Sunset Sentinel

The meerkat or suricate (Suricata suricatta) is a small mammaland a member of the mongoose family. It inhabits all parts of theKalahari Desert in Botswana and South Africa. Meerkats forage in agroup with one "sentry" on guard watching for predators while theothers search for food - primarily insects. Sentry duty is usuallyapproximately an hour long. The meerkat standing guard makes peepingsounds when all is well - very cute! If the meerkat spots danger, itbarks loudly or whistles. The meerkat uses its tail to balance whenstanding upright.

When I was in the Makgadikgadi Desert in Botswana last year, one of mymain objectives was to get a shot like this. The first reason is thatI simply adore meerkats, the second reason is that during my researchI found that there are many good shots of meerkats, but none as asilhouette with the sun in the frame. And as silhouettes have becomesomewhat of a trademark for me, I was determined to make this work.

For three days I followed this one group of meerkats to see whichburrows they used (they move from place to place) and where they likedto forage during the day. In order to get the shot I wanted, I neededto know the area, and especially the little hills where they like tostand on. At the end of the day, the group would move back to theirburrows and I needed to be positioned along their way somewhere near asmall hill with a clean background and a clear view of the setting sun.

My first efforts were all in vain; I was in the wrong place, themeerkats were either too early or too late, or the weather was notcooperating. One day there was no sun and the next day the sun was waytoo bright to point a 400mm into. But on the fourth day it all cametogether - I was at the right place at the right time - and so werethe meerkats - and there was some dust in the air that made itpossible to actually look through the viewfinder at the setting sun.This little fellow stood here for only a few seconds and then thewhole group was gone, running towards their burrows. I had just enoughtime to take a few shots.

In a perfect world the tail would be separated from the left leg, butI'm not complaining - it's hard enough in nature photography to getsomething that's different from what's already out there!

Hope you like it.

D2X, AF-S VR 200-400/4.0, 1/640 @ f/8.0, ISO 200, tripod

Marsel- Congratulations on your shot! I wondered on first glance why your paragraphs were so long, but then I read them and understood exactly what you went through.

 

It's great that you kept up with it and perservered, it paid off. The shot and placement of the sun are great. I also like the gradient of tones on the sky and detail of the animal.

 

I don't worry about the legs like you mentioned, doesn't really matter much at all IMHO.

 

Best wishes, Happy Holidays and keep photographing!!!! :)

congrats! this photo is absolutely brilliant!

Really well done! Great capture.

Beautiful, like an iconic shot. Like your story about how the photograph was taken. It proofs that it is hard work to get the shot that you want. And often not to get it, at least that's what happens me a lot of times. Thanks and regards.

Excellent capture, beautiful silhouette, very nice colors

The simplicity of this shot is striking. Lovely warm but highly restricted palette. Amazing detail on the silhouette (eyelashes, tail fur). This one's going in my favorites.

Wow, great moment!

Nice composition, make me wonder what the animal is thinking. Well done.

A beautiful and unique image. Well done (6/7).

 

All the best, Mike

 

Ps. Thank you for sharing the wonderful story that goes with the image.

 

Amazing job, with the tailed story this has more sense, Everything is thanks to the exact moment. Well done. Regards

Another wonderful shot! This one is superb, as good as the Elephant on the falls.