I recently returned from a trip to South Africa with a group of photographers. 7 out of the 12 photographers on the tour were shooting with the Nikon 200-500 on both cropped and FF bodies. Most of them had purchased it for that trip and at least two of them had replaced their Tamron 150-600 (GI?) with the Nikon. Never heard a complaint about AF or sharpness and the results that I am seeing posted online are excellent.
From their website:
Roads close Sunday through Thursday nights at 7 pm.
Alert 1 , Severity ,closure ,,Roads close Sunday through Thursday nights at 7 pm.
Crews are working on the entire road system through Nov. 30, 2017. Roads close at 7 pm on Sunday through Thursday nights. You must be out of the park by 7 pm on those nights. Roads reopen at 7 am. Devils Garden Campground is closed through November.
If you have the time, you may want to think about a side trip to Goblin Valley State Park. It is about a 90 minute drive from Moab but well worth the trip. We stopped there in late-March of our trip and there were only about a half dozen other people there.
I prefer the slightly blurred effect which is close to what you actually see but I also acknowledge that there are many who prefer that silky smooth look. Like you, I shoot for myself so I can indulge my personal preferences. Those who shoot for a living cannot afford that luxury and must follow where the market leads.
I once saw a person getting on one of those small regional planes who was being told he had to gate check his camera bag. He smiled at the attendant and went back to his seat and began to put multiple lenses and bodies in the vest he was wearing. He then gate checked the bag and walked onto the plane without comment from the attendant. I later asked him about the vest as it wasn't your normal photographer's vest and he said it was a Scottie's vest. I now have one and it is great for travel but I have never had to do what he did.
Having recently visited South Africa, I will restrict my opinions as to that location. I took my tripod and monopod andnever used either. You should take both an intermediate and longer focal length lens. I shot with the Nikon 200-500 on the D500 and the 70-200 on the D810. My shoot ratio was about 60-40 leaning to the longer lens. You will also want to bring a wide angle for those panoramic shots. As to locations I can make the following suggestions:
1. Consider a visit to Welgevonden Game Reserve in northern South Africa. Terrain is mountainous and different from the Kruger area and abundant wildlife. I stayed at the Nedile Lodge and highly recommend it.
2. If you are staying in Johannesburg/Pretoria area and have a free day you may want to take a day trip to Pilanesberg Game Reserve. Consider using Felleng Tours. I had multiple tours with them and was totally satisfied.
3. Lodges in the private reserves near Kruger can be expensive but if you don't mind downsizing a bit you may want to consider Tydon Safari Camp. This is a budget operation as far as costs but provides excellent service and wonderful game drives to both Sabi Sands Game Reserve and Kruger National Park. Well appointed tents on permanent platforms with AC and bathrooms.
4. Most of my group overpacked. Laundry service is available everywhere and is very reasonable. Turnaround time is often the same day.
5. Dust can be a problem. I prefer to bring a couple of pillowcases to cover my cameras while in motion on those open vehicles. They keep the dust off, cameras slide out of them easier then plastic, and they are large enough that one can even make a lens change with a bit of practice.
I also recommend a visit to Morikami Japanese Gardens. If you like nature, then a visit to nearby Wakodahatchee Wetlands and Green Cay Wetlands would be nice. Each have boardwalks through rookeries where the birds are quite close and are accustomed to humans being nearby. Deerfield Beach pier is a nice sunrise location.
Classic cars. About an hour away, but you may want to visit the Dezer Collection in North Miami Beach...
http://www.dezercollection.com/
My Induro CT214 has served me well for the past five years. A bit of an accomplishment as I am really hard on my equipment. If it dies I will gladly buy another Induro product.
I have both the 810 and the 500 and use both. I am an eclectic shooter who prefers wildlife and landscapes but does shoot a lot of festivals, fairs, and even sporting events. Both are excellent cameras but it is my 810 I will always reach for first unless circumstances dictate that a high frame rate is absolutely necessary. I have shot sporting events successfully with the 810 but its lower frame rate makes you work for it a tad harder. Staying alert and focused for that moment you want to capture can be trying. I do confess that I love the AF joystick and flip LCD on the 500 and wish I had it on my 810.
You didn't mention what lenses you have. If you have a fair collection of DX lenses then that may make the D500 the better choice. Either camera will serve you well.
Over the years I have purchased four fast glass (f2.8) from LensRentals.com at a substantial savings. All were in excellent condition when received and have served me well with no problems. Since three of those four lenses were purchased more then three years past, I feel I got my money's worth.
I too often find myself wondering why the wedding photographer is near the end of the "must have" list in wedding preparations. Look elsewhere first when cutting costs. The food and flowers will be gone tomorrow but the photos will last as long, or longer, then the marriage. Yes, one can spend thousands on a great wedding photographer but there are many competent wedding photographers who are within almost everyone's budget. Hopefully, I am wrong but I personally believe there will be a world of difference between the output of any competent professional wedding photographer and a first time amateur no matter his experience level.
My Induro is my go to tripod for most of my shoots but when I travel and need to go light, I leave it at home and grab my MeFoto.
I was in South Africa for three weeks this past October and visited four parks....Welgevonden, Pilanesberg, Sabi Sands and Kruger. My equipment consisted of a Nikon D500 (cropped sensor) with the Nikon 200-500mm lens and a Nikon D810 (full frame) with a Nikon 70-200mm attached. I also had a 24-70mm but the only time it was used was for sunset shoots when we stopped for the sundowners. About 70% of my shots were captured with the longer lens setup and the remainder with the 70-200 which I grabbed when the subject was too close for the other lens. There were a few instances when I wished for a bit longer focal length but that was not common. Weight was a non-issue as we were never allowed out of our vehicle except for the sundowners and your game drives are normally short sessions of intense shutter clicking between periods of searching for subjects. My opinion is that high ISO performance is more important as you will be shooting early morn and late evening. Distance to game varies as in South Africa's National Parks where you are restricted to the roads but in the private game reserves you can often go off road to get nearer to a subject. Even in Kruger were we were restricted to the roads I was amazed at how close our subjects often approached. I am going back again in the spring and taking the same kit so that should let you know how satisfied I was with my lens selection. You can find photos of my recent trip on FlickR where I post as jwkeith.
iMac 27" user here. OS is El Capitan. I have been using OnOne Raw for almost all my post processing since its release. It has been glitch free for me. I did manage to crash it once when I was playing around and used a few dozen different filters but otherwise it has performed well. I do use Lightroom for photo management so I usually access it from LR.