A Magical Return to the Mara

Setting foot back on the African continent always elicits an emotional response unlike anywhere else in the world. Well, that’s how I feel at least. Hopping on a light aircraft from Nairobi to the Greater Mara ecosystem all adds to the excitement. As you descend into the Great Rift Valley, you start to see the vast rolling plains, dotted with trees and meandering rivers. It is a magical sight and the perfect place to indulge in wildlife photography.

This year, we had some notable highlights from our time exploring this spectacular part of Africa. We were extremely privileged to see a huge pride of lions as they woke from their slumber and made their way across one of the ridgelines of the Mara National Reserve. The golden light of the morning sun illuminated them as some of the family paused atop of a small termite mound. A large male then joined the family before we left them in peace and moved down the hill to find a young cheetah who we followed for the next few hours.

Photographic safaris are excellent for spending time with your subject, waiting for those magical moments to capture in that fraction of a second. You reap the rewards with the extra time you put in, and sometimes you obviously strike lucky.

Another moment to savour within the Mara this year was when we returned to the lodge for lunch. We drove past a signpost, and I turned to see a shape which looked like it had been painted on the sign. It was then that the ear twitched. I realised it was a serval sat in the tiny piece of shade the sign provided. We were able to get remarkably close, with this unique species of cat enjoying the shade. After half an hour or more, the cloud cover had started to build, and the serval climbed down from its resting spot and started to hunt in the long grass. We stayed with it for another 10 minutes before leaving and heading back for a very late lunch.

On our last evening, we stayed close to the lodge, finding a family group of elephants, with the mature females enjoying the fresh grasses and suckling their young calves. We decided to stick with them as they relaxed, unperturbed by our presence, and the youngsters grew in confidence. Before long, two of the male calves chose to put on a show for us, a bit of rough and tumble. They kept practising their sparring skills, pushing and shoving, before the older of the two decided to assert its dominance. It was an excellent way to spend an afternoon, no other vehicles, and the intimate moments of an elephant family’s life.

If you would like to experience the magic of the Mara, please join me and make the most of the remarkable photography opportunities on offer.

Contact our expert team to find out more information on our Masai Mara Photography Tour to Kenya.