Andy your pics are beautiful.
Thank you Lisa.
Sorry for the late response, I am currently travelling.
I want to share a little story. Back in December 2007, the D300 just became available, I had to go for a trip to Nairobi. I literally picked up the D300 on the way to the airport and packed a few lenses in my bag - in the hope, that some foto opps might arise. Finishing my duties on Friday afternoon, I had 1 1/2 days to spent until my flight would depart on sunday noon. Instead of staying in the hotel or city, I opted to fly to the Masai Mara with a little Buschtaxi, returning on Sunday at 11am. Given my super short stay at the lodge, I asked if I could get a driver for the full day - and not only the usual morning and evening safari. Henry and I spent all available time out there and it was fascinating to observe, how he read the tracks and found so many great spots and animals in this beautiful area. It was like a never ending dream of impressions and photo opportunities.
One example: On sunday morning, we found a lionesse with her partner nanny and 6 little lion puppies. Together with this lion familiy, we were there for hours - completely alone. I felt privileged to be able to observe and kind of "participate" in the play of the young lions among themselves. Sometimes they approached us and the distance was just a few meters, when they either fell asleep, or started to play.
In the following series are some of the many photos I was able to capture with my (then new) D300. It was indeed a precious time I could not have better hoped and planned for.
This is how we found them. One of the little lions "observed" the close-by valley - exposing his silhouette. It reminded a bit about the scene in the movie The lion king, when Simba was shown his kingdom.
Meanwhile, others had nothing to do, and waited how the day will evolve
Henry told me that the baby lions are approx 3 months old, but watching them how they move, the muscles and the elegant motion, someone could easily imagine why this little animals might later be seen as "kings".
Better together
Sharing observations. One left, one right
Always looking for new things
actively looking
passively looking - adventures might show up by themselves
Even the most dedicated observer needs sometimes a nap
If nothing shows up, playing together is a good substitute
mom was watching to make sure, that all 6 puppies are safe
The lions were so young, that they didn't have claws yet, so climbing on little trees was often a serious challenge - triggering many laughs on our behalf. But if successful, the view was very rewarding.
3 of them - left the conqueror, right on the ground the one who hasn't started yet
Meanwhile, another puppy found some toys to show off
Too demanding for this one - he fell asleep in a moment (and later fell off the tree completely)
Everytime I see the pictures, my memory immediatly jumps back in time and brings this feeling back, what a unique experience in my life these few hours were. Unforgettable.
rgds,
Andy
