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Kusafiri-Kenya, Uganda, Botswana and South Africa
Duncan and Deborah Armour present with flair!
17/09/2021
Members warmly welcomed Duncan and Deborah Armour to the Zoom meeting on Thursday, anticipating a quality evening, given the previous presentations they have shared with us, depicting their wildlife and travel images as they followed in Shackleton’s footsteps. We were not disappointed! This time their travels had taken them to Africa, and it was a privilege to have them share with us their amazing experiences on that continent of contrasts.
They took us to South Africa and the Kruger where they were charged by Elephants and took their chances with pregnant Rhino, but their aspirations went beyond the usual “Big Five” so popular with regular tourists, and so their guides were urged to seek out more unusual subjects in Kenya, Botswana and Namibia. The images were stunning, but the outstanding presentation narrated by Duncan, successfully blended the visual aspects with a wealth of interesting information about the animals and their habitats, and offered an informative, technical commentary on the art of photographing a wide range of unfamiliar species to very best effect.
It was skilfully put together so that we were mesmerised by the couple’s ability to capture the very essence of the wildlife in their natural habitats. The haunting images of Buffalo, reflected in the calm of the water hole, contrasted starkly with the turbulent mayhem of the migrations of the Wildebeest and Zebra, at the mercy of the ever-watchful Crocodiles, sentinels of the river. Not content with wildlife images so beloved of competition judges, Duncan and Deborah went in search of dramatic, abstract images, using slow shutter speeds and often rendering them in shades of black and white, making them reminiscent of 18th Century paintings. They took advantage of the early morning sunrise, and the fading light of the, all too brief, African dusk, shooting into it for shifting shapes and silhouettes and the joy of backlit Baboons. They played with light in Namibia amidst the iconic dunes, dead trees and baked earth, pausing to record the ancient cave paintings and the details of the stunningly alien scenery. Whilst Duncan revelled in the textures, Deborah played with the abstractions of Giraffe in sepia, and the elephant bits that illustrate her “I am Elephant” so cleverly.
It was an evening to remember, and one in which we all learned a great deal about the animal world as well as the art of photography and the fact that the word “safari” has its origins in the African word “Kusafiri”. Duncan and Deborah were warmly thanked and there is no doubt that they will be invited back in future programmes.
Next week Suzanne will lead a Tuesday walk, and we look forward to the judging of our September Open Competition
Jenny Short 17.09.2021
They took us to South Africa and the Kruger where they were charged by Elephants and took their chances with pregnant Rhino, but their aspirations went beyond the usual “Big Five” so popular with regular tourists, and so their guides were urged to seek out more unusual subjects in Kenya, Botswana and Namibia. The images were stunning, but the outstanding presentation narrated by Duncan, successfully blended the visual aspects with a wealth of interesting information about the animals and their habitats, and offered an informative, technical commentary on the art of photographing a wide range of unfamiliar species to very best effect.
It was skilfully put together so that we were mesmerised by the couple’s ability to capture the very essence of the wildlife in their natural habitats. The haunting images of Buffalo, reflected in the calm of the water hole, contrasted starkly with the turbulent mayhem of the migrations of the Wildebeest and Zebra, at the mercy of the ever-watchful Crocodiles, sentinels of the river. Not content with wildlife images so beloved of competition judges, Duncan and Deborah went in search of dramatic, abstract images, using slow shutter speeds and often rendering them in shades of black and white, making them reminiscent of 18th Century paintings. They took advantage of the early morning sunrise, and the fading light of the, all too brief, African dusk, shooting into it for shifting shapes and silhouettes and the joy of backlit Baboons. They played with light in Namibia amidst the iconic dunes, dead trees and baked earth, pausing to record the ancient cave paintings and the details of the stunningly alien scenery. Whilst Duncan revelled in the textures, Deborah played with the abstractions of Giraffe in sepia, and the elephant bits that illustrate her “I am Elephant” so cleverly.
It was an evening to remember, and one in which we all learned a great deal about the animal world as well as the art of photography and the fact that the word “safari” has its origins in the African word “Kusafiri”. Duncan and Deborah were warmly thanked and there is no doubt that they will be invited back in future programmes.
Next week Suzanne will lead a Tuesday walk, and we look forward to the judging of our September Open Competition
Jenny Short 17.09.2021