In the Middle of Nowhere Photo

Photographer’s Note

Botswana is a country with much to offer when it comes to National Parks and wildlife. You can go for many days in the Chobe National Park and the Okavango Delta and see many species of different African animals, some of each in thousands, such as elephants or impalas. You will also see wild cats - lions, cheetahs, leopards -, buffalos, antelopes and zebras, crocodiles, hippos, the occasional rhino, baboons and monkeys, numerous birds, etc, etc.

However, no trip to Botswana will be complete without a visit to one of the most amazing places on earth, the Makgadikgadi Pans.

The Makgadikgadi Pans is a large saltpan complex located in Central Botswana, some 160 km to the east of Maun.

The Pans of Makgadikgadi were once the centre of a great lake that has been dry for at least two thousand years, and is today thought to be the largest saltpan in the world. These saltpans cover 16,000 km2 and form the bed of an ancient lake that started evaporating 10,000 years ago. After the summer rains the pans fill up to a depth of a few centimeters, alerting the fish and shrimps from where they have been lying dormant in the mud. This forms the breeding ground for the fabulous flamingos and pelicans, which are attracted by the rich food supply. The grasslands of Makgadikgadi National Park are home to a large number of antelope and one of Africa's biggest zebra populations, which attract an impressive range of predators.

Makgadikgadi is technically not a single pan but many pans with sandy desert in between, but it is all counted in the area estimate. The largest individual pan is about 5,000 km2, and it is frequently covered with water. The main water source is the Nata River, called Amanzinyama in Zimbabwe where it rises at Sandown about 60 km from the city of Bulawayo.

Usually only quad bikes are permitted on the fragile plains. And that is exactly what we did. We went deep inside the pan to admire a beautiful sunset and to spend the night in sleeping bags looking at the most spectacular sky we ever had the opportunity to see, without the disturbance of any single man made light. In the morning we were greeted by a magnificent sunrise over an endless flat landscape.

The only regret is my camera was getting worse and worse and I could not make a decent picture of that amazing night.

syd1946, gary91, pasternak, paura, besnard, Jeppo, JPlumb, riclopes, lucasgalodoido, pboehringer, John_F_Kennedy, Photo65Net, MLINES, vascao, papagolf21, mikolaj_kawa, stego, faubry, ruisc_pt, PixelTerror, smash2707, xuaxo, dareco, mafegan has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

syd1946 (17807) 2007-12-17 3:47

Hello Antonio,
Indeed in the middle of nowher taken this shot!I like the minimalistic composition with the only two levels,the ground and the sky.The two people contrasting nicely the desert.The narural light is very well seen here and make the scene real and more atractive!

Greetings,
Thomas

gary91 (15319) 2007-12-17 3:51

Hello Antonio, neighbour of the day :o)
This must be impressive to be in such a place with no one around for miles and miles and praying for the quad running smoothly ! Diffifult to image this was once a lake with vegetation and animals around. You picture well translates this desertic atmosphere and you well used the track and these 2 people in the middle of nowhere.
Have a nice day.
Best regards, Christian

pasternak (12994) 2007-12-17 3:51

Excellent composition, Antonio, a bit on the psychodelic side, reminds me a bit of Antonioni's "Zabriskie Point"...

Cheers
Alexander

paura (37792) 2007-12-17 3:53

António,
Uma vastidão sem fim, sem dúvida. Mas o quadriciclo dá um tom de modernidade na paisagem agreste. Uma bela fotobrasfia, com composição primorosa.

Abraço

Paulo

besnard (30118) 2007-12-17 3:56

Bonjour Antonio
En cette période neigeuse tu nous sors une photo qui pourrait préter à confusion si l'on ne voyait pas le chauffeur en manches courtes. Les personnes donnent de l'animation à l'image.
Merci pour le partage et bonne journée.
Nicole

JPlumb (3153) 2007-12-17 4:35

Hi Antonio, what an incredible looking place. This is an area that I just didn't know existed, at least not to the scale you describe here. The shot of those two on the pan, with absolutely nothing behind them is kind of eerie. Nicely composed with good colour.

