October 5

Pics From The Office Chair – Interview With Kirkman’s Kamp Game Ranger and Photographer Daniel Williams

0  comments

October 5, 2015

It has been said that adventure may hurt you, but monotony will kill you. That may be exactly what game ranger Daniel Williams was thinking when he ditched the corporate world two years ago.

Daniel was an accountant in Johannesburg with a bright future but decided to pursue a different dream and took the first steps to becoming a game ranger. “I started going to the bush from an early age and fell in love with it then. A few years ago, I took a break from my job and decided to get qualified as a game ranger. It was just a way for me to spend an extended time in the bush. After two months I thought I would go back into my old job, but it turned out I was not ready for that. I knew that if I was ever going to do this, it was now or never. That was almost two years ago.” Daniel is now a game ranger at Kirkman’s Kamp in the Sabi Sand concession in South Africa.

Once he started working as a game ranger, Daniel decided to get into photography. “After spending a couple of months in the bush and realising the crazy stuff you see every day I knew I needed something to capture it. I bought a second-hand camera and took it from there.”

Kirkman’s Kamp offers incredible game viewing. The Sand River flows through the property, which is famous for its game density and the game viewing it provides. The Sabi Sand concession is considered the best place in the world for leopard sightings – the leopards are accessible and relaxed, allowing Daniel to take stunning photos of these elusive creatures. As well as many other predators, Kirkman’s Kamp also sees wild dog on a regular basis, one of Daniel’s favourite animals. “The best part of my job is being out there every day all day and seeing those once-in-a-lifetime things on a regular basis.”

So what is Daniel’s advice to first-time photographers in the bush? “My tip is to not get stuck behind the camera lens, try take in everything. Often people come and they look through this little thing while they’ve got this incredible sighting happening right in front of them, which is 360 degrees of awesomeness. Take your photo, but experience what you’re here to experience with your own eyes.”

Daniel’s photos are moving portraits of the animals of the Sabi Sand. What he likes to call his ‘pics from the office chair’. As Daniel likes to point out, the views from this office chair are certainly better than the views from his old accountant’s chair. And he has the pictures to prove it.

You can follow Daniel on Instagram at @daniwilliams1986


 

IMG_0672
One of the Charleston males cautiously approaches a carcass of the female buffalo they killed the day before. During the night the two brothers were chased off the carcass by two older males.
Leopard-drinking
The Scotia female takes a well-earned break from being a single mother of two and enjoys a cool drink of water.
Wild-Dogs-running
Two adult wild dogs of the Toulon pack chase each other through the Sand River, enjoying the energy provided by a successful morning hunt.
Leopard-in-a-tree
The Hlurulini female climbs a Marula tree in order to scout the horizon for any potential prey.
Lion-cub-with-blue-eyes
Another shot of one of the Charleston cubs who is distracted by his mother’s tail from feeding on a buffalo.
Lion-snarling-at-its-dad
One of the Charleston cubs gets cocky with his enormous uncle. Luckily for him, his uncle was in a patient mood.
Blue-eyed-elephant
A young elephant with a blue eye, the only time I have witnessed such a thing.
Blood-Lion
The Charleston female stares up at the vehicle during a break from feeding on a freshly killed male waterbuck which she drowned in the Sand River.
Blakc-and-White-lion
One of the three Sand River males charges in to chase vultures off a stillborn wildebeest carcass.
Cheetah-drinking
A female cheetah cautiously surveys her surroundings before taking a drink.
Resting Leopard in the grass
A Female leopard (The Tear Drop female) lies in the grass soaking up the morning sun, recovering after mating with the dominant male in the area.
Stretching-wild-dog-pup
One of the wild dog pups has a stretch after emerging from the den.
Wild-Dog-pup
Our very first photo opportunity of the new arrivals to the Toulon Pack of Wild Dogs, one of the most highly endangered species in the world. This puppy was approximately 2 – 3 weeks old.

Tags


You may also enjoy 

About the author 

Matthew Sterne

Matt discovered a passion for writing in the six years he spent travelling abroad. He worked for a turtle sanctuary in Nicaragua, in an ice cream factory in Norway and on a camel safari in India. He was a door-to-door lightbulb-exchanger in Australia, a pub crawl guide in Amsterdam and a journalist in Colombia. Now, he writes and travels with us.

{"email":"Email address invalid","url":"Website address invalid","required":"Required field missing"}
>