A selection of the best readers’ photographs submitted to the Getaway Gallery photo competition for February 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 to the value of over R202 100, from equipment through to a photographic safari in Botswana.
Each month, readers can vote online for their favourite image of the month. Voting for this gallery is now closed and votes have been tallied.
The winning Image of the Month goes to Jan van Rensburg for ‘Malachite Sunbird’. Congratulations, Jan!
Take a look at our 2016 winners for more inspirational images.
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- My mom and I hadn’t seen lion for three days when we visited the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, and my camera started to feel a little neglected. So while camping at Nossob, we decided to let the black-backed jackal at Cubetjie Quap entertain us instead. After a few failed attempts with the sandgrouse that usually visit this waterhole, he tried his luck with a flock of ringneck doves instead and at last managed to get some breakfast. – By Michelle Potgieter, Pretoria Canon 1D Mark III, Canon 500mm f/4L, ISO 800, f/5,6, 1/1600 sec
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- It was early morning at Giants Castle in the central Drakensberg. The light was soft, near perfect conditions, with a gentle breeze. I noticed this malachite sunbird flitting from shrub to shrub in search of some sweet nectar. It dashed over to the protea flower, spending a maximum of fifteen seconds on the flower before it flew away. I managed to get this shot just as he turned… the breeze caught his tail feathers and gave him this striking pose. -By Jay van Rensburg, Edenvale Nikon D4s, Nikkor 200-400mm f/4, ISO 1000, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec
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- This seagull was photographed with a slow shutter speed to blur the motion of its wings. I took the image at the mouth of the Onrus River in Hermanus and deliberately converted the image to a split-toned black and white in post-production. – By Florian Breuer, Stellenbosch Canon 40D, Canon 70-200mm f/4, ISO 100, f/13, 1/10 sec
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- We live in a beautiful world! Here, a magnificent baobab tree is lit by a beam of torchlight cascading on into the Milky Way. This photo was captured in the Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana. – Basson van Zyl, Langebaan Canon 6D, Canon 70-200mm f/4, ISO 100, f/4, 1/2000 sec
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- Whilst driving through Sossusvlei it amazed me how these magnificent animals survive and live in the desert. I was lucky to capture this image of an oryx in front of a big red dune as backdrop. My focus was to capture the scale of the Namib desert. – Basson van Zyl, Langebaan Canon 6D, Canon 70-200mm f/4, ISO 100, f/4, 1/2000 sec
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- Winter is usually quite dull in the Lowveld. Thankfully some plants, such as aloes, flower during these times and attract many species of bird and insect. Knowing that a variety of sunbirds visit these aloes on a daily basis, I waited patiently until a white-bellied sunbird landed on an aloe that was surrounded by buzzing insects. Sunbirds move about very quickly and never really sit in one spot for a long time, so to get this shot I set a fast shutter speed to freeze movement and a relatively high aperture to create decent bokeh. – By Pravir Patel, Louis Trichardt Canon 5D Mark III, Canon 70-200mm f/2.8L II, ISO 1000, f/5, 1/3200 sec
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- In the Maasai Mara I had my first opportunity to photograph lion in the rain. I experimented with the shutter speed to get the perfect streak- in this case it was 1/80sec at ISO 100. I later converted it to monochrome to show the rain better. – By Jaco Marx, Bethlehem Canon 1Dx, Canon 500mm f/4L, ISO 100, f/5.6, 1/80 sec
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- We were in Sabi Sands game reserve, Mpumalanga, on a night drive when we come across a pride of lion. This male lion was gazing thoughtfully at something that he had heard off in the distance. I took this photo handheld. – By Leander de Koker, Kempton Park Canon 60D, Canon 100-400mm f/5.6, ISO 1600, f/5.6, 1/100 sec
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- Tiger fishing in Chirundu. Image: Dominic Barnardt
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- At 4.30am in the morning, two female lions spent literally a few seconds drinking at the night hide of Zimanga Private game reserve. It was incredible to witness them only four meters away from us. – By Anna-Mart Kruger, Walvis Bay Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3, ISO 3200, f/5, 1/1000 sec
