A Tale of Two Safaris: Rwanda and Kenya
Oct 4th, 2018, 01:22 AM
#41
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According to the Visit Rwanda website it is still recommended to book gorilla tracking in advance, so apparently they are filling most of the slots. When I was there in 2002 I could have booked an additional day on the spot, but had to get back to Kigali for my flight. In any case, it’s vitally important to keep gorilla visitor numbers low. IMO Rwanda would rather have high end tourism than large numbers like you get in places like Ngorongoro Crater.
Yesterday I dug out my gorilla permit issued by ORTPN back in 2002, which I had saved as a souvenir. The fee in those days was $250. Chimpanzee tracking in Nuyungwe N P was also $250.
Yesterday I dug out my gorilla permit issued by ORTPN back in 2002, which I had saved as a souvenir. The fee in those days was $250. Chimpanzee tracking in Nuyungwe N P was also $250.
Oct 4th, 2018, 02:04 AM
#42
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Uganda has its advantages too, so I don't mean to be one-sided about Rwanda. When my daughter and son-in-law drove their Land Rover from Cairo to Cape Town they chose Uganda, not so much because of the lower fees, but because they could also see chimpanzees, which they enjoyed as much as the gorillas. Rwanda has chimpanzees in Nyungwe N P, at the other end of Rwanda from Volcanoes N P, and sightings aren't guaranteed.
For anyone who has mobility issues Rwanda would be a better choice, because some gorilla families are only about 30 minutes from park headquarters over fairly easy terrain.
For anyone who has mobility issues Rwanda would be a better choice, because some gorilla families are only about 30 minutes from park headquarters over fairly easy terrain.
Oct 4th, 2018, 04:27 AM
#43
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Heimdall, I'd really clarify this.
>>For anyone who has mobility issues Rwanda would be a better choice, because some gorilla families are only about 30 minutes from park headquarters over fairly easy terrain.<<
If anyone has mobility issues at all, I wouldn't even recommend gorilla trekking. I'm young and athletic and in very good shape and I found the terrain not easy at all, and we had an intermediate hike. The golden monkeys, maybe, but definitely not the gorillas. I wouldn't want to mislead anyone into thinking that the gorillas are right off the parking lot on flat land in Rwanda. There are no guarantees that you'll get assigned to any "easy" family. It's all contingent on the negotiating by your guide and how many other people are looking for "easy" that day.
>>For anyone who has mobility issues Rwanda would be a better choice, because some gorilla families are only about 30 minutes from park headquarters over fairly easy terrain.<<
If anyone has mobility issues at all, I wouldn't even recommend gorilla trekking. I'm young and athletic and in very good shape and I found the terrain not easy at all, and we had an intermediate hike. The golden monkeys, maybe, but definitely not the gorillas. I wouldn't want to mislead anyone into thinking that the gorillas are right off the parking lot on flat land in Rwanda. There are no guarantees that you'll get assigned to any "easy" family. It's all contingent on the negotiating by your guide and how many other people are looking for "easy" that day.
Oct 4th, 2018, 04:45 AM
#44
I really enjoyed this informative trip report and excellent photos. I know it's the photographer and not the camera that matters, but I do want to ask what focal length telephoto lenses you used. Also, was the sensor full-frame or cropped?
Oct 4th, 2018, 05:03 AM
#45
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Fra_Diavolo, thank you! Other than what was lost in my uploading/downloading/uploading to get them on here, these are all straight out of the camera. I do no photoshopping/lightroom, I just don't have the patience for it.
I use the Sony RX10 iii, which is a bridge camera with a Zeiss lens. Full specs are here. It is cropped to 2.7 I believe.
While I do a crazy amount of practicing (zoos, farms, sunrises/sunsets) at home before I go, the one thing about safari in Kenya especially in the conservancies and on these gorilla treks is that we are remarkably close at many sightings so as not to need the reach or digital zoom. That obviously helps with IQ.
I use the Sony RX10 iii, which is a bridge camera with a Zeiss lens. Full specs are here. It is cropped to 2.7 I believe.
While I do a crazy amount of practicing (zoos, farms, sunrises/sunsets) at home before I go, the one thing about safari in Kenya especially in the conservancies and on these gorilla treks is that we are remarkably close at many sightings so as not to need the reach or digital zoom. That obviously helps with IQ.
Oct 4th, 2018, 05:37 AM
#46
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Amy, I know it was a long time ago when did my trek, but then the park rangers assigned gorilla families according to fitness levels, which is what I should have written instead of "mobility issues". According to Visit Rwanda, which is the official Rwanda Development Board website, that is still the practice:
"Visitors gather at the Volcanoes National Park headquarters in Kinigi at 7am, and are allocated a family group on the day according to fitness levels, as well as being briefed on protocols and rules for visiting the gorillas."
