Going on an African safari is a big event in most people's lives so it's important that you take good photographs home with you. In order to do this you need to bring the right camera on safari.
I was tempted to use the word 'best' in this page title but I don't think there is a 'best' camera. The best camera is the one you have with you when you see the lion kill! It's the one you feel comfortable using and that gives you pleasing results.
We realise, however, that there are various levels of photographers out there - some are just starting out, some want to upgrade, some have budget constraints while money is no obstacle for others. If you are wanting to enter your photos into photo contests, publish them or make prints you will need to go for a minimum standard. On this page we will provide our advice for these different levels of photographers.
When we started out with photography we had a simple Kodak point and shoot camera and very quickly realised this was not sufficient for good wildlife photographs!
For the Beginner / Budget-Conscious Photographer
Compact cameras just cannot provide the picture quality and variety of settings that a DSLR (Digital Single Lens Reflex) camera does so we will therefore be discussing only DSLR camera options.
We recommend the Nikon D5000, D90 (both 12.3 Megapixels) or the Nikon D7000 (16.2 Megapixels). The D90 and D7000 have a built-in motor while the D5000 doesn't.
Most modern lenses come with a motor (Nikon has a SWM - Silent Wave Motor while Canon has a USM - Ultra Sonic Motor) but some lenses, like the Nikon 80-400, don't have one, so if you chose the D5000 camera with the 80-400 lens you would be shooting only with manual focus. These camera bodies are 'DX' meaning they have a smaller sensor with a 1.5x crop factor - this means that the image will be 50% larger than the size of 35mm film. The end result is that your 200mm lens now has the magnification of a 300mm lens!
Also, the D5000 has a flip-out screen so you can shoot low-angle pictures without having to buy a right-angle viewfinder - both these features (1.5x crop and flip-out screen) are great for the budget conscious.
The only problem we experienced with both the D90 and D7000 is that the program dial cannot lock so I often would inadvertently bump or rub against the camera and the dial would turn from A (Aperture) mode to S (shutter), P (program) or M (manual) and I would end up with some ugly photos! If you choose either of these camera bodies please keep this in mind and check the position of the dial before taking any pictures.
If you like Canon equipment my good friend and Canon wildlife photographer, Irvine Eidelman, recommends either the Canon 50D (15.1 Megapixel) or Canon EOS 7D (18 Megapixel). Keep in mind that the 7D is a bit more complicated to use than the 50D.
For the Intermediate / Budget-Doesn't-Matter / Professional Photographer
If budget is not an issue the Nikon D300s (12.3 megapixels) or D3s (12.1 megapixels) is my choice. The D3s has superb low-light capability and the ISO can be pushed to 12800 with minimal noise!
We use this body in Etosha, the Kruger Park and Kgalagadi to get amazing photographs of nocturnal animals. The D300s has 1.5x crop factor while the D3s is an 'FX' or full-frame camera body. The pixels on the FX sensors are larger than on the DX sensors so the image quality is a bit better because of the higher light sensitivity and dynamic range. I stress 'a bit' - I'm using both these bodies and I struggle to see a difference between photographs taken, in daylight, with each camera. For night photography, however, the difference is immense.
For Canon users the Canon 1D mark4 ( 16.1 megapixel with 1.3x crop) or the Canon 1Ds mark3 (21 megapixel full-frame sensor) would be the ultimate camera body to take on safari.
Please keep in mind that sometimes less is more. Just because a camera has gazillions of pixels does not make it the 'best' body. As an example, I enjoy nocturnal photography so a camera that can produce low noise on high ISO and focus well under low light would be my number-1 choice, hence I have the Nikon D3s.
Another criteria for you may be weight and the Nikon D5000, D90 and D7000 as well as the Canon 50D are smaller and lighter bodies so if you will be doing bush walks or walking around camps taking photographs these may be better options than the heavier pro bodies.
If you want to use the camera to also shoot videos we recommend either the Nikon D7000 or the Nikon D3s as both cameras have excellent video functions.
Mario Fazekas is a wildlife photographer living in South Africa, and is the webmaster of http://www.kruger-2-kalahari.com - Find out more about wildlife photography at http://www.kruger-2-kalahari.com/Wildlife-Photography.html
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