Photograph of the Month August 2023 – On the Hunt

The photograph of the month for August 2023 comes from my recent South Africa Ground-Level Wildlife Masterclass workshop (Read the Trip Report) and is of a wild Cheetah on the hunt near sunset. This photograph was taken by lying on the ground with a 600mm lens as the cheetah approached my position. The key to this style of photograph is to get as low as possible. It is not enough to simply crouch down or kneel in the grass. To obtain the soft foreground, low angle of view and intimate eye contact, it’s necessary to physically position the lens on the ground and pay close attention to any potentially distracting elements between the photographer and the subject. In this instance, I relocated myself several times until I was happy with the line of site. It was then a matter of waiting (and hoping!) that the Cheetah would turn to face my direction. Serendipitously, it was not long before the Cheetah began to walk directly toward me. Paw position is likewise critical to achieving a sense of movement in the subject. Shooting with a long fixed prime lens like the 600mm meant there was only a second or two when the Cheetah was full frame. High-speed motor drive at 30 frames per second was used to capture the decisive moment.

If you want to learn how to make powerful wildlife photographs such as this I will be returning to South Africa in May of 2024 and 2025 to lead another two Ground-Level Wildlife Masterclass workshops. Full details are on my website in the Workshops tab.