Intro
#BehindOurLens is our new way to tell You stories about our pictures. Quite often there is a lot happening when you take a picture, so this rubric will try to create a bit more depth. It will give you insights of the reason why we took the picture, what we felt or what happened after we took it.
The elusive Leopard
Can you spot the leopard? This picture is of incomparable value for me. It is not only, subjectively one of the three best pictures I have ever taken, no it also represents so much.
First of all, it takes place in my favorite spot on earth, the Serengeti National Park. When my brother and I were on our Africa trip in 2017, every week we got closer to the park my excitement increased drastically. I tried not to build up too many expectations, which was hard due to numerous wildlife documentaries and the Lion King.
Arriving at the first gate of the national park I knew why I tried to keep them low. I was disappointed. During the dry season, the plains at the entry of the park can be quite boring. Trying not to freak out too much I attempted to calm down.
” Arriving at the first gate of the national park I knew why I tried to keep them low. I was disappointed. During the dry season, the plains at the begging of the park can be quite boring. Trying not to freak out too much I attempted to calm down.”
And the park should not disappoint. With every kilometer on the dirt road, the park got more exciting. Acacia trees started to pop up and wildlife started to show. We passed antelopes, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, lions, cheetahs and much more. But we desperately wanted to see a leopard. This one was the only remaining of the big five that I hadn’t spotted yet.
Not even in Zambia, where we visited the South Luangwa National Park, which has the largest leopard population of the world. It was overdue and I started to fear that in 9 months of Africa I might return back to Germany without seeing one.
But after driving through a little strip of the forest we spotted a kill in the trees. So we began to wait and look around. After some minutes we finally managed to spot this elusive and majestical animal and it was probably one of the best moments of my life.
At this moment I truly realized that I fulfilled my childhood dream of coming to Africa. Funny that it took me 7 months. All those experiences and sights that I made, exploded at that moment. I was full of joy.
“At this moment I truly realized that I fulfilled my childhood dream of coming to Africa. Funny that it took me 7 months. All those experiences and sights that I made, exploded at that moment. I was full of joy.”
The Serengeti will always have a special place in my heart and it is definitely the place I will most likely return to whenever I get the chance. See you in a bit, my piece of heaven on earth.
I hope you enjoyed this little story and would love to get your feedback. If you want to see the Serengeti National Park yourself, you will find a list of trustworthy tour operators here or on Evaneos if you are looking for an entire tailor-made trip. If you want the leopards and other animals in the Serengeti to remain you can also donate some money here. Furthermore, did you enjoy this article? Did you see a picture on our social media or on this blog and want to know the story behind it? Then just let me know and I will write an article about it!
