Allow me to take you on a journey through the beauty of the African wilderness through my creative lens. This portfolio portrays several select photos that capture the essence, the soul and the emotion of wildlife, whilst portraying the beauty of their natural habitat. These are special moments I have witnessed on my adventures; joyful, heart breaking or in awe. My Story One TV station. No internet. Large gardens. Great weather. An abundance of nature and wildlife. It’s hard to describe my childhood, but these phrases come close. Growing up in Zambia had its unique charms. We had to be creative to find entertainment outside school hours and a lot of that time was spent exploring the outdoors. I was fortunate to be in close proximity to the African flora and fauna. The glaring contrasts between the urban city where I grew up and the wilderness was apparent to me from a young age; ecological, physical, visual, and mental. The serenity of these vast lands, the blissful feelings it created, and the excitement of spotting wildlife transpired within me; more so when I found photography (or when photography found me). And here is where my story began. Conversing Conservation Over the years of hopping between concrete and savannahs, it has become painfully obvious how human exploits are diminishing the beauty of wildlife ecosystems with each passing day. It is unfortunate that this entire sophisticated network is at the mercy of us and our actions. Real change comes from a deep emotional connection and our capacity to create a profound sense of empathy and compassion – one with nature and one with an understanding of the impact we have had on this planet that not only threatens the wild and its natural habitat, but our very future existence. The medium of photography is an extremely powerful tool in this context – it provides a visual voice. My role as a wildlife photographer exists because there are beautiful and spectacular moments to capture in the wild, but therein exists an important duty to the preservation and conservation of the wilderness and its natural habitat. This gives me a bigger sense of responsibility as a human and photographer to use my work to showcase the beauty of the once abundant wildlife on this planet. Photography as Fine Art These photographs represent my individual creative expression, emphasising what I regard are the most notable aspects. It is more than simply freezing a scene, it is about communicating a message and creating emotional arousal. My mission is to create visually striking and thought-provoking images that engage and inspire the viewer, as well as drawing attention to the importance of conservation. This is not a business for me, it is part of a revolution to protect the planet and its wildlife inhabitants using the most powerful weapon I own – my camera.