October Essay - Masai mara, Cheetah

It’s not until you leave the Masai Mara that you realise what a spell it puts on you. In my case, the morning after my return, I was on an early drive to the lowveld of South Africa. Spring was in the air, the temperature was mild, and I was heading back into the bush with the wheels of the Landy humming away underneath me. It was a perfect time to reflect on my last week and tour to the Mara: Our location was perfect, the game viewing had been great and the photos were, well, just excellent.

It’s hard not to take clichéd images of the Mara. The place has been so well covered by many very good photographers over the years that one can almost tell where each image was taken. So working there as a photographer can be tough, as all your images can seem generic and “done”.

But some images of the Mara are iconic.
These are the ones that have come to symbolise the region via its special characteristics, moods, and features of the landscape. Indeed, images of the crossings of the Mara River are exactly that. An icon of the region.

Another icon of the Mara is the cheetah; my favourite animal. Seeing it at play in the early morning on the open plains is something one does not forget in a lifetime. The scene of a cheetah, standing proud on a fallen log is also one of those classic Mara scenes. No matter how many times you see it, its one that gives you that feeling of an open wilderness, untouched. It’s an image I have been wanting for years.

So when this scene happened upon us one morning, it was a frenzied few seconds in which we stopped the vehicle, frantically pulled out the cameras and fired off a handful of images to record this scene. The whole thing took perhaps 5 seconds. It felt like years, it was beautiful and I felt privileged.

Back in South Africa, the Landy was humming up the Abel Erasmus pass, one of this countries most beautiful drives. My thoughts wandered again back to the Mara. At that moment one of Ben Harpers songs started playing on the iPod. The pass climbed steeper; I dropped a gear, opened up the window and let the wind blast in on my face as I overlooked the open valleys below.

Suddenly it all just fell into place.
The songs title was “Blessed to be a witness”.

Exposure information
Nikon D700 - 200-400mm lens
Exposure – f 7.1 Shutter Speed: 1/320sec
Exp. Comp. 0 EV
ISO - 400
Flash - none
Exposure mode– Aperture priority, Metering Mode– Matrix
File type– NEF (RAW)
Beanbag support in vehicle

This article first appeared on shemimages.com