{"id":20303,"date":"2026-07-26T06:24:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-25T18:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/?p=20303"},"modified":"2026-07-23T09:25:21","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T21:25:21","slug":"day-3-hippos-elephants-and-low-rollers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/20303","title":{"rendered":"Day 3 &#8211; Hippos, Elephants and Low Rollers"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_7132-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_7132-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hippo resting in a waterhole. Harsh middle of the day light not ideal\" class=\"wp-image-20307\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_7132-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_7132-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_7132-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Hippo resting in a waterhole. Harsh middle of the day light not ideal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After we lost contact with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/archives\/19929\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"19929\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">wild dogs<\/a>, we took a break at a waterhole before exploring further. This gave an opportunity for some hippo images.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After sunrise, the low warm light is soon lost meaning most of the day we had only harsh unflattering light. This can be a useful time to look for textural images that translate better into monochrome than as colour. Hippos with their textured skin and bristles are perfect candidates.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_6931-BW-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_6931-BW-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hippo - monochrome image accentuates texture despite harsh middle of the day sunlight\" class=\"wp-image-20306\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_6931-BW-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_6931-BW-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250913-NZ9_6931-BW-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Hippo &#8211; monochrome image accentuates texture despite harsh middle of the day sunlight<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Moving on we encountered a group of Marabou storks at rest with Egyptian geese in a patch of flooded grassland.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MarabouStork-20250913-NZ9_7674-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MarabouStork-20250913-NZ9_7674-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Marabou stork\" class=\"wp-image-20309\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MarabouStork-20250913-NZ9_7674-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MarabouStork-20250913-NZ9_7674-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/MarabouStork-20250913-NZ9_7674-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Marabou stork<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Aiming back for camp in the midday heat we found a large bull elephant keeping cool by spraying mud over his back.  My overwhelming recollecting on viewing these images is of the baking heat and the envy I felt for the elephant enjoying his shower. One of our treats was a cool shower fully clothed at midday as this gave us some refreshing, albeit temporary evaporative cooling as our clothes dried.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9006-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9006-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Male elephant spraying mud over his back to cool off\" class=\"wp-image-20304\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9006-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9006-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9006-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Male elephant spraying mud over his back to cool off<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This elephant behaviour gave the opportunity to try some slow shutter images to capture the movement of the sprayed mud.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9044-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9044-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Slow shutter image of elephant spraying mud\" class=\"wp-image-20305\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9044-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9044-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Elephant-20250913-NZ9_9044-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Slow shutter (1\/40s)image of elephant spraying mud<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lilac-breasted rollers are common, colourful and dramatic so make great subjects. On low perches they offer much nicer opportunities than on high perches so low rollers were much more appealing to us than high rollers and we tried our luck any time the opportunity arose.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lilac-breastedRoller-20250913-NZ9_9159-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lilac-breastedRoller-20250913-NZ9_9159-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Lilac-breasted roller\" class=\"wp-image-20280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lilac-breastedRoller-20250913-NZ9_9159-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lilac-breastedRoller-20250913-NZ9_9159-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Lilac-breastedRoller-20250913-NZ9_9159-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Lilac-breasted roller in low roller mode<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Returning to camp for lunch we recharged batteries and did our best to hide from the heat for a while. I found it hard to switch off from all the opportunities so spent quite a bit of time photographing the birds around camp beneath the shady shelter of the tree canopy. As the sun began to nudge down toward the horizon we set off again in search of subjects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A Verraux&#8217;s Eagle owl with typical pink eyelids was suffering in the heat, gular fluttering in the shade and beautifully camouflaged among the branches.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VerrauxsEagleOwl-20250914-NZ9_0494-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VerrauxsEagleOwl-20250914-NZ9_0494-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Verraux's Eagle owl\" class=\"wp-image-20334\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VerrauxsEagleOwl-20250914-NZ9_0494-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VerrauxsEagleOwl-20250914-NZ9_0494-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/VerrauxsEagleOwl-20250914-NZ9_0494-DxO_DeepPRIME-3-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Verraux&#8217;s Eagle owl<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the sun nudged down to the horizon it threw some lovely warm light across the water as a cooperative hippo rose through the greenery. No need for a monochrome version with this one.<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250914-NZ9_0351-web.jpg?ssl=1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"960\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250914-NZ9_0351-web.jpg?resize=960%2C640&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"Hippo in sunset light\" class=\"wp-image-20308\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250914-NZ9_0351-web.jpg?w=960&amp;ssl=1 960w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250914-NZ9_0351-web.jpg?resize=300%2C200&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.tonywhitehead.com\/wildlight\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Hippo-20250914-NZ9_0351-web.jpg?resize=768%2C512&amp;ssl=1 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 960px) 100vw, 960px\" \/><\/a><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Hippo in sunset light<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Photos with Nikon Z9 and Nikkor Z 180-600mm f5.6-6.3 VR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After we lost contact with the wild dogs, we took a break at a waterhole before exploring further. This gave an opportunity for some hippo images. After sunrise, the low warm light is soon lost meaning most of the day we had only harsh unflattering light. This can be a useful time to look for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"Day 3 - Hippos, Elephants and Low Rollers. Exploring into the heat of the day after our encounter with wild dogs","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[982,1397,18,19,1001],"tags":[26,25,1391,784,1415,1417,1416,1399,1184,221,983,609,190,971,779],"class_list":["post-20303","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bird-photography","category-botswana","category-mammals","category-travel","category-wildlife","tag-bird-photography","tag-birds","tag-botswana","tag-elephant","tag-hippo","tag-lilac-breasted-roller","tag-marabou-stork","tag-moremi-game-reserve","tag-nikkor-z-180-600","tag-nikon","tag-nikon-z9","tag-nikonnz","tag-photography","tag-wildlife","tag-wildlife-photography","entry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Day 3 - Hippos, Elephants and Low Rollers - WildLight Photography<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Day 3 - Hippos, Elephants and Low Rollers. 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