New Print Release: ‘Born Wild’
Having consistently strived to photograph his wild subjects from within 10ft, ‘Born Wild’ is the most intimate portrait of a wild lion William has ever managed to capture.
The Story - In William’s Words
Throughout my work I have always tried to photograph my wild subjects from within 10 meters and crucially, always by hand.
This meant to get a shot like this, with the animal silhouetted against the stormy sky, I was going to have to get as close as I thought safely possible to a wild lion. No easy task.
Taken in the Serengeti, one of Africa’s largest national parks, we spent days around this male lion, sometimes staying close for hours at a time, others leaving him well alone. Eventually we saw him start to mate with a lioness, a process the lions perform on and off for several days, we knew we had a window.
One of the many images from my time waiting for ‘the moment’.
Almost time - once they’d mated I knew I had a 5 second window
Anderson Kale, my exceptional guide, suggested we wait for the couple of seconds just after they’ve mated when he’ll stand tall and survey the area around him for competitors, before slumping in a heap.
We watched and we waited (somewhat anxiously) until, as predicted, they finished mating and he stood proud, giving us just enough time to manoeuvre the car in to position and as I frantically composed the shot he opened his mouth wide, showing me every tooth this tough old boy still had - and sending a wave or two down my spine - gave me the shot I had been waiting for. Although even this is far beyond the expectations I had had.
Namiri Plains in the Eastern Serengeti.
Anderson Kayle, the man behind the ‘Born Wild’ plan.
A huge thanks must go to Anderson Kayla, the man who made the image possible. Without him I would have had nothing. An equal thank you to all the team at Asilia’s Namiri Plains. It is by far one of the best camps I’ve stayed at (out of dozens if not hundreds). The team were outstanding and I’d recommend it to anyone travelling to Africa in a heart beat. We even have an exciting Armstrong Fortescue idea lined up.
This image is named after the late, great conservationist, Tony Fitzjohn and shares the name with his inspiring autobiography ‘Born Wild’.
Print Sizes (inches):
Small (Edition of 10): 32 x 24”
Standard (Edition of 5): 48 x 33”
Large (Edition of 3): 72 x 50”
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Tony Fitzjohn, a man wilder than any lion. Image by Guillaume Bonn.
