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LION hiding

We heard him roar and started searching for him. We gave up and turned around slowly... Then we saw him lifting up his head while he started roaring again. A sp...
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We heard him roar and started searching for him. We gave up and turned around slowly... Then we saw him lifting up his head while he started roaring again. A spine chilling sound. He went down again behind the tiny bush in the tall grass. If we did not know where to look for him, we would not have known about his presence. We sat waiting and watching. We do not know what bothered him, ticks or ants, but he was scratching his mane and face... Then he looked up, very annoyed, as if blaming us for him being spotted. He got up and stared walking to the waterhole, roaring while walking from time to time. Very special moment
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Canon EOS R6

settings

Aperture 11/1 ISO 640 Shutter 1/200 Focal Length 800/1

upload_date

Jun, 2023

Views

553

Likes

+157

Awards

Honorable Mention in Giant Beasts Photo Contest

Featured

Peer Award

+202

Top Choice

+18

Absolute Masterpiece

+13

Superb Composition

Outstanding Creativity

Top Ranks

Top 30 rank

Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken near Polentswa wilderness camp in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, on the Botswana side of the border with South Africa. At the campsite, there is a wooden A-frame with a slab of concrete for shelter against the sweltering heat of the African sun. Sometimes on arrival at the campsite, you might find lions sleeping on the cool slab, with cubs playing around. Moments like that, is special, yet dangerous ... we have to stay in our vehicles until they decide to leave and only then we can pitch our tents. We prefer to sleep in rooftop tents on top of our vehicles in this unfenced camp. What a life! Absolutely incredible.

Time

We arrived the previous day and scanned every bush and every mound for signs of any cats, yet could not see any. That night, after an early braai by the camp fire, we went to bed, listening to the night sounds around us. At about 5 am, I heard him roar. The roar of a lion stirs your soul, the adrenaline starts pumping and sleep was no longer an option. On the dot 7 am, we left the camp in search of the lion, which was still roaring from time to time, from the direction of a waterhole. We arrived there, but it was deserted ... nothing moved, not even birds. We sat a while, windows rolled down, and waited and listened. Nothing. We started driving back to our camp, when the lion sat up in the tall grass, and started roaring again. This time, he was about 50 meters from us. The sound goes through your bone, chills running up and down your spine ... and to see him with his head tilted up, letting the grunts out, is mesmerizing. He flopped down after one full roar with the final grunts, as if there was nothing. How can a lion disappear so quickly and hide in tall grass? He chose the small patch of bush to hide in and it worked! We sat there, watching him for probably 10 minutes. He must have had a problem with ticks or ants, as he later sat up and scratched himself, shake his and looked very uncomfortable. After he realized that we did spot him, he got up, and walked to the waterhole, while roaring. Magnificent. He kept on calling and walked away, stopping from time to time to listen for an answering call.

Lighting

The sun just came up, it was still dark in patches and the sun quickly turned everything into gold. It is very difficult to take photos of animals in those circumstances, as they just blend into the scene. The camera cannot find focus and there is not enough time to set manual focus on a moving target. At times the lion walked away from us, just a dark, moving patch. Then he would stop, turn with the sun hitting his skin, giving him a perfect glow, yet too far for a photo. Sometimes, we have to put the camera down and just experience and treasure the moment. As with wildlife, the environment is not controlled and one always needs that extra little bit. But I was very lucky to get the shot.

Equipment

I used a Canon R6 camera with a with a RF800 mm Canon F11 IS STM lens and managed to keep Aperture as wide as I could with F/11, as I was worried that the lion was moving, I took a chance with 1/200 shutter speed, and my ISO was 640, I did not want to push it too high and get noise.

Inspiration

Animals are my life. On every safari, no matter how many times I see cats, it gives me so much pleasure to take photos and share that moment with others. This lion looked very irritated that we found him... I think that is why he gave me that "look", got up and walked towards the waterhole. As I had the 800mm lens on my camera, I was not able to take pictures of him when he came closer, I could just watch. The way he walks, lifting his huge front paws turned inwards, the muscles, the lean body... perfect. To sit and watch a lion is an incredible experience, especially when you can do that where the animals can roam free. So close to nature, you experience life around you in a different way.

Editing

I did post-processing in Lightroom Classic. I am still learning and do not know a lot about editing. I did use masks to bring out the light, increased exposure, I did not have to do anything about focus, as the focus seemed good. I think if I would do it again, I would probably be able to do the processing better. But the photo resembles what I saw, and I am quite happy with that. Even the expression on the lion's face.

In my camera bag

I have a R6 Canon camera and bought a RF 100-500mm Canon F4.5-7.1 L IS USM lens that I take everywhere. My second lens is a RF 24-240mm Canon F4-6.3 IS USM lens. I would love to get a second body, I just hope that I might be able to buy one. That is what I really need.

Feedback

I did not expect the lion to get up, thus was not ready. The 800mm is wonderful for that extra reach, but with wild animals, it is risky as you might lose a shot when the animal comes up to you. To change lenses is not ideal. I would suggest to have two camera bodies to switch camera's instead of lenses. A moment is gone in a blink of an eye. I had one shot of the lion sitting up, and then we waited a long time before he sat up again. He was totally hidden in the grass.

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LION hiding

We heard him roar and started searching for him. We gave up and turned around slowly... Then we saw him lifting up his head while he started roaring again. A sp... Read more

Behind The Lens

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We heard him roar and started searching for him. We gave up and turned around slowly... Then we saw him lifting up his head while he started roaring again. A sp...
Read more

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