Verryl

I went on a 3 week guided safari in 1988. We started in Tanzania (2 days or so) and from then on it was almost all in Kenya, until we returned to Nairobi to catch the plane home. We ere not allowed to leave the vehicles unless we were within the fenced hotel grounds or were at a rest stop. The fencing was made of barbed plant limbs. That stay in the vehicle rule may be relaxed now, because I see photos of folks walking around in locations we were not allowed to. And I recently got a DVD set from The Great Courses that gave a lot of info about many, many different African parks and areas to tour. Seems there is a great variety of flora and fauna to see as well as many different levels of accommodations from fancy hotels to sleeping in tents and a wide range of locations to visit to fit many different ranges of interests.

The vehicles we had were Toyota vans, not quite as large as a VW van. The tops were open with an accordion-like collapsing fabric panel that allowed us to stand up to take pictures, and it was not too crowded when it was open. I can't remember the seating, but I think there were only 3 people in the back with one riding shotgun, and a 5th had 4 + 1, and of course we had a native guide-driver. The van may have had 2 or 3 seats in a semicircle, because there was lots of room to jump up and point your camera. The little vans could have held more passengers, but they did not book more, and I imagine the fare was higher to cover the roominess. The roomy seating allowed us to easily stand and move around to take pictures, and so we all could take lots of photos, usually shooting only from one side then trading places for the next one to shoot.

I am unclear as to why you mentioned your phones. It is Africa--you know, lions, and water buffalo, and hippos, and leopards. You certainly will not want to get out of the car to take photos out in the bush or get closer to the animals than your guide will let you. As I said, at the time or place I went it was illegal to leave the car unless you were in an enclosed place.

I made an aluminum bracket to mount and lock my small 4 inch Meade Schmidt-Cassigrain 1,000MM focal length, f/10 astronomical scope on a Olympus body, so I was always close enough for anything I could see while out in the bush. Everyone else had standard ~x to 200 or x to 400 mm telephotos. I was the only one who got reasonable photos of eagles which were a few hundred yards away. The Olympus body was dedicated to the 1,000mm scope/lens. I also had a 50mm lens for my Minolta SR-T-102 body.that was handy for people, hotels, and grounds or for the commercial zoos where we could get up close to the enclosed animals. I also had a Vivitar F3.5 70-210 mm zoom lens, but it was to cumbersome to shift from one camera to the 1,000mm set up and back, so I just stuck to the very long lens/camera in the vehicle.

I shot aperture priority almost exclusively with Fuji Color 400 ASA slide film which is now rated as ISO film. The 400 ASA was fairly fine grained, and very useful for astrophotography. I have a 16" Newtonian F/5.5 (2,235mm focal length) and an 8" Schmidt Cassigrain and the 4" at f/10 in my observatory, so a fast film was most useful for short astro exposures of 10 to 30 minutes.

I hope you have a wonderful time in Africa. It was one of the two best trips I ever took. We were planning to go back, but the violence stifled those plans, and then Covid showed up. And now we each have health issues, so oh well.

Burkley Loc: Park City

See all the other UHH commentaries on safari’s. Very good. For long shots on safari’s, I have used Nikon 70-200 with an 2X extender once and a 200-500 mm on a couple of different cameras. The 200-500 is a sweet spot. Much more distance and the shot picks up heat refraction, losing clarity. My second camera has a 70-200 for the road with a wide angle in the bag. I will change the lens at breaks for landscape shots. Dust is an enemy so I never change lenses when driving. One other suggestion: I always take my very nice set of Leupold hunting binoculars and give one of them to the guide to use. Increases his ability to find distant animals.

As for lions, had I reached out I could have petted a passing lioness a few times now. Rhinos will dent your vehicle. My closest is 10 yards. Just be happy when either is close enough to see your vehicle’s reflection in their iris.

Nancysc

Don't get so caught up in taking photographs that you miss the actual experience. You will probably never equal the pics taking by Nati'l Geo photographers or our own PhotoLady from Colorado. The camera is a shield between you and the people, the animals, the scenery. I've been to Kenya and Tanzania on two different trips and enjoyed the villages and towns, the coast, and most of all the Swahili architecture of Lamu and Zanzibar. Don't let the safari driver do any maneuvers to stir up animals, and don't let your travel companions make you move on when you are happy to sit awhile and just watch the animals in their habitats.

Burkley Loc: Park City

I like my animal photos. I like my reflections of sitting back and enjoying the animals and the scenery. I’ve never felt that my camera was somehow in the way though.

