Cheetah wins a Grant ;)

[Marc Mol]

Just back from an incredible month long trip to the Central, then Northern Serengeti witnessing and capturing an amazing 13 kills, (8 by Cheetah, 2 Lion, 1 Serval, 1 Leopard and 1 Caracal) :Whoa!:

With one highlight here being a male cheetah ( he lost his bro to a male leopard attack......yes a leopard :w3, back in June, when we tried to save him) chasing and bring down an adult male Grant's Gazelle, probably my best sighting ever of a successful chase & kill, it was all over in just 12 secs!


This is just one frame in dozens that captured the moment from start to finish, knowing this boys great hunting prowess, we waited patiently for him for over 2 hours to select his target, springing out from a heavy croton thicket as the Grant's approached, totally unaware what was about to strike,

the pair initially ran almost straight at us then a right angle that saw them run directly past & parallel to our vehicle, bringing him down just 30M away, all happening in glorious 5.30pm light and less than 400M from camp with no other vehicle in sight. :5

A chase sequence one dares to only dream about.


Central Serengeti- TZ.

Nikon D500
Nikkor 500 PF f/5.6 VR FL
f/5.6
1/2500s
ISO 900

Bean bag front pax seat, slight crop for comp, curves, levels, TK adj's in ACR & PS CC'19.

Cheers
Marc

* Wishing all BPN members a Happy festive season and best wishes for a fabulous 2019. :cheers:

[Jonathan Ashton]

Sounds like an amazing experience Marc, you certainly caught the action very well indeed. I almost said it was lucky you were in the right place but you obviously did your planning and showed great patience for which you were truly rewarded. A fantastic image well done. Do you think it might be worthwhile brightening up the cheetah's head and eyes a little?

[Gabriela Plesea]

Awesome encounter, Marc!

Cheetah almost entirely off the ground and a desperate look from the gazelle - wonderful action shot and so well framed:)
Your patience certainly paid off here :cheers: just curious why you chose to shoot with the D500 and not the D5 or D850?

Love the focus from the cheetah and pose is fantastic, dream shot indeed Marc - congratulations!!!

Hope you have a wonderful Christmas and that you keep delighting us with your encounters in the New Year!

Thank you so much for sharing:5

Kind regards,

[Andreas Liedmann]

Hi Marc ...well luck and right timing was on your side !!!!!
Great shot in terms of POV .... i think you did well in capturing the action .
Must have been thrilling to see this ...and hoping that the kit perform well :t3

TFS Andreas

[John Mack]

Great experience you had here. I enjoyed the story. Nice view of predator and prey.

[Marc Mol]

Many thanks everyone for the positive comments.


just curious why you chose to shoot with the D500 and not the D5 or D850?

Hindsight being a wonderful thing Gabriela, I kept the D500 permanently attached to the 500PF giving me that 750mm (perceived) FL, and in this case it worked for 50% of the capture,
however as the predator & prey ran across us at such a close distance, it was extremely difficult to capture both in frame. :e3

However, for the rest of my cheetah chase encounters, the D500/500PF proved the perfect combination. :5

[haseeb badar]

Hi Marc -- This is an exceptionalities; frame and these are very difficult to frame as things happen very quickly especially when it is a Cheetah. I loved the head on view and your skills on the field are commendable. Loved it all the way .

TFS !