Cameras bring them or stick with phone

[Jason Miller]

I think it depends on if this is a “once in a lifetime” trip or not, I haven’t carried a camera to Africa in years and my new iPhone camera is awesome and good enough. I used to load two huge pelican cases with stuff, now I can go two to three weeks with a small backpack or carry on…. Just makes life simpler . Again, if you are bringing family or this is a one time experience, bring it all!

 

[WyoBull]

As both an avid hunter and photographer, I have tried twice now to take my big camera with me to Africa. I will say it is very difficult to hunt and photograph at the same time.
I believe you either need to focus on hunting or photography but not both at the same time.
Ideally, ten days of hunting followed by a week of photographing wildlife would be ideal.

 

[deewayne2003]

I bring my iPhone and a GoPro

For the pics of me with animals I’ll have some short video taken with the GoPro of me with fish/animal.

Then you can break it down frame by frame for HD pics.

 

[Safari Dave]

If you are the least "into" photography, bring a decent DSRL and your phone.



My old Nikon D80, for some reason, started making pictures worse than my phone, so I borrowed my daughter's Canon with a couple of lenses.




IMO, having the ability to take good quality ZOOM and landscape photo is wonderful.



I always carried my phone, but if there is a second person (in my case, my wife) who can take a decent DSLR with a couple of lenses or just an 18-135 lens that can make a world of difference.



With my phone, I could take this type of thing (basically, a "snapshot"):

Which might be all you would want, and that is fine.


With a low-end DSLR and decent lens, you can get this type of picture, which is almost impossible with any phone I've ever used...

Not that, a "fair" picture of a small monitor lizard would make the cover of National Geographic, but a zoom lens and a decent camera can add a lot to a "journal" of your trip.

Of you are into photography, a camera makes for a much better photo log of your trip, than a bunch of phone "snapshots."

The camera companies better be quick, or phone technology may catch up with them soon!

Even if my wife were not with me to do photography, I would take along a camera to take pictures during downtime.

 

[Sarg]

Take a camera for sure, I have noticed in the las10yrs most clients only bring a phone but a camera should be included !

I drowned many cameras in the old days & dust has killed a few, then I got the Waterproof Tough line of Olympus cameras & last 10yrs have the Panasonic TZ60 TZ80 TZ95 with up to 30x zoom which can shoot in RAW, the Canon doesn’t have RAW capability but it is also a great camera with the 40x !

 

[Red Leg]

I have some very, very high end Nikon equipment. I have not brought it along on a hunt or expedition with my spouse for the last seven or eight years. After every adventure, I build very high quality photo journals, which include numerous enlargements. Today, a true top of the line iPhone just about will do it all. And it fits in your back pocket.

Wall art

Photo journals

 

[Rare Breed]

Bring Camera.

You can never make a photo with mobile phone like you can with a Camera. Moreover, take a camera tripod. This will enable you to make high zoom photos, when you are sitting in a tree blind. Camera must be steady, for high zoom.

African daily routine: Camera goes in a daily backpack, when you are out hunting. When you are sitting in the back of 4WD, camera goes around the neck, "in condition 1", ready to shoot!
I used Cannon G3x.

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Your not getting this clarity with a phone

 

[WAB]

I have some very, very high end Nikon equipment. I have not brought it along on a hunt or expedition with my spouse for the last seven or eight years. After every adventure, I build very high quality photo journals, which include numerous enlargements. Today, a true top of the line iPhone just about will do it all. And it fits in your back pocket.

Wall art
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Photo journals

We are in the same boat. I hate to think what we have invested in camera equipment that never gets used anymore. Camera shops seem to have gone the way of the dinosaurs, replaced by a phone!

 

[HoosierHunter]

Bring a camera. Zoom capabilities are much better. I took a Nikon p950 and very glad I did.

 

[Houston Bill]

Since my wife joins me on most of my safaris and is an excellent amateur photography she generally brings 2 professional Nikon bodies D5 and D850 and usually 3 or 4 lens....24-70, 70-200, 80-400 and a fixed 500. We have a special travel case for all the gear and she has been doing wildlife and sports photography for 25 years. She will even practice shooting still birds and birds in flight and various other critters around our home before we leave on a safari to sharpen her skills, especially on moving subjects. Me, I use my i-Phone, but my photos do not compare to her photos.

We have a rule with our PH's, if my wife taps on the roof of the Land Cruiser then stop the vehicle as she has seen that photo she has been imagining in her mind.

