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Wildlife author/photographer visits Darlington
Dec 15, 2008 12:00 AM
By Tannika King - Faculty
African wildlife photographer and author Patsy Smith Roberts spoke to Lower School students on Monday, Dec. 8.
“That evening, we came over to the main campus and had dinner with four of our African students,” said Kandi Riddle, technology coordinator. “They were so kind to come, and Patsy was absolutely thrilled. She fell in love with them and this school. She autographed and left each of them one of her books. It was a great experience for all.”
Smith Roberts’ love for Africa developed more than 16 years ago when she discovered her natural talent for photography during a visit to Kenya. What transpired was a career delighting viewers with thousands of wildlife photographs ranging from her favorite male lions, the “Mombo Boys,” whom she followed for eight years, to tailless warthogs to the exotic kudu. Her photographic imagery also captures the magic of African sunsets and the colorful cultural life of a Botswana village.
Her safari adventures span from Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa and Zimbabwe to her favorite beloved Botswana. The Botswana wildlife of the Okavango Delta, Chobe and Moremi Game Preserves is the setting of the majority of her photographic works. The people and the sound of the Savuti lions call Smith Roberts back to Africa year after year.
In 2001, she began writing. She established Savuti Muti Publishing and published her first book, “Rory, The Adventures of a Lion Cub,” a collaboration with Gillian Cullinan, a South African travel writer for Travel and Leisure. Smith Roberts has since published two other books, “Kabelo, The Adventures of a Giraffe” and her latest work, “Willis the Warthog.”
The books illustrated through her many photographs tell a story with a moral which Smith Roberts hopes to bring meaning to the thousands of children she visits in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida elementary schools. Her presentations are filled with interesting facts about wildlife and Botswana. In addition, she has been a featured speaker at civic events and resorts and her work is displayed at many regional art fairs.
“That evening, we came over to the main campus and had dinner with four of our African students,” said Kandi Riddle, technology coordinator. “They were so kind to come, and Patsy was absolutely thrilled. She fell in love with them and this school. She autographed and left each of them one of her books. It was a great experience for all.”
Smith Roberts’ love for Africa developed more than 16 years ago when she discovered her natural talent for photography during a visit to Kenya. What transpired was a career delighting viewers with thousands of wildlife photographs ranging from her favorite male lions, the “Mombo Boys,” whom she followed for eight years, to tailless warthogs to the exotic kudu. Her photographic imagery also captures the magic of African sunsets and the colorful cultural life of a Botswana village.
Her safari adventures span from Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa and Zimbabwe to her favorite beloved Botswana. The Botswana wildlife of the Okavango Delta, Chobe and Moremi Game Preserves is the setting of the majority of her photographic works. The people and the sound of the Savuti lions call Smith Roberts back to Africa year after year.
In 2001, she began writing. She established Savuti Muti Publishing and published her first book, “Rory, The Adventures of a Lion Cub,” a collaboration with Gillian Cullinan, a South African travel writer for Travel and Leisure. Smith Roberts has since published two other books, “Kabelo, The Adventures of a Giraffe” and her latest work, “Willis the Warthog.”
The books illustrated through her many photographs tell a story with a moral which Smith Roberts hopes to bring meaning to the thousands of children she visits in Georgia, South Carolina and Florida elementary schools. Her presentations are filled with interesting facts about wildlife and Botswana. In addition, she has been a featured speaker at civic events and resorts and her work is displayed at many regional art fairs.
