Beach party

It is one of those attractions you absolutely must experience, says Nikita van der

from Emalahleni about a visit to Cape Cross in the Skeleton Coast.

“In December 2019, I had an exceptional experience at Cape Cross. There are apparently over

200 000 Cape fur seals there: some of them lie around on the rocks and others swim in the sea. These myriad animals are quite noisy while baking in the sun. I made the photo black and white so that colour don’t distracts you.”

One can only imagine the noise! The photo is full of detail and you can gaze at it for a while. One of the strongest elements is the repetition of shapes, so you get a good idea of what’s going

on in front of the lens. And because you see the Cape fur seals from front to back, it also adds depth to the photo.

The black-and-white aspect certainly provides greater impact. But in a busy photo, the silent winner is the seal who appears to be asleep in the middle – blissfully unaware of the surrounding noise. It is in fact the focal point, because once you see it, you can no longer overlook it.