First, we want to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone who so generously shared their precious memories and submitted so many beautiful images for our African Portfolio Photo Contest! We had a terrific time collecting and browsing through them, but we were at the same time immensely thankful not to have to select the winner ourselves. We are therefore also enormously grateful to our competition judge, Jeff Bark – an accomplished American photographer who has worked in all corners on earth and whose art is showcased in renowned collections around the world.
Huge congratulations to Victoria’s client Cathi Zilling who took the winning picture during her gorilla trek in Rwanda in February 2024 while staying at Virunga Lodge. She recalls: “I’ll never forget the moment before this photo—sitting among a group of gorillas, including a playful silverback, a curious female, and a baby. As the baby jumped on the silverback’s back, he gently picked it up by its foot. This photo captures the amazing similarity between their hands and ours, with the tiny foot perfectly nestled in the silverback’s grasp—a humbling reminder of our shared connection with these incredible creatures.”
Also on a safari designed by Victoria, Nick Hamatake’s image was taken during an anniversary adventure at Machaba Camp in September 2021, steered by one of our favorite guides in Botswana, Shaun Malan. “We went to Saronga’s den specifically looking for her cub. Shaun knew the cub had been there earlier, though there was a reasonable chance that she would have moved it by now. We were all hopeful, though, so we waited probably an hour to see if the cub would show. It was all worth it, as the cub was indeed still there and came out just after sunset. It stayed very close to its mother at first, then ventured around the den a little. It finally climbed above the mother, in a pose that Sean calls “claaaaasic!”
Our other runner up, Barbara Lee’s image of a group of young children in repose was taken in the Masai Mara on an outing from Sand River Camp during a previous African Portfolio safari planned by Vanessa, but seeing that she is back on another safari in Botswana at the moment, we will leave her to enjoy every moment and look forward to seeing what pictures she brings home this time.