A selection of the best readers’ photographs submitted to the Getaway Gallery photo competition for December 2017.
Getaway Gallery is a prestigious showcase of the best photographs our readers have to offer. We have exciting prizes to be won this year worth over R202100, from equipment through to a photographic safari in Botswana.
In addition, vote for your favourite image of the month and the photographer with the most votes by the 20th December will win a Manfrotto MMXPROA3 Monopod!
Each month, readers can vote online for their favourite image of the month. Voting for December will open shortly.
VOTE
Take a look at the November 2017 gallery for more inspirational images.
Submit your images here
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- I have built a small (and very ugly) bird hide on a farm that I frequently visit in the southern Limpopo, complete with water hole and branches for birds to perch on. I love sitting in it, waiting to see what appears, and one day got lucky with this arrow-marked babbler. I say ‘lucky’ because they’re normally never interested in the water and I haven’t seen them before or since! – By Colin Thornton, Johannesburg Nikon D500, Nikkor 200-500mm f/5.6, ISO 400, f/5.6, 1/1600 sec
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- I glanced at my clock as I waited next to the waterhole. It was 06:00. The season had been extremely dry, turning the ground layer and pools of water to mud. Only small amounts of water could be drunk from the muddy surface. A female lion appeared and lay for hours, watching from a distance. She made two unsuccessful kill attempts and the third happened nine hours later. At 15:00 exactly, the lioness caught up with this nyala. Water spurted out of its mouth in fear as it tried to stay out of reach of those deadly claws. – By Dries Fourie, Meyersdal Canon 7D, Canon 500mm f/4L, ISO 2500, f/5, 1/2000 sec
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- I had wanted to take images of star trails over this beautiful, derelict church in Barkley East, but the wind was so strong that it kept moving my camera on the tripod. I decided to wait for sunrise – another two hours in the coldest conditions I have experienced in a long time. The morning glow was incredible, and it lit up the side of the church very nicely. It also proved the point, once again, that nature does not always give you what you had envisioned…but sometimes it gives you something even better. – By Rob Heffer, East London Nikon D610, Nikkor 16-35mm f/4, ISO 50, f/11, 2.5 sec
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- I attended the funeral of the Queen Mother of the Asante People in Kumasi, Ghana. Before the formal ceremony took place, a procession of various clans, healers, voodoo leaders, Rastafarian priests, celebs, politicians, and other important figures in society was ushered into the grounds of the Royal Palace. This priest on his horse cleared the road in front of him, allowing me to kneel in the middle of the road and capture him raising his steed towards the black and red funeral bunting draped throughout the city. – By Jason Daniel Baker Nikon D90, Nikon 18-105mm f/3.5-5.6G, ISO 250, f/5, 1/800 sec
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- We spent some time with a young male leopard and his sister while visiting Jaci’s Sabi House in the northern Sabi Sand Game Reserve. The female was moving around the marula tree while her brother lay on a branch. I noticed the textures of the marula tree against the beautiful patterns in his coat. Luckily, I had a lens long enough to fill the frame with the image I envisioned. – By Justin Glanvill, Cape Town Canon 7D Mark II, Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L II, ISO 1000, f/7.1, 1/250 sec
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- We found sub-adult cheetah cubs resting in the open Ngamo plains of Hwange National Park. Soon the wind came up, causing leaves to blow along the ground. The cheetah cubs immediately started to try and catch them, providing us with wonderful photographic opportunities. – By Liz Hart, Bryanston Nikon D4, Nikkor 500mm f/4 with 2x teleconverter, ISO 360, f/5.6, 1/500 sec
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- It was an overcast morning in Barberspan. I lay in the mud waiting for this black-winged stilt to come within photographic range while is was hunting for breakfast. Sometimes nature helps out, and in this shot the bird gave both a great pose at a lucky angle. – By John Mullineux, Secunda Canon 7D Mark II, Canon 500 f/4L with 1.4x teleconverter, ISO 400, f/5.6, 1/400 sec
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- The scene developed very quickly. The secretary bird flew to the waterhole, which was occupied by the juvenile bateleur, and walked up to the bateleur in an inquisitive manner as if to say ‘what are you doing here?’ The bateleur had the same thought in his mind, and a staring bout ensued. After a few seconds of that, the secretary bird chased the bateleur out of the waterhole – but not before I got the chance to fire off a few priceless shots. What a lovely experience! This image was taken at the Cubitje Quap waterhole in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. – By Peter McIntyre, Athlone Park Nikon D500, Nikkor 200-400mm f/4, ISO 400, f/8, 1/600 sec
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- Early one Sunday morning we decided to go and chase the swell. We looked at the weather website, www.magicseaweed.com, and it seemed Crayfish Factory was the spot to go to. Unfortunately I had a broken shoulder and couldn’t join, so I decided to shoot my friends’ session instead. It’s been two months now that I haven’t caught a wave. Too long! I miss these moments in the ocean, in the elements, and with my friends. Surfing is so much more than just a sport. – By Yann Macherez, Cape Town Canon 5D Mark IV, Canon 24-70 mm f/2,8 LII, ISO 160, f/2.8, 1/2500 sec
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- This jackal from the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park had perfected the method of catching sand grouse at Cubitje Quap waterhole. It was the first time that we had noticed this winning method: wait for the birds to fly in to land, approach at a run from behind, and while jumping, catch the bird before it had even landed properly. – By Johan Mocke, Brackenfell Nikon D5, Nikkor 600mm f/4 with 1.4x teleconverter, ISO 400, f/7.1, 1/4000 sec
