Mokoro Parking, a photo from North-West, North

Photographer's Note

The flight from Kasane took 90 minutes and next stop was the Okavango Delta. After meeting our guides and a brief induction by the leading guide on how to behave in the wild we went out exploring the vast waters and islands of the delta. Of course, the mokoro was the only way to go around the shallow waters covered by water lilies and long papyrus grass which grow along the side of the deeper channels were the unpredictable hippopotamus stay all day eating and bathing.

The mokoro (mekoros in the plural) is the type of canoe commonly used in the Okavando Delta, in Botswana. The BaYei people came to the Okavango Delta hundreds of years ago, bringing with them, their traditional mode of transport, the mokoro, a dug-out canoe made from a large straight tree such as a sausage tree or an ebony tree. It is ideally suited as transport in the delta as in can move quietly through shallow water, being pushed by the locals using a “ngashi”, name for the long pole made from the mogonono tree, moving along the narrow channels or cutting through the long grasses or papyrus.

The mokoros are very vulnerable to attack by hippopotamus and crocodiles, which can overturn them with ease. Hippopotamus are reputed to have developed this behaviour after the use of mokoros and other boats for hunting.

Modern mokoros, however, are increasingly made of fiberglass. Mokoro safaris are the most popular way for tourists to visit the delta, much of which is in national parks. You and a guide go out from a central safari camp into the narrow waterways. When you reach an island, you get out and walk. Some days you may see few animals. Other days, you will end up so close to an elephant or a lion that you may have to climb a tree for safety. During our three day stay in the Delta we saw lots of wildlife but never came close to any “exciting” situation.

In WS1 you can see one of our guides standing and moving the mokoro with the help of the long pole.

WS2 is a picture of one traditional mokoro and three of the new fiberglass mekoros. As demand for mekoros rose with the increase of tourism, the precious hardwood sausage trees became rare and under threat and conservationists came up with a new mokoro made entirely from fiberglass, which is as good and has all the qualities of the original wooden mokoro.

Floydian, siolaw, dareco, fayeulle, torre, Charo, lucasgalodoido, trekks, delkoo, John_F_Kennedy, cunejo200, zeca, xuaxo, riclopes, Vato_Law, Clementi, ChrisJ, Docarmo, vagabondtravels, paura, cfreire, gervaso, syd1946, gildasjan, kiwi_explorer, MLINES, belido, AiresSantos, stego, Deepforest, brevbrev14, rigoletto, plimrn, bakes888, Flavia, nivaldo, gunbud, aloyho has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Floydian (30970) 2007-11-19 7:52

Hi Antonio,
This is not a photo i would link to that famous location. And although the sky is a bit washed out, i like your high pov which shows a large piece of that area. Those boats in the foreground add a nice focal point, just as the winding river to the left...very nice details.
Regards, Henk

Polonaise (5796) 2007-11-19 7:56

Adorable..
Really adorable, Antonio...

The wide angle is such a joyful toy in the hands of a highly spirited artist...

It allows us to see the things the way we never see thru our eyes !

A charmer of the day

g.

siolaw (37568) 2007-11-19 8:33

Hi Antonio,
Nice POV with the mekoros in Fg really eye catching, and a nice scenery in BG. Atmosphere inducing light and muted colors working well. Nice river meandering in the far...
Interesting WS's too.
Laurent

dareco (17134) 2007-11-19 8:48

I find your note and all three pictures very interesting! This looks like another world to me! What a fantastic experience for you!! I really like the lighting in this picture. TFS

fayeulle (27823) 2007-11-19 9:14

Salut Antonio.
J'ai mis 13h par la route entre Kasane et Maun à travers le Kalahari poussiérieux. C'est bien l'avion !
Tu as eu de la chance si tu as fait un safari en pirogue à cet endroit merveilleux.
J'aurais bien vu un filtre dégradé pour combattre l'arrière plan un peu blafard.
Amicalement
JP

xavshot (69835) 2007-11-19 10:53

Bonsoir Antonio,
très belle photo. J'aime beaucoup le POV et les teintes de l'ensemble. Une belle profondeur. Les pirogues guident le regard. Bravo.
Xavier

rbcy1974 (20758) 2007-11-19 12:24

Hello Antonio
I like the way the boats are aligned, its very graphic and artistic.
The sky is a bit dull and the photo could use some more contrast though.
Regards
Daniel

torre (931) 2007-11-19 14:27

Olá Antonio. Boa foto e nota. È impressionante a maneira de viver desta gente. Mas é em locais assim que se sentem bem, mesmo sabendo que que ocupam um lugar muito baixo na cadeia alimentar neste lugar.
um abraço
Arlindo

