Leopard in Black and White was photographed in Jhalana Sanctuary. Summer Temperature during the day can be up to 45+ Degree Celsius. Animals at this time of year stay close to water, the leopard is also one of them. This young female stays on a small hill close to an Artificial Waterhole. There is very little water in this region of Rajasthan so the forest dept makes artificial ponds and refill them. She comes down usually in the evening and if lucky before sunset. Hoping she will arrive in time we waited around the waterhole listening to every faint call and movement. Our vehicle an electric one introduced by the forest dept gives us some advantage to getting close without making a sound or at least not as much sound as a petrol vehicle. We keep watching the deers and peacocks at the waterhole and suddenly there is langur call at a distance up the hill. Everyone is alert including the photographers. Soon the deers and peacocks start disappearing. We know she is close but can’t see where. After a few minutes, I can see the head as she slowly rises and watches the paparazzi. That is when I took this photo. She is cautious not to rush and slowly moves to quench her thirst. It’s a spectacle, and all one can hear is the clicks. She was very thirsty and drank for quite some time. Occasionally she did look at the camera while drinking. I was waiting for her to finish and raise her head and look at us but she didn’t, as soon as she finished drinking she turned and disappeared. Anyway, we were all thankful and happy that she came just in time.
TIP: At such moments, Keeping oneself steady is the most important thing. Your breathing can go fast and you can lose a sharp image. Don’t hold your breath but relax and try to breathe normally. You need to control the excitement so you can focus on taking a sharp and great photograph. I recall a guest photographer had suggested when you see a big cat pretend its a domestic cat, maybe that will work for some.
Why Black and White? Black and White are beautiful. Yes, but my reason for this is that the waterhole is made of concrete and in the color, you can see a grey artificial band. Not much but In black and white it disappears and I think looks better this way. Hope you like it.
Photographed using Nikon D4s+Nikkor 600mm+Rice Bag
PP using Nikon Capture NX-D, NikSoftware
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