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Even predators have predators

Wednesday, October 04, 2017 | By: Jim Zuckerman

This is a 6-month old leopard cub that had been treed by its mother to protect it from two hyenas looking for a meal. From the land Rover, my photo tour group and I could watch the hyenas chasing the mother with her two cubs. I took this picture in one of my favorite reserves, Sabi Sabi in South Africa. This is a private reserve, and that means that vehicles are not restricted to the tracks. They can go anywhere so photographers can get the best shots. That’s a huge advantage, and that’s how I captured this picture. We drove over fallen logs, thick underbrush, and rocks to position the Land Rover perfectly for the best vantage. We got so close to the leopard cub that I was able to use my 100 - 400mm Canon to fill the frame with this beautiful cat. The other cub was hidden by too much thick foliage. My settings were 1/400, f/7.1, and 1000 ISO. Remember that when using a telephoto, the ideal is that the shutter speed is the reciprocal of the focal length, or faster. In other words, if the focal length is 400mm, the shutter should be 1/400th or faster to insure sharp pictures. The last thing you want is for the pictures to be ‘almost’ sharp.
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4 Comments

Oct 7, 2017, 8:59:49 PM

Piskin - Jim... yes ... that's so true... "almost sharp" is what I'm dealing with oftentimes! I don't remember that simple rule of focal length and shutter! When out in the field, it's too exciting when you're in the moment to remember! I guess through practice, it becomes second nature...which means... haha!!! You know the rest of what I would say...
best regards, Jim!

Oct 6, 2017, 3:16:25 PM

Bob Vestal - I guessed correctly. I had to use manual focus for the first leopard that we saw in Zulu Nyala a few years ago. Your lobby leopard story is totally amazing! Looking forward to seeing you next month.

Oct 5, 2017, 3:07:31 PM

Jim - Great question, Bob. Yes, I used manual focus. It was the only way to assure the leopard was sharp. On this trip to Sabi Sabi, we saw 7 different leopards! And all with great photo ops. Unfortunately, we missed one incredible situation. We were out in the Land Rovers on safari, and around 5pm a leopard walked into the lobby of our hotel and sat on a couch! Then he walked through the lobby into the pool area and drank from the pool!!

Oct 5, 2017, 12:23:08 AM

Bob Vestal - Very nice, Jim. Sabi Sabi is said to be particularly good location for seeing leopards. Just curious. Because of the branches, were you using manual focus?

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