NADINE LEONARD

IG: @nswildlife_photography Canon EOS 800D Sigma 150 – 600 mm lens

NADINE WRITES: I photographed this kudu bull in Mountain Zebra National Park near Cradock in January 2024. We rounded a bend on the Ubejane Loop and saw the kudu drinking from a puddle. He lifted his head when we approached so we pulled over and waited for him to settle down again.

People sometimes worry too much about predators like lions.

As a result, they miss photo opportunities such as this one.

My shutter speed was 1/500 second; aperture f5.6 and ISO 800.

TOAST SAYS: Nadine is right – photo opportunities are all around us. I often meet visitors in game reserves who stop to ask if I’ve seen anything because they’ve seen “nothing”. When I mention a few ostriches, a distant springbok and a murder of crows, I can see their eyes glazing over. The I’veseen-nothing people only want lions or leopards, or at the very least an elephant: big animals with big teeth, spots or trunks.

But there’s never “nothing” to see. A dead tree can make for a gripping photo. A quiet landscape where the textures complement each other can stay with you.

And a kudu? Well, if you drive past a kudu without slowing down to admire it, I think there might be something wrong with you. It’s the most beautiful antelope in Africa by far. (Only the gemsbok is in the same league.)

Nadine’s photo is slightly overexposed in the top left corner, where the white of the kudu’s lower body catches too much sun. But your eyes soon rest on the head and the reflection in the water, and everything is perfect in that part of the frame. I especially like the shiny black eye – a universe on its own.