Photograph of the Month January 2026 – Impala in Morning Mist

The photograph of the month for 2026 comes from one of my previous expeditions to Zululand in South Africa. The chance encounter for this photograph was pure serendipity, as I had been sitting in an overnight hide waiting for Elephants or potentially a Lion or Leopard to come past for an evening drink at the watering hole; none of which ultimately eventuated on that evening. With the sun beginning to rise and a thick fog blanketing the landscape, I was hopeful there would be an opportunity to catch something before the fog burned off for the day. As luck would have it, I was just about to pack up when this Impala ran through the frame. The opportunity existed for just the briefest of moments before the Impala was again out of frame behind the ridge. It was a timely reminder to both always be ready and to expect the unexpected. It was also a prime example of having exposure tested and set, just in case action was needed at the spur of the moment (as in this case). Shot with the 70-200mm f2.8, this was an obvious candidate for a panoramic image in post production and became my favourite from this visit to South Africa.