Nancysc

I think the difference between being allowed out of the vehicle depends on the park. Some reserves are privately owned and that's where you get the walking experience with a guide and another man with a rifle. In the national parks and reserves is where getting out of the vehicle is not allowed. I believe this is true in both Kenya and Tanzania.

jjanovy Loc: Lincoln, Nebraska

We’ve been to Botswana and Tanzania, and in my opinion, camera choice depends somewhat on where you are going. In Botswana there were severe weight restrictions because of the many flights on small planes. I came home from each trip with thousands of images. If I was going back to either of those places, my go to camera would be my Nikon P900, with backup a Canon SX710 (or a newer version of that Canon line). Both are light, have extensive zoom capacity, and easy to use. The P900 provides excellent video and extreme flexibility without having to change lenses. You may give up a little bit on image quality with those cameras compared to one of the higher end mirrorless, but the flexibility under uncertain shooting conditions is what you will get. You will have very little control over the shooting conditions, so that flexibility, especially when some of your subjects will be far off, is important. Take plenty of SD cards, extra batteries, and your chargers. Be sure to format your cards before you leave and number them so you can keep track of them. Good luck!

timbuktutraveler

I have been on several Safaris.
I would take 1 camera: Rent or buy the Sony RX10 IV with it high IQ and 24-600 lens.
You will not be disappointed.

David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA

On my African tour I took 2 Nikon D7100 DX cameras, one with the 18-200VR2 lens and the other with the 200-500VR lens. (I took 2 cameras to avoid having to change lenses in the field.) I took shots with both cameras from the 4WD tour vehicles and was glad I had both. Note that a DX camera has an effective reach of 750mm with the long lens.

You will probably encounter some animals close to the vehicle, and others some distance off. I took most shots with the 18-200 but there were shots I could not have gotten without the 200-500. We were restricted to driving on the "roads" (trails), but we did get pretty close to some creatures--our guides were excellent. I've posted photos from my tour to UHH, if you're interested you can search for them.

APSHEPPARD

May have been said in other Africa queries. I have been five times, and they are great trips. Based on what you have, I agree with the 70-300 and one of the 18-__ MM lenses. I personally think the most advantageous photo decision is a safari that is on a private reserve, near say some place such as Kruger NP. The private reserves let you go off road, and you see wildlife that is often not even visible from the trails. The guides are incredible finding these then you are driven within the closest distance that does not bother the animals you are about to photograph, which will be covered by lenses typically 500 MM, or less more frequently. If you have to stay on the trails, then take all the telephoto power you can reasonably do. Very personal preference, however, I prefer SA over Botswana, Namibia, Kenya and Tanzania. Have gotten good photos in all and never made the "Great Migration" which is supposedly awesome!

Carl S

Check with your tour leader for their suggestions. And a compact set of binoculars is also useful. As a Nikon shooter, I carry two camera bodies, one with a short zoom telephoto and another with a long zoom telephoto. If you need to change lens while in the bush, consider taking a small pillow case to avoid dust, of which there will be plenty, depending upon the season. We are headed back on our seventh safari this year headed to South Africa and Kenya.

davidrb Loc: Half way there on the 45th Parallel

Congrats! You're going on safari and you will have opportunities not found elsewhere. While publishing might not be a goal you will probably make several that you want to keep and view in your home. Phone cameras are decent but require time to learn. Go with what you are most comfortable. Safaris today are usually run to get the animals to you, not vice versa. Friends who have experienced Africa tell me keeping animals away from the vehicles is of greater concern than getting them close. Long lenses tend to be over-reach, and the are heavy. Your 18-55 might be the ideal lens to start with. If possible carry the 18-200 for a timid creature hiding in the shadows. Good luck and have fun soaking it all in!

David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA

A quick look at my photos taken on my 2019 tour of Kenya, I see that I took 1448 of them with the 18-200 lens and 262 with the 200-500. Many of the 1448 were done at the lower limit of the lens (18mm to 50mm), but all of the ones with the longer lens were at least at the 200mm level and most at the upper limit (500mm). This suggests that it is a good idea to be able to cover both the near and far for photography. I managed it with just 2 lenses (and 2 cameras). I note that Carl S apparently shared this philosophy with me.

If you are interested in what was available in Kenya, my photos are here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/8712554@N02/collections/72157713295140362/. You'd have to check each photo to determine what focal length was used for it.

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

Not even close to being accurate!!

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

Wrong!!! Couldn't be more wrong!!!

Retired CPO Loc: Travel full time in an RV

Listen to this guy!!