Thanks, John

riclopes (32857) 2007-12-17 6:49

Espectacular, António. Adoro estás paisagens lunares, super áridas e sem nada à frente dos nossos olhos até ao horizonte. O minimalismo que nos cerca é estonteante! E imagino a noite estrelada que referiste que deve ser de sonho. Confesso que não sou grande fan do barulho que estas motas fazem num sítio tão sossegado, mas também nunca experimentei e acredito que deva ser muito divertido. As 3 fotos fazem um bom conjunto eu também escolheria esta para principal. Pena a tua máquina estar moribunda, mas mesmo assim dá para apreciar a beleza disto.
Ricardo

tabora (13636) 2007-12-17 9:00

Bonsoir Antonio,
Quel endroit de désolation, encore heureux des explications car on pourrait prendre cela pour un plaine enneigée,j'espère que le piéton ne dois pas continué son chemin a pieds.
A+ Joseph

lucasgalodoido (16537) 2007-12-17 10:31

Olá Antônio,
muito boa essa foto mostrando os homens que parecem dois perdidos no meio do deserto, impressionante como esse é todos plano, geralmente há algumas dunas de areia.
Parabéns e Abraço!

hay_kes (28554) 2007-12-17 16:15

Hi Antonio,
What a great composition.Excellent POV, perspective, light and colours.TFS.
Cheers!

hAyAti

pboehringer (770) 2007-12-18 16:22

Antonio,
this really looks to be quite the place. Similar is also to be seen in Bolivia and Utah. Interesting to read that these vehicles are called quad bikes. Here in the US we call it ATV (all terrain vehicles) and I think they are the most annoying thing. Every Yahoo has one and enters the nature to have fun at hight speed, rather than hiking.
I will mark this in my little book of potential travel destinies and if I ever make it to Botswana I will be here!
Regards, Peter

John_F_Kennedy (30629) 2007-12-19 2:39

Amazing lines add interesting detail to the shot. This is a great white landscape. Well done.
Best wishes,
Achim

AiresSantos (41322) 2007-12-19 4:59

Ola Antonio,
Parecia que estavamos na superficie da Lua, não fosse aquela estrutura á direita.
Apesar das condiçoes da máquina esta foto retrata muito bem o contexto
Um abraço Amigo
Aires

cfreire (11647) 2007-12-19 10:22

Oi, Antônio.
Eu pensei que fosse uma paisagem "lunar" pela grande de uma área totalmente plana, e apenas, uma formações rochosas à direita. Mas, ficou uma cena de filme, daqules tipo ficção. Muita bonita a composição. Bom trabalho, um abraço, Consuelo

Photo65Net (43084) 2007-12-19 10:29

Antonio,
I like the loneliness feeling this image creates.
You placed perfectly the curves on the sand, into the diagonal.
Beautiful,
Regards,
JB.

MLINES (10842) 2007-12-19 13:29

Hi Antonio, Very good to see so much diversity in the land scapes. I know a company called Magadi, a major producer of soda ash, which looks like it could be an extension of this lake in Kenya? Great to see so much of the world through your lens, along with notes. TFS. Murray.

vascao (190) 2007-12-19 16:05

Título mais que apropriado, António. A trilha do veículo na chão conduz nossos olhos aos personagens, perfeitamente situados na cena.
[]'s
Sergio

Flavia (10202) 2007-12-19 21:17

Ola Antonio,

Antonio vc escolheu uma composicao que passa realmente a ideia de vastidao do lugar. A sua nota explicativa desperta o desejo de visitar o local.

Um abraco,

Flavia

papagolf21 (55956) 2007-12-20 0:46

Cher ami Antonio,
Photo étrange et très intéressante. J'aime cette composition insolite et très bien présentée.
Joyeuses fêtes de Noël.
Amitiés.
Philippe

mikolaj_kawa (29366) 2007-12-20 3:28

Ola Antonio! Wonderful POV. Original landscape. Interesting scene. Fantastic composition. Best regard! Boa viagem!

Clementi (42865) 2007-12-20 11:36

Ciao Antonio,
In the Middle of Nowhere,but not with the camels,
with a comfortable one quad.
nice POV ligth and colors.
good job
Giorgio

batalay (20690) 2007-12-20 14:23

Hello Antonio,

You've provided a comprehensive and engaging note to introduce this image of a land as that's flat, and devoid of life, it seems.

