The black-maned lion (Panthera leo) is almost peculiar to the Kalahari area of Botswana. We were fortunate enough to come upon a pride with the male leader, 5 c...
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The black-maned lion (Panthera leo) is almost peculiar to the Kalahari area of Botswana. We were fortunate enough to come upon a pride with the male leader, 5 cubs, and 4 females. It was barely sunrise and the pride was returning from a nighttime kill of a wildebeest and feed. They were heading in for a well-earned nap. First the big male went ahead to make find a safe resting area, then he called a couple of the cubs to join him, and finally the rest of the pride came and they settled down for a nap. It was one of the most exciting things I've ever seen. At times we were within 30 feet of them in our open-topped vehicle.
The male lion sometimes exceed 550 pounds, making it the second-largest cat after the tiger.
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The male lion sometimes exceed 550 pounds, making it the second-largest cat after the tiger.
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Awards
Zenith Award
Contest Finalist in Wildlife Families Photo Contest
Amateur Winner Animals In The Wild Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Animals In The Wild Photo Contest
Community Choice Award
Contest Finalist in Covers Photo Contest Vol 49
Contest Finalist in The Nature Lover Photo Contest
Peer Award
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
Magnificent Capture
Superb Composition
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Superior Skill
Virtuoso
Genius
Top Ranks
Categories
mcampi
July 22, 2018
OMG Kay your nailed it. What a wonderful capture. I love the little guy looking out.
Brandibaby17
October 08, 2018
My dream to photograph there!! I manifest abundance so I can do just this! Great great photo! Wonderful animals!
UnkleFrank
October 08, 2018
It's always nice to see your work in the contest finalist ward category. My compliments on a well deserved award. Love this shot.
estercastillo08
October 11, 2018
Congratulations !!!! Kay, Won Contest Finalist The Nature Lover Photo Contest , good luck !!
kathymuhle
November 02, 2018
Congratulations Kay! Beautiful photo and well deserved. From your last trip with your brother?
williambennyhawthorne
November 11, 2018
Join the conversation. Add a comment or even better, a critique. Let's get better together!
estercastillo08
November 29, 2018
Congratulations !!! Kay Won Contest Finalist in Cover Photo Contest
p_eileenbaltz
August 24, 2019
Wonderful capture! Congratulations on winning another well-deserved contest finalist award.
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
I spent 2 weeks in Botswana on safari. One morning as we ate breakfast our guide came to tell us a pride of 10 lions had been spotted not far from our lodge. Off we go immediately and spent the morning with the pride. Here you see the male leader. There were also 5 cubs, and 4 females. It was barely sunrise and the pride was returning from a nighttime kill of a wildebeest, heading in for a well-earned nap. First the big male went ahead to make find a safe resting area, then he called a couple of the cubs to join him and have some bonding time. This picture shows that bonding. Finally the rest of the pride came and they settled down for a nap. At times we were within 30 feet of them in our open-topped vehicle. Yikes!Time
SunriseLighting
There was a grass fire burning many miles away which put some smoke in the air, making the sunrise colors muted and pink. Great Golden Hour light as well.Equipment
Canon Mark 5D III and Canon 60D camera bodies. Canon 100-400L telephoto on one body and Canon 24-105L on the other body. My body and the top of the door served as the tripod. The vehicle had no top at all so vision was fabulous. No flash, no tripod, no beanbag. I used one camera, then the other. Both were in my lap and accessible. I knew I had plenty of battery power and media.Inspiration
It was THERE! No question about taking as many as I could.Editing
I always use Adobe Camera Raw to bring the RAW file into my workflow, then open in Photoshop CC. I do minimum processing in ACR because I like the flexibility of Photoshop, ON1, and Topaz software. My workflow (almost) always consists of ACR, Photoshop CC, On1 for an HDR effect if needed, Topaz Denoise AI, Topaz Sharpen AI. I didn't do anything special to this photograph because it was so perfect straight out of ACR. A little cropping, some dodge and burn, color adjustment to make it pop a little.In my camera bag
The equipment I had on this shoot, extra batteries and media, maintenance equipment like lens cleaner and cleaning cloth and blower, remote clicker, lens hoods (always, if only to protect the lens), polarizer filters, neutral density filters. Really Right Stuff tripod and ball head. bean bag.Feedback
Go to Botswana with Mountain Travel Sobek!