2021 - On this uncomfortably hot afternoon, my colleague and I decided to slowly take the less traveled routes and hope for the best. Temperatures were well into the 40s with a heavy downpour imminent. We could hardly see a thing as the heavy shower of rain came bursting down and waited it out near a large herd of Impala. A few of the rams nervously crossed the road ahead which presented a unique opportunity.
Although the cool rain was welcomed, this impala 'froze' in the middle of the road with all its senses completely muffled, leaving it feeling extremely vulnerable. From the road beneath him to the acacia trees in the background, the thick sheets of rain created a soft hazy look to his surroundings. He looked back towards us with a bent front leg, showing a sense of how indecisive this Impala would have been feeling at the time.
This image received the Highly Commended award for Black & White photography in the Nature Photographer of the Year, 2022 (NPOTY). In other words, it placed in the top 5 from thousands of entries from all over the world.
