WHERE GIANTS ROAM FREE By James Kydd

FIRST RUNNER-UP James Kydd’s aerial shot of an Okavango elephant herd contains forceful elements that place the subjects in rare perspective. The circular palm bush holds the eye and the elephants convey a real sense of raw Africa.

“This image was taken for the Okavango Wilderness Project during a 2 500km mokoro expedition following the Okavango River from its source in Angola to its end in the Kalahari,” says Kydd, of Cape Town.

He adds that showing these giants from the air “portrays them as they are: a delicate part of a much larger system. Africa loses an elephant every 15 minutes. If we cannot protect the water that the continent’s elephants depend on for their survival, we may lose them … and a piece of ourselves.” Follow @intotheokavango on Instagram and Twitter.