Photographing Africa
By Jane Otto
Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 09, 2003

A portrait photographer, Lisa Crayford said shooting pictures of animals was different. It required looking and being ready to shoot at all times.

Growing up on the Kadelbach farm, north of Hutchinson, Lisa Crayford never thought her profession would take her to places so far from home. At the end of August, Crayford, a professional photographer, and eight others took a two-week excursion through Kenya, Africa, photographing a world unlike their own.

"It was a real eye-opener," she said.

Three months time didn't dim the 29-year-old Kingston woman's excitement for what she saw and did in such remote regions. Crayford spoke enthusiastically of the people, culture, animals, lodgings and friendships she forged.

With Nairobi as their starting point, the safari took them to Sweetwaters Camp, Samburu National Reserve, Lake Nakuru National Park and Maasai Mara National Reserve where they watched the wildebeest migration.

"Safari is Swahili for journey," Crayford said. For Crayford, it was a journey like no other.

A trip presents itself
The idea for the trip began when Sue Dropp, Crayford's good friend and former employer, was perusing some junk e-mail. A mouse click took her to wildlife photographer Gary Kramer's Web site.

Kramer, whose work has appeared in National Geographic, sponsors annual trips to Africa to provide people unique photographic opportunities. "He takes people with him to help pay his way -- pretty smart," Crayford said.

Dropp, also a photographer, e-mailed Kramer.

After 1 1/2 years of preparation, an eight-hour flight to Amsterdam followed by another eight-hour flight to Nairobi, Crayford, along with three friends, found herself in Kenya, Africa. Packed among her few clothing items were more than 50 rolls of film -- 100 and 200 speed and black and white for zebras -- and several cameras.

Since 1990, Kramer has orchestrated safaris. He took care of everything -- from the lodging and photographic shoots to ensuring their vehicles worked.

The itinerary
This wasn't a leisurely vacation. At 5:30 a.m., the group was up and on the road. The group logged approximately 600 miles on deteriorating dirt roads.

Crayford laughed when she recalled those roads. "The roads were awful," she said. "Huge pot holes -- bad, bad, bad, bad, bad."

Once they reached that day's destination, Crayford and the others would document on film the animals up until that time they had only seen in zoos. The game reserves covered thousands of acres of land and many varieties of animals from lions, giraffe, leopards and impala to topi, gazelle, hippopotamus and cheetahs.

Prior to her trip, Crayford's image of Africa was animals roaming the great Serengeti. "Like what you see on National Geographic shows," she said. "I had no clue beyond that."

Some areas, Crayford said, resembled Minnesota, other were much like Hawaii. "I'd never guess I'd see pink flamingos," she said.

Crayford had little trouble using up 50-plus rolls of film.

The early morning hours offered some of the best lighting, Crayford said. "That's also when you see everybody eating -- lots of carnage."

After the morning game run, the group returned to the lodge for a swim, lunch and writing time. Kramer required that journaling be a part of the trip. "I filled the whole book," Crayford said.

After a nap, they were back in the game reserve for the late afternoon hours.

Crayford, a portrait photographer, said capturing animals on film was different. "You want the sun in their face, something you would never want with people," she said. "And, you're really keeping your eyes peeled and looking for animals. Georgie (our driver) was great at that."

Crayford recalled watching thousands of wildebeest struggle to cross the Mara River. She asked their guide why the animals didn't use the bridge. "Ma'am, they have very low IQ," the guide replied.

Following the late afternoon game run, it was dinner at seven, then to bed to begin it again the next day. "We always ate together -- a table of nine," she said.

The lodging
The lodges were "very westernized," Crayford said. "They knew how to cater to Americans." Due to terrorists alerts, Crayford's group had been the first Americans to visit the region in three months.

Lions were a bigger concern in Kenya than terrorists.

Two electrical fences surrounded the lodge and guards kept a watchful eye at night. "They were to keep the lions out," Crayford said. "They'd eat us."

Inside those fences, monkeys were everywhere. The tribal folk had sling shots on hand to keep them away from the food. Crayford's group didn't help the monkey problem. "We were always giving them bread and bubble gum," she said. "They liked us."

The people
The people Crayford encountered left an indelible mark. "The people are wonderful, nothing but wonderful," Crayford said.

She recalled a time when her friend, Dropp, needed more videotape. They found a small store where a neatly dressed woman greeted them. She didn't have any videotapes, but knew where some could be had. The woman hopped into their van with Dropp in pursuit of the wanted product entrusting her store to a few members of Crayford's group.

In the Samburu village, they visited the village school. The children sang old kindergarten standards, such as "I'm a Little Teapot," Crayford said. "I don't know if they knew what the words meant."

The school's starkness had such an impact on Crayford, she now wants to raise money through a studio exhibit of her African photos to buy school supplies.

A woman named Margaret served as their guide in the Samburu village. "They all get American names at a certain age," Crayford said.

American clothes were a big part of the children's wardrobe, but Crayford had no idea where they got the clothes. And, they were always clean.

"The women washed in these muddy rivers. I don't know how they got their clothes so clean," she said. "Their clothes were as clean as can be."

The men herd cattle and sheep. The women stay home and take care of the children. Each village typically had one male leader with seven or eight houses, one for each of his wives.

Prickly bushes surrounded the entire village to keep out unwanted predators and the cattle stay inside the village at night. By morning, cattle droppings were everywhere, but the women cleaned up everything. That was an "eye opener" for Crayford.

Life is simple there, Crayford said. Income is garnered from trading cattle and goats and selling beaded jewelry to visitors. They sleep on cow hides and share their homesteads with any small sick animals that require nursing.

The houses were void of any furnishings or clothing. That puzzled Crayford. "I couldn't figure out where they kept their clothes," she said.

Going home, going back
More than once, the Kenyans thanked them for coming, Crayford said. "A Nairoba man came up to us and said, ‘Thank you for coming to our country' and asked if we felt safe," she recalled.

At the two week's end, Crayford felt tired and ready to return. "Two weeks was a long time ... I was ready to go."

She brought only a few clothing changes and was relegated to washing them in the shower. "When I took a shower, so did my clothes," she recalled with a laugh. "So, we were a little stinky at the end."

Crayford has India slated for 2005 and another trip to Africa is definitely in her future.

An African exhibit
A photographic exhibit of Lisa Crayford's Kenyan safari is displayed at the St. Cloud Public Library and in January and February will be at the Centra Care Clinic in St. Cloud.

Crayford plans to have a slide show in March at her Kingston studio.

For more information, call Crayford's studio, Country Gallery, at (320) 398-6250 or (866) 275-1940.

To learn more about wildlife photographer Gary Kramer, visit his Web site at www.garykramer.net.