Perhaps these days tour operators interfere with the process, but that would be unfair to people who book directly.
"Visitors gather at the Volcanoes National Park headquarters in Kinigi at 7am, and are allocated a family group on the day according to fitness levels, as well as being briefed on protocols and rules for visiting the gorillas."
Perhaps these days tour operators interfere with the process, but that would be unfair to people who book directly.
Sep 20th, 2019, 10:58 AM
#49
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Hi Amy,
Thanks for this detailed report and for the opinion you gave on another thread about Rwanda versus Uganda. We are, based on all our research and your thoughtful advice, going to Rwanda in 2020 (already in touch with Treks2Rwanda). I am very excited about it but I am very anxious about photography. I am a point-and-shoot gal and I want to up my game for this trip (and, actually, before we go to the Galapagos in December). Your pics are incredible.
Can you share what equipment you had and what equipment you considered "essential" for this kind of trip?
When we went to Tanzania in 2005 we got by with pretty basic cameras but wildlife pics on safari are highly forgiving to the inexperienced. Having taken a number of trips to places where shady rainforest is the norm, we are well aware that it's so much harder getting good low-light pics. I get totally overwhelmed whenever I try to start researching this and I would love for someone to give me a solid rec on basic equipment. Thanks so much.
Thanks for this detailed report and for the opinion you gave on another thread about Rwanda versus Uganda. We are, based on all our research and your thoughtful advice, going to Rwanda in 2020 (already in touch with Treks2Rwanda). I am very excited about it but I am very anxious about photography. I am a point-and-shoot gal and I want to up my game for this trip (and, actually, before we go to the Galapagos in December). Your pics are incredible.
Can you share what equipment you had and what equipment you considered "essential" for this kind of trip?
When we went to Tanzania in 2005 we got by with pretty basic cameras but wildlife pics on safari are highly forgiving to the inexperienced. Having taken a number of trips to places where shady rainforest is the norm, we are well aware that it's so much harder getting good low-light pics. I get totally overwhelmed whenever I try to start researching this and I would love for someone to give me a solid rec on basic equipment. Thanks so much.
Sep 20th, 2019, 11:56 AM
#50
Original Poster
Hi Schlegal, I'm glad you chose to go to Rwanda, I don't think you'll regret it. I do hope to get back there someday after I visit a couple of other African countries on my list! Karen at T2R should take good care of you and I truly believe they have a solid ground operation (they do not subcontract anything, either guides or drivers)
I did upgrade my previous camera specifically for this trip, mainly because the previous camera was experiencing a lens failure that I didn't want to die on me while on safari. I decided to go with the Sony RX10 iii which I think is a much larger investment than you want or need to make. I decided to take the plunge only because I knew then that there'd be many more safaris in my future and I could amortize the cost! LOL!
I think you want better than a pocket point and shoot and better than an iPhone type camera. What I got is a "bridge" camera. It is not a pocket point and shoot but it doesn't have interchangeable lenses like a DSLR has. It does have a lot of the manual settings that a DSLR has, if you choose to learn them, but you can still shoot auto too. (I learned to shoot with Aperture Priority, so that I was controlling light coming into the camera). Just remember, you can buy the best camera in the world but if you don't learn how to use it, it will be useless. Lots of practice at zoos, farms, animal parks, sunrises, sunsets, etc.
Panasonic Lumix is usually one of the leading names for safari destinations. The Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 has a 1" sensor (which is what my new Sony has) and that is much better for low light, I found. I had a Nikon Coolpix (which had the lens failure which I learned was common for them) so I wouldn't recommend looking at them, despite their bridge camera offerings. This article has some suggestions at various price points. If you can find a pocket camera with decent ability to handle light, then maybe that will be enough. I certainly saw people with them gorilla trekking. My friend Kim took hers but her photos weren't as sharp as mine and didn't handle light as well.
Some people take a laptop to download their photos to every night. I can't be bothered lugging more equipment with a 30 lb luggage restriction, so I just use one memory card every day and keep all the cards with my passport so I don't lose them. If a card goes corrupt, the worst I lose is a day's worth of photos. Sometimes if I've had a particular good morning out, I'll swap out at midday to make sure I don't lose images. So I'd buy a memory card for every day.
I did not bring a tripod either for gorillas or safari. It's not allowed near the gorillas (they'd see it as a threat) and if I needed to prop my camera up in safari vehicle, I just used the edge of the window. Invest instead in a sturdy case but something small enough that you can throw it in a small bag and carry it on your trek. You will only be able to bring your camera to the actual gorilla sighting; you'll leave your bags with the guys who trek up with you.
