Jay Roode

Spectacular landscapes of Namibia. The Witteberge surrounded by the orange dunefields of the Namib desert. These views can only be truly appreciated from the seat of a helicopter. The vastness takes one's breath away.

For photo tips, unique destinations, conservation stories and photo safaris subscribe to my newsletter on www.jayroode.com. Link in bio.

One of life's greatest experiences is to sleep under the wing of a bushplane in the middle of the Namibian wilderness. Those starry evenings and tawny desert sunrises are inexplicably beautiful.

As part of the incredibly passionate and dedicated team from Vultures Namibia we flew into Damaraland and based ourselves north of Puros on a sandy strip next to the Hoarusib river ....a perfect location for the start of an aerial Lappet-faced vulture survey of the region.

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“The Bushmen in the Kalahari Desert talk about the two "hungers". There is the Great Hunger and there is the Little Hunger. The Little Hunger wants food for the belly; but the Great Hunger, the greatest hunger of all, is the hunger for meaning...
There is ultimately only one thing that makes human beings deeply and profoundly bitter, and that is to have thrust upon them a life without meaning.
There is nothing wrong in searching for happiness. But of far more comfort to the soul is something greater than happiness or unhappiness, and that is meaning. Because meaning transfigures all. Once what you are doing has meaning, it is irrelevant whether you're happy or unhappy. You are content - you are not alone in your Spirit - you belong.”

Laurens van der Post

Photograph of Sir Laurens Van Der Post, with a Bushman in the Kalahari Desert.

An incredible journey....

European Roller — miniature backpack traces a remarkable migration Where do birds stop to rest during their roughly 10,000km journey between South Africa and Eurasia? BirdLife South Africa tracked two European Rollers to find out.

Pafuri Tented Camp by is situated on the banks of the Levuvu river within the vast and remote wilderness in the far north of the Kruger National Park. This section of Kruger is home to the largest fever tree forest in the world, with thousands of yellowish-green fever trees extending seemingly without end into the distance.

These ethereal ghost trees seem to shimmer and glow as if with their own internal light source. Monkeys chatter from the branches, the haunting call of a Bou Bou shrike echoes through the forest, and animals wander through dwarfed by the towering trunks. This is a magical place that seems to have been imagined in some fantastical fairy story.

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Far in the northern Kruger, as the road winds down into the Luvuvhu River Valley, the landscape changes, and Baobabs start dominating the skyline. The Pafuri is a place that whispers of a forgotten time and is a place of great silence and ancient space.

Here, the ground is littered with artifacts from our early ancestors, stone tools and shards of pottery, relics from the ancient settlement of Tulamela.

This is also a triumphant space for the Makhuleki people that were forcibly removed in the late 1960s and, when receiving the land back under the new dispensation, decided to dedicate the land to tourism and conservation.

The Baobabs slowly growing from seed to sapling and eventually to a floral behemoth, have witnessed it all, the soft flow of space and time, the ebb and flow of existence.

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Highlights from our latest six day Botswana safari. It was an epic safari from beginning to end, filled with wild encounters, electrifying moments, laughter and new friendships formed!

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Just loving this beautiful series of large format fine art limited edition prints ordered by a collector. The Shores of the Skeleton Coast, Okavango Moments, The Colours of Salt and Cattle Herders of the Boteti River.

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Canon EMEA Pro Canon South Africa

Beautifully printed by Ballam Ink

" It was as if he had two faces, one of utmost calm, one of furious action; and he wore both with ease. He was able to sit in silence for hours without moving a muscle, then fly like a raging storm into battle, returning again to perfect calm when the fight was over." Kaoru Kurimoto

We found these two cheetahs and their mother on top of a kopjie overlooking the northern plains of Mashatu late one afternoon. In the last luminous light of day, we managed to get a few shots of them gazing over a landscape bathed in dusky pink. Another spectacular safari moment.

Canon EOS R5 f/5.6 1/80 ISO 600

For more photo tips, unique locations, and conservation stories, subscribe to my newsletter on www.jayroode.com link in bio.

Thanks to Mac, our guide for always getting us to the right place at the right time. With

We just returned from another incredible Botswana safari that was jam packed with sensational big cat sightings...including this magnificent leopard that we spotted on the banks of the Majale River. We tracked her for half an hour until she dissapeared into the approaching night.

Canon EOS R5
f/6.3 1/80 ISO 320

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Thanks to guide Mercson Segokotlo for always getting us to the right place at the right time and to Simone Amorico and crew for an incredible week!

