Ben Wilhelmi

Chimpanzees, Mahale NP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mahale is the best place in the world to observe chimpanzees in perfect conditions! I’m not on anybody’s payroll by the way.

Tanzania, aerial photography

 

Footprints on a salt lake bed, lake Balangida. Of humans, cows and goats I presume.

 

Hippos are having a hard time in the Katavi. They squeeze in the last remnants of muddy pools.

 

Last week a massive bush fire started on Katasunga plain, Katavi park. 80% of that vast plain was black at the time of the picture. The rangers were clueless or lying about the origin of the fire.

 

Mahale, lake Tanganyika, life on the beach. I guess the fishermen have laid out that massive net for fixing the damages.

 

A detail of the Indian ocean near mafia island. It looks like a channel at the shallow bottom.

 

A bit of the shoreline in Pemba island, my favorite island to overfly so far.

 

Siwandu, Selous reserve.

 

Near Mufindi, patchwork of fields.

 

Near Kipili bay, southern part of lake Tanganyika.

Chimpanzees, Tanzania

 

in Mahale NP, western Tanzania.

Having his butt groomed, this young chimp seems to wonder if there is more to life…

 

 

 

 

 

Mahale, Tanzania, chimpanzees on B/W films

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

chimpanzees in mahale, B/W photography

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

chimpanzees, B/W photography, Tanzania

 

all shot on B/W films, Mahale nat’l Park, western Tanzania. The only decent place to see them. Repeat after me. And I’m not on anybody’s payroll. Quite a few cliens had visited the other chimp’s sites and all agree that Mahale was the best location.

nothing sexual here, just plain grooming, an important social interaction.

 

wildlife, Tanzania

 

here is a selection of some wildlife pictures in Tanzania, including some aerials of zebras and wildebeests.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

a chimpanzee in Mahale NP, the unique and best place in the world to spot them.

random pictures in Tanzania and around

 

 

Me having a haircut in South Africa while on a long bicycle trip from Arusha to Cape Town.

 

Tanzania below:

An old weekend bike trip around mount Meru near Arusha.

some difficult passage.

 

My longest flying job in Tanzania, with Flying Medical Service.

Taking a short cut through a 600m high gorge. Watch rocking videos on my Vimeo account.

 

Amazing  encounters with chimpanzees in Mahale.

 

Walking safaris in Katavi.

 

Infrared picture in the Rift valley. Volcano Lengai.

 

Colleague landing in bad weather, Serengeti.

 

Aerial view of the mythical Kilimanjaro at about 20.000 feet high.

chimpanzees, B/W film photography

 

 

Mahale NP, western Tanzania. Grooming is a national pastime for chimpanzees. It creates bonds between individuals, and enforces hierarchy.

 

Poorly healed broken phalange.

 

 

This park, Mahale, is a mountain on the shore of lake Tanganyika. The forest is everywhere and of the tropical type. The chimpanzees might be very close to the visitors but not always in plain sight.

 

 

Typical piggy-back ride.

 

On the rocky river banks.

 

 

My cameras by then 10 years ago (though I still have and use them regularly) were Nikons FM2 and F3. And  a Leica M6 which was my favorite one in the very dark forest since it can be used hand held at really low shutter speeds, like 1/2 sec for me or even 1 sec claim some photographers!

Chimpanzees, Mahale, photography

 

Chimpanzees are fascinating animals, so close to us, socially and physically (98% common DNA after all) no matter what bible extremists might say about evolution. But to get to see such a beautiful specimen…

one might have to walk for hours in a tropical forest. Machete is a common helper for the guide.

 

But sometimes it takes 10 min on a trail like this to spot them. There even have been cases of chimps coming to camps…

 

These chimpanzees in Mahale have been habituated by decades of researchers studying them so they don’t run away. As opposed to Jane Goodall’s approach, these Japanese scientists didn’t interfere, they just watched. In turn visitors can approach safely with risking their life.

 

 

A rare spot where sun goes through the thick canopy. For once I could use comfortably a 100 asa slide film.

 

 

Even when the light looks fine, it is usually not. Look at the long rain drops showing a typical slow shutter speed.

 

We were here waiting for the little stars to come down the branches and drink in the river.

Chimpanzees, Mahale, film photography

 

I’ve said it before but Mahale on lake Tanganyika, western Tanzanian, is the best park to view the chimpanzees in the wild but in excellent conditions. Nomad Safari is the best company for lodging in the park (and I'm not on their payroll anymore). The pictures below were shot with a 135mm lens max. On slide film, the hard way as opposed to digital.

 

Having a rest…

and sneezing! Flu is a killer within great apes by the way. You’re asked to decline the visit if you’re sick.

 

 

 

Nearby the researchers’ camp…

 

this container is quite often (enough to force the guys to abandon it)hammered by a male chimp to assert his message. The power in those limbs is enough to damage the metal wall.

“I got your attention??”

 

Chimpanzees in Tanzania, B/W photography

 

Apparently the best place to spot chimpanzees in good conditions is in Mahale NP, western Tanzania. Other countries will pretend the opposite but what I heard from clients was the difficult transport means, poor accomodations and mostly chimps staying high up in trees.

A beautiful tropical forest and easy-going chimps will come  a few meters away from the few visitors.

 

 

Some of the males look like mini Schwarzeneggers…

 

Flea removal or grooming is a national pastime, and their sense of privacy is not quite the same as ours…

 

I flew about 2 years for a company who ran lodges, camps and aircraft, so I got to spend weeks in a row (up to 6 once, so cool) in the bush, flying clients between camps.

 

All these pictures shot on B/W films.

Chimpanzees, B/W film photography

 

Mahale Nat’l Park, western Tanzania, probably the best place in the world to view the chimpanzees. It’s not only the quality of the sighting but the surroundings, that is mountains, lake and various activities.

So here are some old pictures shot over the many weeks I had spent over there, all on good old B/W films, even some Kodak Tmax 3200 like this one. For the youngsters, they can’t understand that prehistoric way to do pictures.

 

We were supposed to keep a minimum distance but the chimps didn’t know that so we got to be really close, where a 50 or 105 mm lens would be enough.

 

Mahale is a tropical forest, so once in a while the stars would stay in thick foliage but that shouldn’t deter anyone to keep on shooting.

 

 

Not having oral pleasure but tick removal session. Well I think…

 

 

 

These guys are artists at staying at ease on thin ropes.