Bulletin 73, From the Atlantic...Wings and Whiskers, 27 May 2010
Tomorrow makes known to us what tomorrow will bring. - African Proverb
I decided to take it easy for this one and packed light. To be honest it was due to the environment I was going to be working in more than anything that determined the equipment I would use. The big heavy lenses were left behind, along with all the usual paraphernalia like flashguns, converters and big bulky gimbal heads among many other items. I had two camera bodies, two lenses and my camera housing. With a towel, bottle of water and a cheese, tomato and salami roll thrown in I was ready to go.
From a Seals point of view. A Kelp Gull flies past as a group of Pelicans float around on surface of the Atlantic. The turquoise colouration of the water is due to a sulphur eruption.
07:30 I sit in the little coffee shop watching my spoon stand upright in what is probably the strongest coffee I have had in a long time. Out on the water our little boat (for the day) is doing its supply run to the catamarans etc.
08:10 Not again! I watch our rubberduck being towed to the small jetty – another breakdown. Oh well, I pay up and walk on over to see what is up. Charl is already taking things apart in a quest to locate the problem.
A Pelican slowing its self down in the air, by using its wings and webbed feet as air brakes. Gracefully effective.
08:50 Finally find a fuse on the actual engine that has blown. Charl goes to get a fuse from his car. He stops at the coffee shop and after a short chat with a customer there and returns – all smiles. “He had a fuse in his pocket – let’s go.”
09:15 With the Fuse changed, the engine fires and we are off. We head straight for the seal colonies. As I have already photographed the Pelicans the day before I don’t make them my top priority today. I still take some shots, though.
A pair of Pelicans flies by in perfect synchronisation.
With its wings spread, a Pelican banks slightly and head for the Namib Desert on the horizon
09:35 We wait for the tourist boats to do their thing. They never hang around for too long around the seals as they usually opt to go looking for dolphins instead. It is great to be out sizzling in the sun and gently bobbing on the water under an endless blue sky again!
Inquisitive and intelligent. Seals seen from water level with the main colony visible on the beach in the distance.
09:55 The tourist boats clear off and we are left alone with the seals from the colony churning in the water and milling on the beach in the distance. Gently and slowly we nudge our way in among them. Curious heads appear above the water take a long-necked look and then disappear with a splash again.
The camera and 17 – 40 mm lens go into the housing. The housing is sealed and the fun begins. For the next hour I take pictures under the water, above the water and at a split-level. All the while curious seals come up and nudge the housing one persistent pain repeatedly tries to bite the housing. Even going as far as taking jumping leaps, mouth snapping mid air and water spraying everywhere. He manages to land one bite. Thankfully there isn’t a scratch on the housing.
Comical and ungainly on land, the Seal is a superb swimmer once in the water.
A seal diving. One of my favourite shots in a series of split level views, as this seal swam right up to me and nudged the port on my camera housing. In a friendly 'wanna play' manner. A lighthouse is visible on the horizon.
11:45 We decide to head back and see if we can find some Dolphins. By this time I look like a cooked lobster. We find some Bottle Nosed Dolphins and enjoy watching them. It’s good to take a break now and then.
12:30 We beach the rubberduck by the Yacht Club help to load it on its trailer and head for the Coffee Shop for lunch and a well deserved beer. A lone seal plays in the water by the jetty.
Encounters with a seal! This one had more sinister intentions and decided to sample the port on the housing by taking a bite. This knocked the lens from the port, resulting in the black circle. Kind of gives it a porthole look, so I kept it.
He who cannot dance will say: "The drum is bad". - African Proverb
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