Caption: Blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) on the run, panned for motion blur effect, Serengeti National Park, Tanzania.

Camera: Canon EOS 450D (Canon Rebel XSi 12.2MP); Lens: Canon EF70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM; Focal Length: 300mm; Aperture: f/45; Shutter Speed: 1/20; ISO: 200

I like using slow shutter speeds to create motion blur for moving subjects. Of course, this technique is not always appropriate for action photographs, and it also doesn’t appeal to viewers who like to see all the fine details in a moving subject. This is particularly so for sports photographs, where it’s important to capture defining moments by freezing the action.

But with wildlife, I feel that motion blur works well when depicting an animal fleeing through the bush. The background vegetation, when blurred from panning the camera, adds to the sense of movement and speed rather than becoming a distraction.

Antelope, including wildebeest, make good subjects for this style of photography as they often dash off, individually or in groups, at any hint of danger. This allows one to follow the action, panning the camera while keeping the subject in the viewfinder.

Usually for wildlife photography, I keep my camera set on AV (aperture priority), often at the widest available aperture. This allows a high shutter speed, necessary to minimize camera shake when using telephoto lenses.

But for motion blur photographs, one needs a slow shutter speed, requiring a bunch of different settings on the camera. I switch to TV (shutter priority), select my shutter speed (between 1/15 and 1/30) and let the camera set the aperture.

In good light, with an ISO of 400 and shutter speed of 1/20, the required aperture for correct exposure can be around f/64 or smaller, which is beyond most lenses designed for DSLR cameras. So, if time permits, I also drop the ISO from 400 down to 200 or even 100 to prevent over-exposure.

I also like to change the auto focus mode from One Shot, which I prefer for static subjects, to Servo, as the subject is moving so you need to follow focus as you pan the camera. Finally, I change from Single Shot to high-speed Continuous, which allows me to shoot in bursts as I follow the action.

It’s often impossible to change all these settings in the time available, unless one can anticipate that a bunch of happily grazing animals is likely to get spooked and suddenly dash off.

I now have a Canon EOS 50D that has a couple of “Custom” settings on the mode dial, so I can allocate one of these to motion blur and dial in all my preferred settings. Then, if an opportunity for motion blur presents itself, I simply click the mode from AV to C1 and I’m good to go. Once the opportunity passes, I click back to AV and my preferred settings are all still there, so there’s less chance of the mistakes that happen when you forget to change a particular setting.

Below is another panned wildebeest picture, taken in Botswana’s Tuli Block. It’s from the new page of Wildebeest Pictures that I’ve added to the Gallery section of my website. It features wildebeest pictures taken in South Africa over a number of years, plus more recent images from the Serengeti plains of Tanzania.

Caption: Waterbuck male (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) standing near water’s edge on the Zambezi River is framed by riverine greenery, Lower Zambezi National Park, Zambia.

Camera: Canon EOS 1D Mk II; Lens: Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L USM; Focal Length: 400mm; Shutter speed: 1/400; Aperture: f/5.6; ISO: 400

Caption: Nyala group of mixed ages and gender, showing their different colors, drinking from waterhole, Mkuzi Game Reserve, South Africa.

Nyala Appearance: The females and young have a smooth coat that is bright chestnut with distinct stripes and spots, while males, in addition to their horns, have a more shaggy coat that’s charcoal to slate in color with less contrasty side stripes.

In the picture above, from left we have a young calf, then two adult females, a juvenile male (already turning a darker color) and a sub-adult male.

While the sub-adult male is markedly bigger and darker than the females, he has some way to go to reach adulthood. See, for example, the picture (right) of a mature adult male, with his impressive lyre-shaped horns with ivory tips.

Photo Info: Camera: Canon EOS 400D (Digital Rebel XTi); Lens: Canon EF70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM; Focal Length: 180mm; Shutter speed: 1/1250; Aperture: f5.6; ISO: 400.

For more, see Nyala Lateral Display and Nyala Bull at Waterhole.

Photo Details: Kudu bull (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) browsing on winter leaves, Sabi Sand Game Reserve, South Africa.