This may be more info than you're asking for, but I want to cover all the bases. I don't think you'd regret the investment in time to learn it or money to buy it for either trip, Galapagos or gorillas! Feel free to PM me if you want to chat offline. Happy to help!
I did upgrade my previous camera specifically for this trip, mainly because the previous camera was experiencing a lens failure that I didn't want to die on me while on safari. I decided to go with the Sony RX10 iii which I think is a much larger investment than you want or need to make. I decided to take the plunge only because I knew then that there'd be many more safaris in my future and I could amortize the cost! LOL!
I think you want better than a pocket point and shoot and better than an iPhone type camera. What I got is a "bridge" camera. It is not a pocket point and shoot but it doesn't have interchangeable lenses like a DSLR has. It does have a lot of the manual settings that a DSLR has, if you choose to learn them, but you can still shoot auto too. (I learned to shoot with Aperture Priority, so that I was controlling light coming into the camera). Just remember, you can buy the best camera in the world but if you don't learn how to use it, it will be useless. Lots of practice at zoos, farms, animal parks, sunrises, sunsets, etc.
Panasonic Lumix is usually one of the leading names for safari destinations. The Panasonic Lumix FZ1000 has a 1" sensor (which is what my new Sony has) and that is much better for low light, I found. I had a Nikon Coolpix (which had the lens failure which I learned was common for them) so I wouldn't recommend looking at them, despite their bridge camera offerings. This article has some suggestions at various price points. If you can find a pocket camera with decent ability to handle light, then maybe that will be enough. I certainly saw people with them gorilla trekking. My friend Kim took hers but her photos weren't as sharp as mine and didn't handle light as well.
Some people take a laptop to download their photos to every night. I can't be bothered lugging more equipment with a 30 lb luggage restriction, so I just use one memory card every day and keep all the cards with my passport so I don't lose them. If a card goes corrupt, the worst I lose is a day's worth of photos. Sometimes if I've had a particular good morning out, I'll swap out at midday to make sure I don't lose images. So I'd buy a memory card for every day.
I did not bring a tripod either for gorillas or safari. It's not allowed near the gorillas (they'd see it as a threat) and if I needed to prop my camera up in safari vehicle, I just used the edge of the window. Invest instead in a sturdy case but something small enough that you can throw it in a small bag and carry it on your trek. You will only be able to bring your camera to the actual gorilla sighting; you'll leave your bags with the guys who trek up with you.
This may be more info than you're asking for, but I want to cover all the bases. I don't think you'd regret the investment in time to learn it or money to buy it for either trip, Galapagos or gorillas! Feel free to PM me if you want to chat offline. Happy to help!
Sep 21st, 2019, 03:14 AM
#51
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Thank you, Amy! It was the perfect amount of info. I’ve missed enough great shots with my P and S that I am sure I want something better in low light so I will look at your recs. I am going to practice a ton (we still enjoy the “practice” pics we took in 2005 around our area as they are quite lovely). I may take a camera class, too.
I appreciate the specific camera recs as there are so many to choose and whenever I read a review I would read the “pros” and thing “great” and then the cons and thing “oh maybe not.”
My PansS is a Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZS20. It’s a great little camera so I will look at your LUMIX rec first. Especially given the sensor option!
I appreciate the specific camera recs as there are so many to choose and whenever I read a review I would read the “pros” and thing “great” and then the cons and thing “oh maybe not.”
My PansS is a Panasonic LUMIX DMC-ZS20. It’s a great little camera so I will look at your LUMIX rec first. Especially given the sensor option!
Sep 21st, 2019, 07:54 AM
#52
Original Poster
Great! Yes, that's the other thing I neglected to mention. My local camera shop where I bought both of my cameras has two beginner classes. I took them both with each camera. It was immensely helpful. Hopefully you can find something near you too! It's likely that the menus on the Panasonics are all generally the same so that may give you a leg up if you go with the Lumix bridge camera! Good luck!
Sep 23rd, 2019, 01:56 PM
#54
Original Poster
I lost some zoom going from the Nikon to the Sony (I went from 24-1000mm 41.7x to 24-600 mm 25x) but I'm going to be completely honest, I've never needed it. Definitely not for the gorillas who are almost too close! But even for safari, the shots I've wanted I've been close enough. If I'm ever shooting something that I need to use all that digital zoom, it's a purely documentary (proof of life) shot, nothing I'm going to make enlargements or a coffee table book out of. I can count on one hand the number of times a sighting has been so far out of range that I need a ton of zoom. I said this somewhere else recently, maybe here, but I think it depends on where you're on safari. If you're in some larger parks in South Africa where you have to stay on roads and sightings can be a great deal off, then maybe you need it. In Kenya and Rwanda I never have.
