NELSPRUIT – Wildlife photography requires patience, more patience and then skill. And this is exactly what a Lowveld wildlife photographer and photographic guide, Mr Brendon Cremer of ODP Safaris/Africa Photographic Travel has shown to his clients.
On one of his recent tours to the Duba Plains in Botswana, the group followed a couple of lionesses and he took a brilliant shot of one rushing through a pond, chasing its siblings.
Cremer entered it in one of the country’s biggest wildlife competitions, the Photographic Society of South Africa’s Africa Photographic Awards exhibition.
This internationally recognised society held its second competition last year and there were more than 7 000 entries.
According to the organiser, Mr Johann van der Walt almost half of these were from overseas photographers. The first competition was held during the 2009/10 year end.
“The competition was open to anyone with a brilliant wildlife photograph. If entered into all the categories, they could submit up to 40 photographs,” Van der Walt said. The categories ranged from the African landscape, people of Africa, wild cats, birds, antelope to Africa close-up.
Cremer entered several other photographs, but this image of the lioness won first prize in the wild cats of Africa category, and his reward… Nikon equipment to the value of R10 000. All the category winners received R10 000 worth of prizes, and the two runners-up were given certificates. Van der Walt said that only one of the categories was won by a foreign photographer.
Cremer also received a highly commended certificate for one of his other lion images. Mr Fanie Heymans of Welkom walked away with the overall photographer of the year award. The Africa Photographic Awards will be published in a top-class photobook which will soon be available. “Due to the high quality of the images, we don’t publish them on the Internet, but the book format is an absolute must-have.
“We encourage photographers to visit our website www.pssa.co.za and join us in preserving this art,” Van der Walt concluded.
