Best camera to take on a safari?

[Scottm]

Two scenarios:- a) you either want to get into photography as a serious hobby for the long term, or (b) you want a reasonable camera to do the job while on safari;

a) get the best DSLR you can afford, with the best lenses available, along with all the other kit you require for such an excursion, but my advice would be;

b) get a decent point-n-shoot with a decent zoom and use that.you can easily use while on safari and ENJOY THE MOMENTS as they happen.

Justifcation for my view: Unless you have the skill and experience with your equipment such that the camera almost becomes an extension of your arm, you will spend much of your time fiddling around and probably miss the fleeting, never-to-be repeated moments. A point-n-shoot will allow for the enjoyment of the environment and also provide an opportunity to take some pictures for your memories. Focus on the experience and maximise the memories by absorbing what is going on around you. To be distracted by photographic equipment and trying to think about how best to digitally capture that elusive animal will certainly detract from the opportuniy of experiencing nature as many have before you have.....

Note that all too often, the light will be on the "wrong" side of the animal, you will be on the wrong side of the vehicle, the light will be just too low, or the sighting will be just too fleeting for any decent picture to be captured anyway. AND you will simply just get frustrated with possible lack of results and not enjoy the safari as much as you could.

Such a trip is often a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience nature at its most raw, and I would certainly advise you to allow yourself to be absorbed into the moment rather than focusing on trying to capture all the memories on a camera.... there is so much more than just pictures.... expolit ALL you sensors to the maximum....

Will you remenber the call of the Fish Eagle? or the sound of a warthog escaping the clutches of a leopard (so what does fear sound like?), or the smell of the stomach contents of a buffalo as it is being eaten by a pride of lions, or the smell/taste of a thunder storm the moment after it arrives..... Capture all the memories as best you can, but do not waste other fleeting opportnities by doing so.

Africa runs in my veins........I am, after all, a child of Africa

[mbrobich]

..my thoughts exactly, maybe along the lines of a Nikon P7100, has 28-200mm.. with decent IQ. You could always go with something like a Fuji HS10 or 20, but they have such small sensor, unless you are in a bright sunny locale all the time the photos will suffer in low light....grainy and noisy..