Mashatu Game Reserve Canon EMEA Pro Africa, this is why I live here Canon South Africa

Flying in Africa is never boring.... here we have the giraffe mandatory preflight inspection service .e.s.c.u.e with 🤭

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Flamingos over the indescribable San Sebastio lagoon in Mozambique. This image forms part of the Monsoon Collection...and aerial exploration of one of the most pristine coastlines on earth.

A beautiful large format print off to Italy!

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Canon South Africa Canon EMEA Pro

A tower of giraffe, a journey of giraffe, let's get creative... what about an Eiffel of giraffe? Whatever the collective noun, giraffe are some of my most favourite animals to photograph. Their elegance, gentle gaze and open curiosity make them a joy to photograph and have created some of my most favourite fine art prints.

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Aerial photography at its most surreal.
A strangely protozoan scene; like gazing into an enormous petri dish, the vast salt pans of northern Etosha are transformed into a labyrinth of multi hued waterways after unseasonable rains. Namibia

Another beautiful large format print heading up to a lodge in Namibia.

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As a rather eccentric teenager, I used to sleep with Keith Coats Palgraves Trees of Southern Africa book next to my bed. My exasperated mother would complain that she couldn't get into my room because the floor and the windowsills were covered in containers of sprouting Acacias, Albizias, Schotia's, Kigellias and other fantastic species I had grown from seed, all found on our rambles through the Lowveld.

I have always had a love affair with African botany, and anyone who knows me will attest that I go weak at the knees at the sight of a beautiful tree.

Here, at a spectacular lookout over the Majale River in stands a sturdy young Baobab... maybe a couple of hundred years old. I wonder what it will witness over the next two or three thousand years of its possible existence on this planet?

Swahili Shores....another beautiful large format print rolling off the press bound for a collector in Boston USA!

Swahili shores forms part of the Monsoon Collection, a series of spectacular aerial images taken along the east African coastline.

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In lieu of the tragedy that occurred this week in Kafue, where a tourist lost her life when an elephant overturned the safari vehicle. I would like us all to ponder that while incidences like this occur occasionally, it is most definitely not the norm. Each day, thousands of tourists throughout Africa enjoy beautiful interactions with these gentle giants. Spending time with wild elephants is an experience that is utterly transformative and one I never grow tired of.

Let us focus on this blissful scene in of a herd of elephants with their young, peacefully walking past a game drive vehicle on a perfect African morning.

One of the most mesemerising wildernesses on earth, the Okavango Delta is a safari destination of a lifetime. A scenic flight at dawn is a beautiful way to see the colours and textures of this spectacular wildlife paradise.

For photo tips, conservation stories, and unusual destinations, join my newsletter at www.jayroode.com

Scenes from the Wild Coast of South Africa last night.
The sky aflame in a fiery glow, a psychedelic blase of color in all directions. These are the moments when the only reaction is to stand quietly in gratitude, heart open to the beauty of this indescribable planet we call home.

I am thrilled to have been on the judging panel for the Welgevonden Game Reserve Photographic Competition this year.

The competition was fierce with many sensational entries of this incredibly diverse game reserve. A well deserved congratulations to the winners 🏆

Visit the Welgewonden page to see all the highly commended images that missed winning by a hairs breadth.

Two dhows sail the turquoise waters and sea grass meadows of the Bazaruto.

Sein net fishermen prepare to haul in their catch from the shore.

Behind the scenes... Bazaruto from above

Large format fine art prints available. Monsoon Collection.

www.jayroode.com


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Fishermen and their sein nets - Bazaruto Archipelago. Mozambique.

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In studio...

Aquarius | 180 x 120 cm fine art, limited edition print purchased by a private collector in Italy.

A small wooden fishing boat sails the sea grass meadows of the Bazaruto Archipelago in Mozambique.

This print is part of the Monsoon Collection that explores the surreal beauty of the East African coastline. www.jayroode.com


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Canon EMEA Pro Canon South Africa

Lioness in the long grass.
The Okavango Delta is crisscrossed with animal pathways, some made by lechwe, others by hippo ans buffalo. Here, a lioness uses one of them to her advantage.

This image is part of the collection to be found in my large format coffee table book, which explores southern Africa from above. To see more, visit www.jayroode.com or www.hphpublishing.co.za

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It's always a thrill to see my book Aerial Art on the shelves .r_tambo_airport
Producing this book under the expert eye of from has been an absolutely life changing experience and incredibly fulfilling.

To purchase a signed copy of Aerial Art visit www.jayroode.com or www.hphpublishing.co.za

Publishing

Leopard day dreams in the enormous boughs of a Mashatu tree in