Charo (51174) 2007-11-19 14:59

Hola Antonio,
Un singular aparcamiento, si señor.
Excelente encuadre con mucha profundidad.
Me gustan mucho tus fotos de Africa.
Cordialmente
Charo

lucasgalodoido (21030) 2007-11-19 15:52

Olá Antônio!
Esse estacionamento de canoas é interessante, só faltou um sinal de trânsito, hehe! A paisagem ao fundo também é muito bonita!
Parabéns e Abraço!

trekks (14348) 2007-11-19 16:54

Hi Antonio
Great shot providing a good view, the boats so small and narrow bodied. The scene is peaceful, well composed. TFS
cheers
bill

delkoo (68) 2007-11-20 2:22

hi antonio,
i am very attracted by the small boats (mekoros) on the foreground, it guide the glance into the photo,

well done
didier

John_F_Kennedy (41368) 2007-11-20 3:11

Beautiful. The light is great and the colours very soft. There's such a wonderful atmosphere in this image. Well done
Best wishes,
Achim

cunejo200 (7281) 2007-11-20 4:07

Hello Antonio,
Well I did learn something today. Your beautiful photo along with your well written Note is tremendously what this site is all about - learning through photography. Awesome! Greetings, Danilo

zeca (19762) 2007-11-20 4:24

Olá Antônio!
A paisagem é muito bonita e foi muito bem enquadrada com estas toscas canoas em primeiro plano lhe dando profundidade. Aliás, as canoas são a grande atração neste cenário tão bem retratado.
Abraços,
Zeca

xuaxo (6830) 2007-11-20 5:48

Olá António,
Magnífico trio de fotos. Esta é a mais interessante, com as canoas apontando na direcção dos pequenos "canais".
Os fiberglass mekoros até parecem de madeira, pelo menos na foto.
Um abraço,
F

riclopes (35567) 2007-11-20 6:45

Olá António, este tipo de cenas foram a minha perdição no Laos, especialmente onde para além de canoas, havia bastante actividade humana. Claro que lá não se chamam mokoros e não são bem iguais a estes, mas a situação cénica é semelhante. Excelente nota e interessante questão relativamente à substituição pelos de fibra. Gosto muito da que tiraste com o vosso guia, se bem que esta é mais indicada para post principal. A disposição em 1º plano é atraente e só tenho pena de não ver ali um nativo a saltar para um deles ;-)
ricardo

vincz (19099) 2007-11-20 8:21

What an interesting parking. perfectly set for a beautiful composition. The light is excellent. very well seen.

Vato_Law (12718) 2007-11-20 12:57

Olá António,
Excelente uso da grande angular para dar uma grande sensação de espaço à foto.
São interessantes estes 'Makoros' e preenchem de forma muito agradável a frente da foto enquanto que por trás a paisagem parece querer espalhar-se pela foto.
A luz frace é muito bonita.
Só encontro aqui um pequeno defeito que é a linha de horizonte parecer estar a cair para a direita a partir do meio da foto.
Um abraço.
Paulo

Clementi (52511) 2007-11-20 13:44

Ciao Antonio ,
that beautiful sight of these parked canoes.
superb ligth and good colors .well done
Giorgio

devimeuxbe (58557) 2007-11-20 19:48

Hi Antonio
this is an interesting vision of this small harbour in the grass. You also get a beautifull light.
I like it
Bertrand

Docarmo (9639) 2007-11-20 21:19

Olá António,
As três imagens estão excelentes, com boa informação na nota. A principal apresenta uma composição particularmente interessante.
Você está contribuindo enormemente para o conhecimento dos membros do TE.
Obrigada por partilhar.
MC

Giorgio (11263) 2007-11-21 0:11

- Excellent bird's-eye point of view on this funny parking, really typical, these meanders of the backwater still bring one more, in any case, cheers!
giorgio

ChrisJ (86876) 2007-11-21 0:24

Ola Antonio

Splendid repetition of the fg canoes, in this superb daily life shot, with excellent sharpness & pov. Good colour & composition. Tfs!

barrufeto_77 (28876) 2007-11-21 0:29

Hi Antonio.