Camera: Canon EOS 400D (Canon Rebel XSi 12.2MP); Lens: Canon EOS 80-200 F2.8 zoom; Focal Length: 200mm; Shutter speed: 1/200; Aperture: f2.8; ISO: 400.

Additional Info: Note how the kudu’s long, spiral horns point downward when it raises its head to browse. The kudu uses a similar technique when fleeing from predators through the bush – it lifts its head to bring the horns paralell with its back so they don’t get caught in overhanging branches and other vegetation.

Location: The Sabi Sand Game Reserve is a 65,000 hectare, privately-owned tract of land adjacent to South Africa’s largest and best known game reserve, the Kruger National Park. A number of commercial game lodges, covering differing areas and enjoying varied traversing rights, have been established in the Sabi Sand, including the ultra luxurious Mala Mala, Singita, and Londolozi.

There are no dividing fences between Sabi Sand and Kruger, allowing the prolific variety of wildlife to move freely between the two.

Photo Details: Greater Kudu bull (Tragelaphus strepsiceros) standing side-on showing a fine pair of spiral horns, Weenen Game Reserve, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

This photograph, taken on a late winter’s afternoon, is enhanced by the warm light that adds a golden glow to the tall winter grass and a pinkish tinge to the clouds in the distance. The angle of the sun also ensures there’s a “catchlight” in the kudu’s eyes, which always adds vibrancy and sparkle to wildlife pictures. The open grassland, with thickets of acacia trees in the background, is typical of the Weenen landscape (see previous post for more on Weenen Game Reserve).

Camera: Canon Digital Rebel; Lens: Canon EOS 100-400 IS zoom; Focal Length: 200mm; Shutter-speed: 1/160; Aperture F6.3; ISO: 400.

Additional Info: The greater kudu is found across large parts of east, central, and southern Africa. With it’s tall, regal physique, attractive coloration, and distinctive spiral horns, the male kudu is undoubtedly southern Africa’s – and possibly the continent’s – most iconic antelope. Its head appears on numerous safari-related logos and branding, and it features on the South African R2 coin.

The long spiral horns can grow to 1.87m (6ft) in length, incorporating three full turns, while the average length is around 1.2m (4ft). The face is dark with a distinctive white chevron running between the eyes and a shorter white line on each cheek. The male also has a beard on the lower jaw.

The overall body color varies from reddish brown to blue-gray, with six to 10 white stripes running vertically down the sides.

The male’s average shoulder height is around 1.45m (4ft 8in), making the kudu Africa’s second tallest antelope (after the Eland). The female (cow) is quite a lot smaller at a height of 1 to1.4m (3 to 4ft 6in) and does not have horns.

The kudu’s main enemies are lions, leopards, and smaller predators like hyenas and wild dogs. Kudu are also frequent victims of the hunter’s rifle as their horns are much prized as trophies. Surprisingly though, the long and twisty horns don’t get in the way when a kudu flees from predators through thick bush and forests – it simply lifts its head so the horns lie flat along its back.

Photo Details: A pair of Blue Wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) gallop off as we approach in our game drive vehicle, Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana.

Camera: Canon EOS 450D (Canon Rebel XSi 12.2MP); Lens: Canon EF70-300mm f/4-5.6 IS USM; Focal Length: 300mm; Shutter speed: 1/30; Aperture: f45; ISO: 400; 31 May 2009, 9.25am.

Additional Info: I deliberately used a slow shutter speed and panned the camera to emphasise the movement of the running wildebeest. This required a quick change of camera settings, switching from Aperture Priority (AV) mode to Shutter Priority (TV). Under normal circumstances, I would have also reduced the ISO from 400 to 100, as I certainly didn’t need an aperture of F45. In this case there simply wasn’t enough time, so the the ISO had to stay on 400 and hence the extremely small aperture to compensate for the slow shutter speed. In case you’re wondering – yes, the image has also been digitally manipulated to give a more painterly effect, using a program called Buzz Simplifier that’s no longer available.