Masai Mara: Day 8 (Part 2: Shakira)

After such an action-packed morning, we were feeling rather dazed. We finally pulled ourselves away from the hyena pack, which had now devoured and dispersed the remains of the wildebeest. We followed the Disney Nature cameraman across the river and up, on to the nearby rise. After being so unceremoniously dispossessed from their meal, the three cheetah brothers were chilling-out in the shade of a Balanite tree.

We stayed with the cheetahs while we devoured our own breakfast in the jeep. I was ravenous after having such an energetic morning on the plains. The cheetahs were still hungry and sat up looking around for potential prey, but the heat was rising like a furnace. They were caught between needing another feed and waiting for the temperature to fall. In the end, the heat one, and they all rolled out flat in the shade.


We drove off in search of new subjects, heading down to the Talek River to see if we could spot any leopards or raptors. As we approached we could see a large number of elephants filing through the bushes. They were heading for the shade of the forest that lined the river bank. Julius got me to a suitable angle to photograph the elephants coming through. I used the 16-35mm wide angle on top of the jeep to get this context shot with the big savannah sky - a tried and trusted composition that always suits the big herds and big animals of the Masai Mara. Luckily, the mother and calf both turned round to face us as I was taking the shot. We did not venture any closer - a mother African bush elephant with calf is not to be messed with!


We crossed the river to search another lugga for leopards. As we crossed the river, we spotted this common sandpiper perched on the sandstone rocks of the river bank. It was very friendly and approachable, so I took a few shots. Even with the 600mm hanging out the window, the little sandpiper was not disturbed. In fact, it nestled down and started to snooze - time to drive on.

We crossed the river and drove around for some time. The heat was growing unbearable. Over the previous days, the heat had gradually notched up a few degrees each day - rain was coming! For now, we found some shade under a tree and had some lunch. Activity was gradually decreasing on the plains. The migration was drawing to a close and the building heat was causing the herds to slow down and seek water every day. The cats also seek shade and sleep, so we must do the same.


We ate, we slept, we recharged! We then drove back across the river and headed up to the higher plains in search of Shakira and the cubs. I keep referring to Shakira, but in truth, any cheetah with cubs would have been fine with me. Not far from her usual haunt, on a plain overlooking Olkiombo Airstrip, there was Shakira and the cubs. She was resting in the shade of a croton bush, while the cubs were running about and play fighting.


A couple of minutes after arriving, Shakira stood up and started playing with the cubs. It was brilliant to see the mother running and chasing with the cubs, playing tag, rolling, and wrestling. The only issue was that it was all on the other side of the bush or termite mound - so no shots! After a few more minutes play, Shakira came to rest on top of another large termite hill. The cubs came too and they all laid down together - puuuurrrrfect! It was the scene that I have always wanted to photograph.


The tranquillity did not last for long and the cubs were soon running around again. They came charging over to our jeep and ran underneath. They ran around the outside, darted underneath, and ambushed each other from behind the wheels. I lent out the window with the 16mm to get this shot, just to show how close they were. They climbed up on the wheels and were looking out at their siblings and at mum, who was doing her best to call them away. As I looked back, Jacq was speechless and had an ear-to-ear grin like a Cheshire Cat!


The cubs didn't respond to mum's calls, so we waited until all three were clear of the vehicle and reversed away. Cheetahs should, on no account, be so accustomed to jeeps that they play on them. At first it is cute, but things can and do go wrong.


As we moved away, Shakira came trotting over because the cubs were now heading for a second jeep. She circled ours and then started jogging off with her tail held high - it was irresistible and the cubs scampered after her. But the charade didn't last and the cubs turned back to the jeeps. She turned to beckon them on, but they were so playful, they kept ignoring her.


After a while, the cubs did eventually tire of the 'jeep game' and walked slowly over to mum. Shakira was now standing some distance away, chirping to them. Shakira is a very beautiful cheetah and we had a great session as we followed her and the cubs across the plain. She headed to nearly every termite mound, gaining that extra few inches to survey the land.


When Shakira came to rest on another termite mound, the cubs came over and laid down with her. But they were still wound up and frantic, so the pleasant scene lasted only a few seconds. I wanted more shots of the entire family together, but the family group kept fragmenting, so I just photographed whenever the cubs were together or when the mother and a cub were together.


The light was slowly softening and you could see the amber starting glow in their eyes. Cheetah eyes 'hood over' very quickly and you need a low-angled sun to bring out the colour of those massive ambers! Unless there is action or behaviour going on, I have now learned to avoid photographing portraits of any cat, unless the light is at its best.


The cubs continued to play, even though Shakira was obviously looking for a meal. She wondered for some time, gradually moving west across the savannah. The direction worked well as she was walking straight into the warming sunlight.


As we followed, so our paths crossed and we were now looking into the light. If the light is very harsh, this looks horrible, but as the sun drops, so the light softens and the hues warm, so you can shoot with a 'back light' and render a nice glow.


Time and again, Shakira stopped to survey the plains and so the cubs treated each of these occasions as a time for play. They ran past mum and pounced on each other, practicing tumbles and trips that would one day bring down a gazelle for a meal. Shortly after this image, Shakira decided that there was nothing around to eat and laid now in the long grass.

It was slightly frustrating as the light was beautiful, but she hunkered down in grass that was so long, it completely obscured her and the cubs. She called them over to suckle and they responded. They were not going to move from here and risk bumping into the predators of the night, so we left the family in the fading light and headed for home.

As we rose over the plain on our homeward bound track, we spotted crowned cranes foraging in the grass. These are graceful, elegant birds and quite a common sight on the Masai Mara. The light was soft and beautiful, so we stopped to take a few shots before the light faded completely. Within seconds, the sunlight disappeared behind cloud and that was the end of the day... or so I thought.

We drove off, leaving the cranes behind. After we passed over two more high plains, we all started looking back to the setting sun. The sky was now ablaze with fiery colours - brilliant, burning orange and red hues. The cloud formation was incredible. We searched around franticly for something (ANYTHING!) to photograph in front of this arresting sky, but there were no animals on the horizon.


Finally, we spotted these two trees and we moved down lower and lined them up to the sky. I used the 600mm to compress the field of view and used an f/8 to keep things crisp. I took several exposures with different compositions and, after processing, decided on this 2.5:1 panoramic crop. Now, if someone asks me to describe a Masai Mara sunset, I can just show this.

We drove on for about five seconds before I asked to stop again. The sky was absurdly colourful. Actually, I don't have the vocabulary or the images to do it justice! We were all unified in our inability to speak. We climbed out of the jeep and stood in the open to watch the sky unfold. It seemed to last for ever, unlike most sunsets that plunge into darkness in seconds. Jacq and I stood, holding each other, watching the spectacle. Julius phoned his sister in Mombassa and asked her to look up at the sky. She was speechless too.