GEOFFREY ELLIS
Nikon D7500 Nikon 200 – 500 mm lens
GEOFFREY WRITES: We were sitting in Mankwe Hide in the Pilanesberg one day. It was hot and we were having a bite to eat. I noticed a pair of white-rumped swifts circling. Their repetitive motion meant that they nearly always returned to the same point near the corner of the hide, giving me an opportunity to get a shot.
After many out-of-focus attempts, my patience paid off and I managed to get a couple of photos that I’m proud of. These are incredibly small birds, and they move at a very high speed. I used a shutter speed of 1/1 000 second, aperture f6.3 and ISO 400.
Geoffrey, I’m standing up and giving you a round of applause! Photographing birds in flight is one of the toughest assignments you can give yourself as a wildlife photographer. It’s one thing getting a passable snap of something bulky with a predictable flight path, like an Egyptian goose, sacred
