The Topi At Breakfast

Masai Mara National Reserve

When you’re into taking pictures, you hear a lot of talk about the “Golden Hour”. Early morning and how the light is so good at that time. What they don’t tell you is that it comes with the darkest shadow and a whole lot of crap pictures and missed opportunities cause the light was in the wrong direction in relation to your subject. Give me harsh light over pixilated shadow any day and I can salvage something in post. Us hobbyists just don’t have that many opportunities to capture a scene and I’ve trashed more to bad morning light than saved. Being into wildlife, you also hear a lot of talk about “The Kill”. When a carnivore hunts and how capturing that or the devouring of the prey is an unparalleled experience. My wife and I had seen a leopard grab a dog in Jawai but that was done and dusted in like 5 seconds. Neelam was gone with her meal and all I have to show for it is blur and the memory or a yelping mongrel.

On our way back from our 'Sunset With the Topi', we ran into a young mother elephant and her calf who were by themselves. Maybe the mother was hurt or lost. The calf was shivering in the rain, nestled under the mother’s neck by the side of the road. It was almost dark and I couldn’t get a decent picture with them being so close. My wife did better with her phone. Well, that night, the pride caught up to the mother. Phones and internet work well in The Mara and next morning, we were off in the same direction we had come from the previous evening and I was going to get my lesson on why and how both those things I had heard about were such a big deal.

When we got there, the elephant was almost done with. She wasn’t that big in the first place and the Topi were 30. Most that walked up to the carcass then were playing with the food or were the lowest in pecking order. The setting was very different from the previous evening. We were on flat savanna, not a hill, hence didn’t have to be so close to the pride to get pictures. We were free to move around at this distance. The sun was rising behind us and the light was falling straight onto my subjects. My luck had turned and I had hit the jackpot. I was at A Lion Kill In The Golden Hour.

Yeah ! What an experience ! I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. I can’t explain. All Ill say is, look at their eyes ! We stayed till the sun came up fully and most in the pride were dozing off, unable to eat anymore. Was it worth the build up ? Hell Yeah !

Till date,(20 months later) I haven’t had the stomach to ask my wife to show me the pictures of that elephant and calf on the road. She will know it was them when she reads this now. Hey it’s the way of life and all but, I don’t have to see how cute they were again. Oh ! The pride got the calf the next day too.