Zambezi Nights

[Morkel Erasmus]

There's nothing quite like the starry expanse over dark corners of Africa on a clear night. This photo was taken from our campsite in Mana Pools last year. Maybe it's the thrill of standing away from the safety of your tent at night in lion country as well, but I loved standing next to the mighty Zambezi under this expanse. This photo was feautured as a double-page spread in the August issue of Getaway Magazine in Southern Africa.




Techs:
Nikon D3s
Nikkor 14-24mm f2.8 @ 15mm
f2.8 | 30 seconds | ISO-3200

[Rachel Hollander]

Hi Morkel - congrats on the publication! Great colors and placement of the Milky Way. I really like the comp too. I know how you feel about cloning so I might just crop a tiny sliver from the bottom to get rid of the brightest reflection.

TFS,
Rachel

[dankearl]

Very cool star photo! I am going to try some of these when I get the chance to get out of the city on a new moon night.
I also would remove the streak in the water as well as blue rectangle in front of the vehicles.

[Andrew McLachlan]

Hi Morkel, this has got to be your best starry scene to date. Fabulous work and congrats on the publication

[Jerry van Dijk]

Hi Morkel, if this magazine spread won't draw people to South Africa, I don't know what will! I know it's high on my wishlist of places to visit anyway. In addition to the good comments already given, I'd consider running some color noise reduction on the water. The reflections of the stars on the water are really cool, but I agree that the 'streak' is a little overpowering.

[Markus Jais]

Stunning shot. The tents add to this image. Fantastic sky with wonderful colors.

Don't the lions walk towards the tents and see who is inside? They can probably smell you.

Markus

[Cheryl Slechta]

Morkel, congratulations on the publication - it's a great image.

[jack williamson]

Congratulations Morkel, this is excellent, comp wise and exposure wise. How did you light the FG and trees?

Jack

[Don Lacy]

Wonderful image Morkel the night sky is amazing