Photos from My Trip to Madagascar
If you’re planning your next vacation and want to visit an exotic island full of natural splendor and a stunning mix of wildlife and plant species, consider Madagascar.
The Republic of Madagascar is in the Indian Ocean, approximately 250-miles off the coast of East Africa across the Mozambique Channel. After Indonesia, Madagascar is the world's second-largest island country and the fourth biggest island on earth. If you follow my Instagram page @MarthaStewart48, you may know my family and I recently spent 10-days in Madagascar. We stayed at Miavana, a resort on a remote private island off the mainland, and took daily excursions by helicopter. We saw a host of animals - lemurs, chameleons, turtles, non-poisonous snakes, and colorful insects. We enjoyed delicious seafood including a yellowfin tuna caught, cleaned, and dressed by my grandson, Truman; and, we flew over interesting and diverse terrain. During the trip, our photographer and guide, Marlon Du Toit of Tanda Africa Safari Co., captured the most stunning photographs using the latest in Sony equipment, including the 70-200mm F2.8 G Master Lens. This new lens is light, fast, and takes optically superior images. My granddaughter, Jude, and I loved using it. If you also enjoy photography, try it out - you'll love it too.
Enjoy these photos.
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- Here is a view from our plane as we neared the island nation of Madagascar. The coastline was very sharp, the clear sea waters choppy, but the lush green landscapes were so beautiful.
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- We all took many photos. Marlon Du Toit, who guided our excursions, is an excellent photographer. He uses a Sony camera and a Sony 70-200mm F2.8 G Master Lens. The images are so crisp and clear. Here is one of the Tsingys. Tsingys are plateaus in which groundwater has undercut the elevated uplands, creating caverns and fissures into the limestone. These Tsingys are grey in color and the edges, incredibly sharp. They are said to have formed more than 150-million years ago – an incredible sight to see!
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- We explored several northern areas by helicopter and came across sights like this magnificent waterfall. Marlon says, “it almost makes one want to stop for a swim, but one has to remember that Madagascar is home to almost 20,000 Nile crocodiles.” (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- The Tsingy Rouge, the red rocks of Northern Madagascar, is among the most stunning formations of “rocks” on the planet. What looks like rock is actually the erosion of soil. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- In Malagasy, which is the principal language spoken in Madagascar, the word tsingy means “walking on tip toes” or “the place where one cannot walk barefoot.” (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- Madagascar has nine species of Baobab, medium-to-large deciduous trees. Six of them grow only in Madagascar. These trees are instantly recognizable, especially from a helicopter. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- This is a Golden-Crowned Sifaka lemur. These lemurs are known to be some of the rarest primates. We were able to get pretty close, but Marlon’s camera captured stunning details. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- Here’s another Golden-Crowned Sifaka we saw feeding. They will feed actively during the midday hours, before returning in the evening to their roost. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- This is a beautiful male panther chameleon, brilliantly colored in bold green and dark brown, Males also have a broken white stripe that goes down the length of its body. The panther chameleon is a species of chameleon found in the eastern and northern parts of Madagascar in a tropical forest biome. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- Flatidae is a family of fulgoroid planthoppers. These crawling creatures will soon turn into beautifully colored moths clinging to the branches of many forest trees in Northern Madagascar. The Sony lens excels in difficult lighting conditions – these creatures are so clear, even while moving. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- These are adult Flatidae, commonly known as Flat-lid Leaf Bugs. These have brightly colored forewings, which are tougher and known as tegmina. The membranous hindwings are used for flight. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- This is seaweed drying on top of specially made nets. This village, which is about 10-minutes away from Miavana by helicopter, grows seaweed as a form of revenue. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- This woman proudly displays the labors of her work. Her seaweed will ultimately leave her village and be sold to the cosmetic industry. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- Here is a common sight across parts of Africa – women balancing all sorts of objects, from buckets to firewood, on top of their heads. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- A green turtle came up in the late afternoon to lay her eggs in the vegetation in front of a villa at Miavana. Here is her head popping up from the foliage. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- Once she is done laying, she rests for a few moments to recover and then immediately heads back down the beach and into the ocean. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- This Sony lens is also excellent in zoom. The turtle was actually several feet away. Green turtles nest every two years, with wide year-to-year fluctuations in numbers of nesting females. They also nest between three to five times per season and each time laying an average of 115-eggs. The eggs then incubate for about 60-days. (Photo by Marlon Dutoit)
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- And here I am back home in front of my Winter House with my own new Sony Alpha 7R V Camera and Sony 70-200mm F2.8 G Master Lens. It’s so nice, sharp, and fast-working. My 12-year old granddaughter, Jude, and I both share a passion for photography and love to try the latest models. We’ll both get a lot of use out of this terrific camera – I can’t wait. Thanks, Sony. On Instagram @sonyalpha. #sonyalpha, #giftfromSony
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