21 December 2010

Travel Photographer of the Year 2010

We have been traveling in the desert of Northern Africa for the past weeks with no internet access, so we found out about this rather late: Marsel's charging lion picture was awarded in the 2010 Travel Photographer of the Year Awards. After two weeks of nothing but sand, wind and dust, and no showers, this good news got us freshened up right away.

As with most wildlife shots, there was quite a bit of luck involved to get this shot - after all, with wild animals you never know what's going to happen. Most wildlife photographers use long tele lenses to photograph potentially dangerous animals, and that is probably a wise thing to do. However, wide angle shots are often more dynamic, more in your face, so that's what Marsel wanted to try with lions. He used a radio controlled remote and shot from a handheld monopod, turned upside down, without getting out of the car. It's Marsel's secret (well, not anymore) technique to get low level perspective shots with wide angle lenses, while remaining flexible and without running the risk of getting eaten. This male lion did not appreciate the clicks coming from the grass very much, and decided to charge the D3. As often with lions, it was just a mock charge, but we got a few stains in our pants nonetheless...

This image is available as a fine art print. If you're interested, have a look at the Store page on our website or contact us if you have a specific size in mind.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Goosebumps!

greets,

Gert-Jan

Anonymous said...

Amazing photo Marsel!!!!
Now that's a real keeper! ;-)

Greetz,

Hans

Sonja Olthof said...

G E W E L D I G !!!!!! Ook hoe de foto tot stand is gekomen overigens.
groetjes Sonja

Winnie ho said...

Congratulations! Happy New Year to you both. I love reading your blog and especially checking out those videos. Best wishes for 2011!

Squiver | Marsel van Oosten and Daniƫlla Sibbing said...

Thanks for the nice comments! And a happy new year to you all.

Anonymous said...

Hi Marsel.. this is an amazing picture! Just wondering how you were able to hold the monopod without actually shaking it when the lion mock charged. -Rajesh

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