Having visited Uganda on a number of occasions, I have had the privilege to use a variety of gear.
In the past I have hosted the Best Of Uganda Safari, and the three different places we visit is Kibale, to photograph the Chimpanzees, Queen Elizabeth National Park and Bwindi impenetrable forest, to photograph the Gorillas.
This safari is right up there with one of my favourite safaris to host. The reason being is that it is such a diverse and fascinating safari. With the above mentioned, we do a total of five treks on this safari, two chimpanzee treks and three Gorilla Treks, with a break in the middle of the safari to explore the beauty of Queen Elizabeth National Park in search of tree climbing lions and so much more. This portion of the trip Is great, it starts with an exclusive boat ride up the channel between Lake George and Lake Edward, which for birdlife is absolutely spectacular. Being on the boat and at eye level, creates some unique images of the abundance of birdlife along with the wildlife that are around the waters edge during the heat of the day.
This safari offers a wide unique array of wildlife photography to add to your portfolio, from chimpanzees, to lions, leopards and plenty of general game before finishing off with a bang photographing gorillas.
This safari is one that I do find a little more Challenging in terms of photography. The gear that I decided to take was the following:
All Canon gear:
- Canon 1DXMKII(back up body)
- Canon 1.4x Converter
- Canon EF fixed 300mm F2.8
- Canon R6 (mirrorless body)
- RF Adapter
- RF 100 - 500mm F4,5 - 7,1
Being fairly new to the mirrorless systems, I wanted to take the Canon Eos R6 to test out and to put it to the test in some tricky photographic situations and see the results. Having said that, I am a big fan of the older DSLR cameras such as the 1DXMKII and the 5D MKIV, I packed the 1DXMKII more for back up than anything else. I am aware of its capabilities, I have used it a number of times out in the field, pairing it with the fixed 300F2.8, in my opinion is one of the best wildlife combinations out there for most destinations. I chose to bring along the canon 1.4x converter for a little more reach, either in the forests or in Queen Elizabeth National Park. By adding the 1.4x converter onto the Canon 1DXMKII, the camera then goes to 440mm with an aperture of F4, which in low light is easily manageable.
If we separate the safari into different segments, with the gear suggested, I am essentially giving myself the best chance in a variety of different conditions. Photographing Chimpanzees and Gorillas can often be rather challenging due to the external elements, such as light, subject, where the subject is positioned and is the subject moving.
Shooting in the forest often requires us to push our ISO relatively high to get the shutter speed and the exposure that we need in order to get the result that we are looking for. Most photographers either shoot in Aperture Priority or full manual with auto ISO. Both methods are right, I personally am very fixated on what my ISO is and what my shutter speed is. For this very reason, I typically shoot on aperture priority and manage my ISO, my Aperture and my exposure compensation to give me the best shutter speed possible. Where as what I have found with manual mode and shoot on auto ISO, even though you can set the limits, I find in a moment of excitement, I completely forget to watch how high my ISO is going( which I don't have a problem with), but I prefer to focus and manage my ISO so that I Can keep my ISO as low as can and as high as necessary in the dark forests.
With that said, to get the best out of your Uganda safari experience photographically speaking, this is what I would recommend camera gear wise...
I hope that you find this useful and if you have any questions, please get in touch in the comments below.
Until next time,
Trevor
Wild Eye Rental Gear
Over the past years, Wild Eye has developed quite the diverse range of camera gear to rent out to all our guests who travel with us. We have quite a variety of Nikon and Canon DSLR's, recently adding 3 mirrorless R6 Canon bodies with adaptors and the new RF 100mm - 500mm F4,5 - F7,1 and massive range of different focal length lenses to rent for both brands. This is a department that is constantly growing and developing as technology develops too. We are constantly looking at updating and improving this division.
The Best Of Uganda
Join Wild Eye for this incredible adventure which includes not only the experience of getting close to and photographing the critically endangered Mountain Gorilla, but also two full days of trekking Chimpanzees in Uganda’s Kibale National Forest, and a two day visit to the famous Queen Elizabeth National Park, known for its tree-climbing lions. This safari itinerary to give you the opportunity to photograph a much wider diversity of subjects than purely primates and will leave you with an incredibly well-rounded portfolio of Uganda.
