Wildlife Photography Blog – Magnificent Elephant by Johan J. Botha

 A beautifully captured photograph taken by Johan J. Botha at our sunken photographic hide. When it comes to wildlife photography, perhaps no other creature has a larger fan base than the magnificent elephant.

When you do encounter an elephant or a herd of multiple elephants – Use these below tips to capture the beautiful moment:

• One of the first photos you will want to get of these magnificent creatures is a “fill the frame” shot.
• Elephants often move fast for a big animal, so be sure to shoot with a fast shutter speed to freeze motion.
• Use traditional composition rules to frame the shot to your liking.
• The texture of an elephant’s skin is incredible so use your power to zoom in. Be careful of harsh shadows, and be sure to justify your composition.
• Elephant’s often move fast for a big animal, so be sure to shoot with a fast shutter speed to freeze motion.

The sunken photographic hides at Indlovu is any amateur photographer’s dream.  They present a great amount of opportunities to capture close up, unique angle wildlife photography images.  The fact that the specialized hides are sunken below water level at the water holes, presents the photographer with a image that not only captures the reflection of the birds on the surface of the water, but also the clear blue, African sky in the background.

Access to the sunken birding photography hide has to be booked in advance and is charged per hour.

For more information about the next Wildlife Photography Course, please contact Louisa at:

Lodge: +27 (0) 15 383 9918 or on email: [email protected]

For more info on our Wildlife Photography Packages, click here.