like this and the range of the zooms increase every year.

And compact cameras live up to their name by being relatively small and light and one lens means no additional weight or carrying and no time wasted changing to another lens to suit the situation.

The Best SLR Digital Wildlife Camera for Nature Photography

If you have decided to go with a digital SLR then by all accounts the best one to purchase for wildlife photography at the moment is the Canon EOS 20D due to the blinding speed of its shutter release (near instantaneous) and its continuous shooting speed of 5 frames per second to a maximum burst depth of twenty three frames. It also powers up in next to no time at all.

This wildlife camera is as fast as you will ever need to freeze wildlife action and get the picture in the can before the animal moves off into the undergrowth.

There are other SLR cameras that are nearly as good like the Nikon D70 and the Pentax ist D so take a look at them too before making a decision.

The Best Compact Digital Wildlife Camera for Nature Photography

Canon comes up trumps again in the compact camera category with the Canon Powershot S2 IS. The factor that makes this camera ideal for safari wildlife photography is its huge 12X optical zoom lens (36 - 432mm equivalent) with a built in image stabiliser which cuts down on blur when using such a massive zoom lens.

A 5 megapixal sensor is more than enough to produce stunning safari images and as long as you can live with a slight shutter release lag and power up delay this compact wildlife camera is perfect for a safari trip.

About The Author

Bruce Whittaker

Five essential wildlife photography tips that will help you improve your animal pictures rapidly and remarkably..http://www.african-safari-pictures.com/wildlife-photography-tips.html

The best wildlife camera to take with you on a photographic safari..http://www.african-safari-pictures.com/wildlife-photography-tips.html

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