Nice view. There's a little problem in the sky I think but is not really important.

Excellent depth too!

Rgs, Oscar

vagabondtravels (6505) 2007-11-21 1:37

Hi Antonio

Great comp. I really like the repetition of the boats. Reall good depth. Very beautiful place you have catpured here. Well done.
Ben

paura (47166) 2007-11-21 2:27

António,
Beleza de trabalho, com composição esmerada e excelentes ajustes fototécnicos. Os barquinhos são muito curiosos.

Abraço

Paulo

cfreire (11739) 2007-11-21 5:52

Oi, Antônio.
As imagens, todas, estão ótimas. Muito interessante conhecer estes aspectos de terras tão distantes. Gostei da perspectiva e reflexos dos barcos. A nota está excelente. Bom trabalho, um abraço, Consuelo

archimatica (19980) 2007-11-21 15:18

This is another picture with great pov and nice scenary.
In questi luoghi si respirano arie antiche di secoli.
regards
Renzo

Scharan (14144) 2007-11-21 16:53

Olá Antonio

Simples, bonita e interessante esta foto. Bonitas cores e bem naturais. Bom trabalho, meu amigo.
GA
Vera

gervaso (8043) 2007-11-21 19:03

Uma simples mas bela composição! O céu, apesar de parecer meio coberto, ficou interessante com uma tonalidade meio avermelhada. Interessantes também essas canoas!

syd1946 (18663) 2007-11-22 0:31

Hello Antonio,
Love the title:))And the photograph is very beautiful with the mokoros as the subjects that gives another touch to this landscape.I like the special light conditions also...

Have a nice day,
Thomas

gildasjan (38220) 2007-11-22 1:12

Bonjour Antonio
Très belle composition avec ce premier plan de pirogues bien orientées.Un bon choix d'exposition qui retranscrit bien l'atmosphère de l'endroit.
Beau job.
Bonne journée.
Amicalement
Gildas

kiwi_explorer (12209) 2007-11-22 1:24

Hi Antonio,
Placing the mokoro in the FG certainly made this compo more interesting visually especially being group together. Don't tell me you took your tour using these canoes ... that would really be an adventure. Judging from the outlying swamp landscape, it makes sense to build these kayaks in such a slender fashion. Well captured and composed. Excellent work! tfs
Cheers,
Renier

MLINES (12516) 2007-11-22 2:33

Hi Antonio. A fine composition oflife away from civilization. Good colours and larity with interesting notes about this area. TFS. Murray.

belido (19934) 2007-11-22 2:39

Olá Ribeiro,

gosto muito do aproveitamento de luz do momento para uma imagem de cores naturais e de tons escuros que reforçam os detalhes que vão das canoas à vegetação ao fundo. A disposição desses elementos no primeiro plano nos convida à um passeio por essas águas. Bela imagem!
Abraço,
Carlos

jurek1951 (35765) 2007-11-22 20:59

Hi Antonio,
Truly amazing landscape
Very well composed and captured photo. Great color, details and light.Very well done
Georg

dvlazar (6644) 2007-11-22 21:03

Antonio -
A well framed landscape of this unique area - and I like the boats at the foreground taking the main focus.
Nice shot,
David

AiresSantos (56155) 2007-11-22 22:01

Ola António,
Esta perspectiva esta muito interessante. Os barcos parecem minusculos...não fosse os tambem interessantes trabalhos no WS e eu pensaria que eram miniaturas deste tipo de barcos.
Excelente enquadramento
Um abraço Amigo
Aires

stego (22556) 2007-11-23 18:45

Olá António,
Está esplêndida! A paisagem é fantástica e a sensação de espaço ao olhar para a foto é impressionante. O efeito visual das canoas e dos canais no meio da vegetação está estupendo. Se é certo que o céu está deslavado, até que nem é tão desinteressante por causa daqueles tons de nascer-do-sol(?). Os WS's tb. são interessantes e complementam bem como reportagem. Tb. gosto das compos, especialmente da da "fiberglass mekoros", embora não tenha o impacto da principal.
Um abraço, José.