If you can mange it I would bring a proper camera, preferably with some zoom capability. You will get much better photos.

 

[Javaman]

My wife took her Canon camera for our first safari. The camera came in handy for videos and quick photos, but my wife's photos were incredible. I don't know much about camera's and lenses, but her prime lens enabled cropping of animals that were far away and still showed up crystal clear on camera. She also uses lightroom to adjust glare or whatever. Here's a comparison between my wife's Canon photos and my iphone photos. It is readily apparent which is which.

Please congratulate your wife on some beautiful photos!

 

[gcbailey]

Please congratulate your wife on some beautiful photos!

Thank you sir! I am proud of her and she'll be thrilled to hear her photos are well received.

 

[Datchew]

I had initially just planned on my phone but you guys have some strikingly good photos.

Does anyone have guidance on renting something like one of those $1k Canon cameras?
I think it would collect dust after the trip if I was to purchase it.

 

[flatwater bill]

I bought a full frame Nikon last year. If any of you hold a PhD in electro-physics and would just come by and teach me how to use it, I will take it to Africa this year. Otherwise, I'll leave it home, and still be using the iPhone.....FWB

 

[Raven]

I've never had any luck with cameras. I lost them, broke them, forgot them somewhere.

I drowned the Panasonic camera in a swamp and couldn't find it.

Then I bought a GoPro 7, but it fell and crashed while I was riding my bike.

Then I bought a GoPro 8, but I kept forgetting to take it hunting, and one day I left it at some hotel where I was on vacation.

After all this, I bought a GoPro 9, but my eldest son took it from me and never returned it.

And then I decided that I wouldn't buy any more cameras, I couldn't shoot anything anyway. And I can always take a couple of photos on my phone.

 

[Sabre]

I bought a full frame Nikon last year. If any of you hold a PhD in electro-physics and would just come by and teach me how to use it, I will take it to Africa this year. Otherwise, I'll leave it home, and still be using the iPhone.....FWB

This is speaking my language.
One thing I noticed is that a lot of times my DSLR Canon will take much more clear photos that can be blown up to a much larger size. But, the iPhone takes much better looking photos. Although they don't have as much detail and can't be blown up as large. That is because the iPhone processes the image to improve it's looks on its own in the background. The DSLR expects you to do that in photo editing software.

I often wonder why an expensive camera that only has one job (take nice photos) can't have a setting that does the image magic in the background for me like an iPhone, with the clarity of the DSLR. When the iPhone can do it, but has 1 million other tasks it also performs for the same or less money.

 

[KuduKiller]

I’ve taken cameras but have chose to just do the iPhone thing. With that being said my son who is a very accomplished photographer did bring his. The photographs of the stars were taken with my iPhone.

 

[Hunt anything]

I carry my phone and a Canon camera with a 300mm zoom lens. The camera is for grip & grin pictures and the camera is for game pictures. If game pictures aren’t wanted leave it home. My wife is normally the photographer and she also carries a compact video camera.
Most of the wildlife pictures are taken from the truck but if on a stalk a tracker is normally more than happy to carry the camera in my backpack.
I just don’t think a phone can zoom in on an animal good enough at much past 50yd or so. That’s where the 300mm lens starts to shine.
Quality pictures of live wildlife are good ways to show off your safari to any anti hunters that may not appreciate looking at dead animals.

 

[Hunt anything]

I had initially just planned on my phone but you guys have some strikingly good photos.

Does anyone have guidance on renting something like one of those $1k Canon cameras?
I think it would collect dust after the trip if I was to purchase it.

I thought the same about how much my camera would be used. My Canon stays with me in my truck pretty much all year. I’m a farmer so I’m out and about all of the time and I’ve been able to capture pictures of several rare birds ( for documentation purposes) deer, some great waterfowl pictures and lots of other wildlife that a phone could never capture in my opinion.

 

[Sabre]

I’ve taken cameras but have chose to just do the iPhone thing. With that being said my son who is a very accomplished photographer did bring his. The photographs of the stars were taken with my iPhone.

The photos you have of the stars with your phone. I have gotten some similar amazing photos of the night sky and of northern lights with my phone. I have tried to take nice photos at night with my Canon, but I don't know all the settings and all I get are pitch black images. Also, even with the settings I do know, sometimes it takes more time to fiddle trying to change the settings than the moment lasts and you've missed your opportunity. Sometimes it is nice to just grab your phone and take the photo. I recognize that it's a deficiency with me not knowing all the settings.