Whilst I was recently in Kenya on safari, I received some wonderful news. One of my images “She Who Dares” won Silver in this years World Nature Photography Awards in the Behaviour-Reptiles category.

This is one of the top awards that I won since I embarked on a full-time photography career, so I was really thrilled by this recognition & that the judges recognised the storytelling behind the interesting behaviour in this image.

Capturing reptile behaviour

I took this image whilst I was in the Serengeti In February 2024. Whilst I was watching & waiting for this male lion to wake up I noticed a female agama lizard moving closer to the lion & to my surprise make contact with his nose as she tried to catch a fly on his face. Luckily the lion didn't react, but I was amazed at the chutzpah in what I had witnessed.

In the hope of trying to capture this behaviour if she returned, I put my 2x extender on my 400mm lens & waited. Again, the agama returned looking for an opportunistic meal. The agama inched forward moving closer to the sleeping lion and stopped inches away from the lions face. Unfortunately, this time there were no flies to feed on so she scampered off. It was fascinating & brave behaviour to witness. It might not have been the image that I was originally looking for but arguably this is a more striking image of one of the Kings of the Serengeti & the brave lizard.

Wildlife photography in the Serengeti

I think it also shows how important it is to remain observant whilst in the field especially in those moments when you are waiting for something to happen - something more interesting may present itself & adapting quickly was essential to get this image.

I was on a photography tour with Federico Veronesi when I took this image & his advice on the editing was incredibly helpful to ensure the storytelling in the image was clear.

Award-winning wildlife image: ‘She Who Dares’

Finally, thank you again the World Nature Photography Awards & the judges for this recognition & congratulations to all the other winners, especially two of my mentors & friends- Paul Goldstein & Tom Way.

International Press Coverage

It’s also been great to see all the press coverage for the competition & the winners, so with the competition for next year now open I’m putting together my shortlist of images to enter again.