Image of the Month August

While cruising on the Chobe River in Botswana on a little boat  I couldnt help but feel like i was in some fairytale like the Jungle Book.  Thick, lush vegetation made it hard to see beyond the river bed, but this in itself was a unique perspective of Botswana. For my Wildlife Photography collection i usually seek an animal standing proud out in the open plaines, but as many big mammals and predators came to the waters edge for a drink, I had a feeling something amazing might happen. For about 2 hours we were drifting and searching all the while heading downstream towards the Zambezi River junction. The little boat floated quietly along.

Suddenly, we saw some movement beneath the surface… Okavango Hippo! These lumber-some beasts are generally far more appealing in the water. Their agility in water makes it easy to understand why they are sometimes depicted in Ballerina-Tutus in cartoons. But when they are submerged they are hard to capture for a great photo as they usually only appear for a wink moment before they disappear under water again.

I peered through the viewfinder of my camera, which was set to shoot. I had to lay down on the wooden planks so as to rest my camera on the boats rim for a low angle. What happened next was an incredibly fortunate coincidence.

With a loud grunting snort cacophony, a gigantic hippo heaved up out of the water so that we could see almost half his body. It seemed like a balloon had inflated.  I was taken by surprise when I thought this special moment was already a potentially great photo opportunity! Then, just as the hippo surfaced, a large bird found its landing perch atop the hippos back.

Like the harmoniousness of an orchestra all the elements came together to produce a wonderful piece of art. My timing and position could not have been better to create this Limited Edition Print: Okavango Harmony.