africaddict

For those that have not seen this Gallery, check out Alex Bernasconi (PBase) webpage of his Safari to Kenya, Rwanda & Uganda.

http://www.pbase.com/alex_beb/africa_2005

Simply some of THE best wildlife photography I've ever seen, IMHO.
Just shows what can be done with a Nikon D100
and some very expensive fast glass!

Cheers
Marc

Kavey

Wow, that's an amazing portfolio! Thanks for sharing the link!

santharamhari

Mark,

Thanks for the link. I know you mentioned the D200 on another thread....what are your thoughts on that? Plus and minus....thanks

Hari

africaddict

Hi Hari

An excellent advanced amateur/semi pro camera. Don't just take my word for it,
here are the pro's & con's (from DPreview)

Pros

* Excellent resolution, although not a huge 'step up' from eight megapixels
* Compact body design which has a true pro feel, build and feature set
* Instant power on, very responsive, very short black-out time, very fast media write
* Excellent five frames per second continuous shooting, fast 'smart buffering'
* Eleven point AF system, fast and accurate
* Good dynamic range, conservative metering, smart auto tone selection
* More conservative, film-like appearance to images (although sharpening is too mild)
* Important controls can be locked to avoid accidental adjustment
* Easy to use playback / delete combination (although magnification could be easier)
* Very attractive menu system
* White balance memories show thumbnails of reference image
* Very flexible control system, lots of options for control and programmable buttons
* Huge range of custom settings
* Large, bright and detailed LCD monitor
* Important information such as ISO sensitivity is shown on the LCD status bar
* Bright clear viewfinder, doesn't feel small like some cropped cameras
* Sophisticated interval timer feature
* Unique in-camera features: Overlay, Multiple exposures
* GPS data recording feature (requires optional cable, NMEA compatible)
* Good battery life, updated battery design provides detailed information to camera
* In-menu help pages
* Optional wireless WiFi transmitter (802.11 b/g)
* USB 2.0 Hi-speed interface (which performs like one, a good 5+ MB/sec)
* Smaller and lighter than the D2X and will make a good alternative for many photographers
* Excellent value for money considering the competition

Cons

* Higher noise at ISO 1600 and 3200 than we would like, mostly in shadows
* High ISO noise reduction works but at the expense of detail
* Default sharpness is too mild, first impression to a new user may be negative
* Insufficient number of image parameter adjustments with little latitude
* Disappointing automatic white balance performance under artificial light
* Some cameras affected by vertical banding issues
* No RAW adjustment with supplied Picture Project, only simple conversion
* Nikon Capture should be included with all 'pro' and 'semi-pro' cameras
* (Still) Very poor memory management and performance from optional Nikon Capture

Hari,
Another good choice would also be the newly released (and cheaper) D80.
An upgrade from the very popular D70.
My opinion FWIW,.... go for the D200!
Let us know what you decide.
Happy hunting!

Cheers
Marc

africaddict

Sorry Hari

Have just realized you HAVE purchased the D200!
Isn't it a bit late for the pro's and con's....LOL!
A good decision, you won't regret.
That's another NIKON user to the Fodor's camp!
How many others out there?

Cheers
Marc

basto

Absolutely stunning photgraphs. Wouldn´t mind having a few of them home on the wall. Thanks a lot for sharing the link.

regards,
Tom

santharamhari

Mark,

Thanks for all the details. I was just double checking in terms of the right decision. I will have some safari time in Dec/Jan in India to keep working on it......

Hari

pbrydie

Incredible pictures - thanks for sharing the link.

cary999

Well, since you asked, my .02. Good photos but rather ordinary for nature photography, especially Africa. Way too many photos of the male lion, and, good photos of male lions are easy. Just in the first 12 photos numbers 5223, 5342 and 5229 suffer from poor flat lighting. His best are probably the landscape type shots.
regards - tom

waynehazle

Great collection, if not the best ever

The wildebeest crossing photos are the best.

And yes, another NIKON lover here. Though I am holding on firmly to my N70 film camera.

I do dream of that D200, but by the time I want to spend the $$$$ on a fancy digital SLR, they should have the D300

CarlaM

Fantastic!

lisa

Any idea what lenses he uses?

purple

Wow Now I don't want to post mine. We saw one Lion and the Giraffe's were always so far away. And I had a Panosonic Lumix FZ20 for the Kenya portions (then dropped it and it broke) So had to buy a Canon. Same features, but cost us 3 times as much in Nairobi. And now I HAVE to go to Rwanda for the Gorillas. I don't care how much it costs

sundowner

If you click on "full exif" at the bottom of the picture it will tell you the focal length of the lens as well as all photo info. See this one http://www.pbase.com/alex_beb/image/49249867&exif=Y . I'm guessing he uses the Nikon 200-400mm f/4.0 lens for some of the shots.

He has some great images! I would love to see a crossing and get images like he did.

afrigalah

Yes, there are some very good ones, but I agree with tom.

John

africaddict

Tom & John

Yes, there are too many Lion shots AND some in flat lighting, HOWEVER, the majority are pretty much SPOT ON !

cary999

Well, africaddict, have a look at andy biggs work -
http://www.andybiggs.com/galleries.html
and then come back and tell me that your friend is "THE best wildlife photography I've ever seen, IMHO".
regards - tom

CarlaM

Well Tom, here I thought you had the cutest lion cub photo of all until I just saw Andy's. I HAVE TO HAVE THAT ONE!!!! These are simply gorgeous...how did I miss these before?

cary999

dang it all, now I've went and done it. I'm no longer Carla's favorite wildlife photographer
regards - tom

santharamhari

I consider photography to be an art form, so i would think they are all very good galleries in the context of wildlife photography. I can't make comparisons. I think both Alex and Andy hv some fantastic stuff there........

Hari