Deepforest (9260) 2007-11-24 11:39

Hi Antonio,
nice shot and typical landscape of Okavango delta... good atmosphere and amazing colours... impressive note...
Well done. Best regards,
Andrzej

brevbrev14 (140) 2007-11-25 2:28

Hi Antonio,very good image...
the landscape is a beauty, and the typical boats in foreground are perfectly placed..
your note is interesting too
ciao!
Valeria

rigoletto (30478) 2007-11-25 15:36

Ola Mr. Ribeiro,
An interesting place to see, the mokoro parking :)
Very well arranged cadrage and nice, soft tones of light makes this one a delicious photo.
Thanks to you for sharing those details of life, which i could never see anywhere else...
Cheers,
Deniz

plimrn (21344) 2007-11-25 17:08

Ola QAntonio,
Great framing with those slender vessels scattered like a child's toys in the immensity of this vast delta. Amazing to think of traveling through these channels with the hippo and crocs in such a fragile vessel. I was just thinking today about how well you had done after dousing your camera at the beginning of the trip. What a splendid trip; you really did it all!! You are a fortunate man to have such a brave wife.
SAA, Pat

bakes888 (18499) 2007-11-25 22:31

Hi Antonio. Must be a difficult place to get around being half water and half land. Great photo. You have caught the light well and have wonderful warm tones in this shot. Well composed also. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.

Flavia (10352) 2007-11-26 5:03

Oi Antonio,

Ia morrer de medo de trombar com um crocodilo ou hipopotamo. Vc é mt corajoso! Que linda série de fotos vc trouxe de Botswana.Gosto muito da composicao desta qui, colocando as embarcacoes como 'setas' a apontar a bela paisagem, o que nos convida ao passeio pelo delta.

Abracos,

Flavia

isa92 (128) 2007-11-28 10:48

Bonsoir Antonio,
Merci de nous faire partager par cette image, une vue d'un "parking" de pirogues. En général, les parkings ne sont souvent pas très photogéniques mais là c'est tout à fait différent et très original.
Isa92

Bluejeans (64239) 2007-11-29 14:13

Oi amigo ,
Que bela paisagem , muito interessante estas canoas alinhadas , o trabalho que deva dar para remar nestas aguas cheias de erva , gostei muito das cores , goste muito dos Ws ,parabens!!!!
Um grande abraço
Gonçalo

nivaldo (15415) 2007-12-02 6:26

A natureza mostra a sua beleza sob várias facetas!
Um lindo cenário, uma pintura!
Parabéns, Antonio.
Um abraço,
do verão recifense,
Nivaldo

gunbud (34052) 2007-12-02 18:14

Hello Antonio,
Lovely cpture of these sleek water craft that transported you and your group through this magnificent delta. Very clear colors and excellent details with plenty of depth to this wild river landscape. Very interesting note about the abundant wildlife in this area.
Regards, Tom

Angshu (51174) 2007-12-03 19:51

Hello Antonio
I like how you composed the shot with the alignment of the mekoros quite symmetrical & graphic. The light is nice & warm & I have no problems with the sky, which also has a nice pinkish hue. Your WSs are interesting as well especially the one where the guide pushes the mokoro through the glades using the pole. A great note & an excellent set of photos.
Regards
Angshu

aloyho (6705) 2008-01-10 23:57

Hi Antonio,
I am particularly impressed by the rich and matured colours that you are able to capture here. It is most attractive and pleasing to the eyes. The boats are well positioned and your viewpoint allowed me to enjoy the lovely scene ahead while the patches of water make it very attractive. Well done!!

Regards and a great 2008.

Photo Information

Copyright: Antonio Ribeiro (ribeiroantonio) (22618)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2007-09-03
Categories: Daily Life, Nature, Transportation
Camera: Canon EOS30D, Canon EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS-USM, Hoya 77mm HMC Cir-Polarizer
Exposure: f/2.8, 1/30 seconds
More Photo Info: view
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Travelogue: Southern Africa
Date Submitted: 2007-11-19 7:47
Favorites: 1 [view]