Warm regards

Bulent

stego (22326) 2007-12-20 18:58

Olá António,
Que lugar impressionante! Já vi um par de lagos salgados parcialmente ou mesmo quase completamente secos, mas acho que nem no maior deles se consegue ter uma vista tão despida até ao horizonte. Apesar desse grande vazio, conseguiste fazer uma compo bem interessante, usando a pista curvada, a moto e o homem a andar que por coincidência até dá um toque de cor, tanto pela roupa como principalmente pelo turbante amarelo. Só é pena que esteja centrada, se calhar conseguias ter posto a mota e o homem mais para a esquerda. O céu tb. está um bocado ruidoso, mas não é grave.
Um abraço, José.
E Boas Festas e Feliz Ano novo!

faubry (32197) 2007-12-22 1:56

very good capture of this nowhere... i like this curve and the woman are walking.. well done
have a good Christmas
francine

azaf1 (15541) 2007-12-22 9:17

Hello Antonio
It reminds me the films of Aggelopoulo with the minimalist settings and the lonely environment. The note again brings the mood of the place and it is very informative as well.
Best wishes for the Holly Days and 2008
regards
Argiris

ruisc_pt (6206) 2007-12-23 7:34

Bela foto.
Também na Tunísia fotografei um "lago salgado" ... que secou há milhres de anos como este.
um pouco granulada ..devrá ter sido das condições da máquina.um ab.
R

mehmetemin (7217) 2007-12-24 0:55

Hi Antonio
Amazing color, great capture... color, light is perfect
Mehmet Emin

Matthew-Watt (4463) 2007-12-26 16:59

Hello Antonio,

It reminds me of my visit to Lake Eyre in South Australia, and as most visitors to the area do, it was when it was bone dry. I like the depth of field created by the immense size of the pan. The sweeping curve breaks up the monotony of the FG plain and helps to emphasize this photo as an original work.

And just to update, I have posted a workshop in your Redcliffe shopping centre photo of another closer view of the peninsula, only the northern half, but I hope you enjoy it. Have a good day.

Matt

trekks (14260) 2007-12-29 2:50

Great shot of this space, just flat to the horizon. Nice to see what you show through your lens, Antonio, because not many will have opportunity to be there in Botswana. Nice view really. TFS

PixelTerror (86026) 2008-01-31 2:23

Hi Antonio,
Amazing place, you filed it under Botswana but it looks strikingly similar to the Salar de Uyuni on the Bolivian altiplano, I guess the only element that makes the difference is the sky that is less pure blue here to to lower elevation. Of course having people in such a lunar landscape always deliver a strange impression of exploring new planets, but indeed this is ours !
Have a nice day JY

smash2707 (2516) 2008-02-15 13:39

Hi Antonio. Great composition of this almost desertic place with the two people and the curve left by the four-wheeled transportation. The pastel sky is a good complement to the white landscape. Regards, Yvonne

Bluejeans (31553) 2008-02-19 10:47

Oi Antonio ,
Parece um deserto de sal tudo branco uma planicie sem fim apenas aquele pequeno monte do lado direito , incrivel como a terra e tão diferente pelas zonas do globo , bom contraste entre o branco e azul , parabéns!!
Um abraço Gonçalo

brevbrev14 (370) 2008-02-27 9:51

Hi Antonio, i like al ot this image...
it is well composed and taken..
it has a cinematic feeling...
very good!
ciao!
Valeria

xuaxo (5635) 2008-02-29 15:50

Olá António,
Como seria de esperar, acho isto muito parecido com uns sítios assim que há na América do Sul (que vi em fotos), ou a Badwater Bassin (também de sal, que vi no Death Valley, California, e que foi dos locais que mais me impressionaram; ainda tenho fotos que hei-de publicar).
Esta foto mostra bem o lugar, mas falta-lhe algum "brilho"; é claro que o sítio não ajuda a tal, e o céu nesse dia também não.
Um abraço,
F

dareco (17024) 2008-04-25 22:36

This looks abit like another planet to me. Very different and a very interesting note to go with it. I'm glad you shared this with us. I see I am WAY behind on your posts....really great pictures!

mafegan (3949) 2009-06-24 3:14

Hi antonio
This seems to be a photo from one of the most desolate locations on this planet - although the tyre tracks might suggest otherwise. Good notes describing a location most of us will never visit. Tfs, Marlene