A walk on the wild side
London-based Kiwi David Lloyd has built a career photographing some of the world’s most exotic animals. He speaks with Lee Umbers
He’s come eye-to-eye with magnificent kings of the jungle, rubbed shoulders with massively muscled great apes and recorded heart-warmingly tender deeds by some of the most powerful and feared animals on earth.
Internationally-renowned Kiwi wildlife photographer David Lloyd travels the globe capturing the best of nature. Prints of his awardwinning images have pride of place on the walls of homes around the planet.
And the adventurer who leads photo safaris in the heart of Africa began his journey as a primary school boy collecting creepycrawlies in the backyard of his east Auckland home while filming the world on a plastic camera.
‘‘I caught bugs when I was a kid. I collected insects and put them in jars – I think we’ve all done that – but I kinda kept it going,’’ says Lloyd, who grew up avidly reading the Adventure children’s novel series, following the exploits of budding teen zoologists travelling the world capturing exotic animals for their dad’s wildlife collection.
His yearning to explore the world was further inspired by a globetrotting aunt, who brought back souvenirs and tales of adventure.
‘‘In the early 70s she went to Canada, she went to Europe, she went to Africa, she did the big OE thing. And some of the places she travelled, particularly Africa, I just remember her stories. I was really interested.’’
It was the death of his beloved Aunt Beth that was instrumental to Lloyd, who had worked in photo developing and graphic design after leaving Auckland’s Howick College, becoming a full-time wildlife photographer.
An overriding theme of his awardwinning collection of work is a capturing of animals’ essential dignity and right to live in peace.
‘‘Lions, they’re often portrayed as vicious killers because that’s what people take pictures of. But, for the most part they’re just affectionate, big pussy cats. They show affection to each other, the whole pride.
‘‘And elephants’ greeting, it’s like having your family greeting another family, like they haven’t seen each other for years. They don’t shake hands, obviously, but they entwine trunks, and get excited.’’
One of Lloyd’s most emotional images – Amboseli Crossing – captures the moment the two animals’ paths crossed, at Amboseli National Park in Kenya.
A line of elephants, a baby in their midst, came across two lionesses on the road ahead. ‘‘The elephants formed a circle around the little one. . . then when they got to a safe distance they went single file again.’’
Lloyd himself had to move out of
You get the odd bluff-charge, an elephant or rhino might decide they don’t want you there. David Lloyd
potential harm’s way when he found himself in the path of a hulking gorilla on a dirt track.
‘‘If I hadn’t stepped aside, he would have knocked me into the mud. But it wasn’t his intention to, he just wanted to go from A to B, and I was in between. So it’s cool.’’
Another close encounter was at Kenya’s Maasai Mara National Reserve, which resulted in his ‘Sandman’ image.
Lloyd got to within five metres of his male lion subject.
‘‘He was under a tree just minding his own business. I think he had his brother nearby. We waited for him and he sort of stood up, and I think he was looking at me because he was looking at his own reflection in my lens. I think he was just dazzled by that, so he looked at me for a good bit of time.’’
Lloyd’s company has not always been appreciated by prospective animal subjects.
‘‘You get the odd bluff-charge, an elephant or rhino might decide they don’t want you there. He will let you know.’’
Lloyd doesn’t use camouflage to get close to his wildlife subjects, instead preferring to play the waiting game – for as long as a day at a time.
‘‘I don’t chase, I don’t go looking for (the animals), we know where they’re gonna be. If you wait, then nobody gets stressed. The animal comes to you, and everything is more natural.’’
Lloyd, who is based in London, makes sure he takes ‘‘two of everything’’ on his assignments, including his Nikon D800E cameras. He’s always loved black and white photography, but ‘‘if the colour’s better, I’ll keep it in colour’’.
Asked to define his photographic style, Lloyd says he takes pictures he likes. ‘‘I think the mistake is to take pictures and hope other people might like them; you take pictures for yourself.’’
Those images have won prestigious awards including his A Flick of the Tail photo of a giraffe in Maasai Mara – chosen as the cover of the 2011 edition of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year annual portfolio.
He is sharing his skills with the lens and love of wildlife by leading photo safaris into spectacular African nature reserves.
The Maasai Mara Big Cat Safari offers the chance to film lions, leopards and cheetahs at the Kenyan park, as well as zebra, giraffes, antelope, hippos and elephants.
Guests on the Great Migration safari can capture one of the greatest wildlife spectacles on the planet – the annual mass crossing of the Mara River by herds of wildebeest.
And next year, he will lead the Uganda Primates safari, featuring three gorilla treks and three chimpanzee visits, including accompanying reserve researchers and rangers at Kibale National Park to follow chimps from their waking till they build new nests at night.
Lloyd has led more than 40 safaris since 2011. The photo expeditions are typically eight days long, although some guests do back-toback safaris. Guest numbers are limited to six if he’s leading the safari alone, or 12 if he’s accompanied by another lead photographer. Drivers are local guides. Lloyd says guests include firsttimers to Africa and regular visitors, novice photographers to experienced.
‘‘What I really get a lot satisfaction out of, is when they see something for the first time – it’s so lovely to see. And what I really like is when they get a picture they’re really, really happy with.’’
One British guest fulfilled a lifelong ambition of filming a leopard climbing in a tree.
‘‘He just couldn’t wait to show me, and it’s just so cool, he just had a big smile on his face showing me the back of his camera. He was so excited.
‘‘I wish I’d taken the picture – it was pretty good!’’