Amboseli, Kenya 2016

Amboseli, Kenya 2017

“This portrait showcases my signature style with elephants, but I have never had a bull with such huge tusks closing head on to within three feet of my camera. It has the hallmarks of a studio composition, not something garnered by perseverance from the untamed dustbowl of Amboseli. I have waited a long time for this shot – six years in fact. Big elephants have sometimes come right or left of my remote camera and sometimes smaller tuskers have comehead on, but this is the golden combination. Our eye is grabbed by the elephant and he won’t let go. I reckon those six years were worth the wait.

But far more importantly, the majesty of the elephant gives the photograph topicality and relevance. How on earth is the on-going slaughter of this magnificent primal species happening on our earth – on our watch? This is a picture that the world needs to see and I will do all I can for it to be emblematic.

I wrestled with what to call this image. In the end, I felt the name must convey his sense of power and sovereignty. This elephant answers to no one in his community but he brings not just power to his role, but something perhaps less tangible – a mystique that demands our deference and respect. He is ‘The Don’.” – David Yarrow

Amboseli, Kenya 2018

“This is one of the most unusual contextual images I have taken in East Africa in the last few years. The white of the flowering meadows and the white of the summit of Kilimanjaro combine to give the image an ethereal glow. The extreme weather conditions – it had rained torrentially for four or five days – had resulted in an implausible theatre of dreams. There was more snow on Kilimanjaro than I have ever seen before and the normal arid dustbowl of Amboseli was a garden bursting into acres of white carpet. For anyone that knows this area, thecombination of whites provokes a degree of visual disquietude. It was quite a remarkable sight that was all down to the freak weather.

The biblical rainfall had discouraged almost any other visitors and we had the amphitheatre to ourselves. We also had a film permit which allowed us to go off road – albeit the ground was very saturated and we were getting stuck regularly – we needed two vehicles to be safe.

The bigger problem was that there were very few elephants in the park – the rain had pushed them out of the park and into the forests below Kilimanjaro. I knew, however, that in the vicinity of the KWS Rangers’ HQ, there are always a good number of big elephants hanging around as they feel safe. It was here that we spent much of our time this March – despite it being a 90 minute drive from our base.

As soon as I saw the white meadows, I knew we had the chance of an image that offered a story of both lyrical grace and beauty – especially if the cloud lifted and we were exposed for a few brief minutes to the summit of Africa’s tallest mountain. Then we just needed the elephants and this was the X factor. No elephant – no party. About 5 pm on one unforgettable evening, everything came together as a small group of elephants headed to the foothills for the night and in so doing walked right through the white meadows. Getting in the right place for the composition was a fairly intense 10 minutes – I knew that this was a moment in time and I would not forgive myself if we missed it.

I look at this picture a great deal and wonder whether it would be better if the elephants had been coming away from Kilimanjaro rather than moving towards it? We will never know, but the formation of the herd has a nice diagonal shape and it tells a story of a journey unaffected by my presence. I think the anonymity of the individual elephants helps focus on the wider context – which is really a hallmark of some sort of fantasy. Was this what The Garden of Eden looked like? Who knows, but it does have a virginal feel.” – David Yarrow

Amboseli Kenya 2018

“There can be little doubt that this already well known image is a career highlight. It is unquestionably the most warmly received photograph that I have taken – so much so that the limited edition prints are nearly sold out within six weeks of capture. Manifestly, we have been able to do very little to stagger demand, including raising the price. It is what it is and the art market is exactly that – a market.

I still get goosebumps just looking at a big print. Tim is the world’s most famous big tusker – and our big Los Angeles prints have never been more necessary – why diminish Tim in print when we can surely glorify his magnificence? To find him in the open in the foothills of Kilimanjaro offered a lucky opportunity and we took it to the full.

I will always treasure this image and I doubt I will ever take a more powerful portrait of either an elephant or East Africa. That’s the thing about this work – it’s a collision of two enormous features – one volcanic, one iconic and they complement each other and raise the bar higher still. It’s a timeless piece and closer to perfection than anything I can remember in my career. The contextual narrative behind Tim is East Africa at its symbolic best. We felt we could getaway with calling the image “Africa”. It’s a dangerous title for sure, if the product is not extraordinarily special.

The irony is that three hours prior to taking this image, I was sitting back at our base somewhat grumpy that for once the location was not delivering. Indeed, I was considering leaving early, as time is money and this did not appear to be our trip.

But at 2.20pm, just before our flights were rescheduled, we received the news that our scouts had located Tim in the open, 90 minutes away and there was a chance to do what I had always wanted to do. We grabbed our gear and made haste.

When we arrived the sun was still too high and we had to bide our time and keep our distance from Tim. I wanted a fresh charge not a tired one and that meant waiting and playing smart. We had to keep him at distance, but equally keep him in our sights. It was a tactical hour ahead and there were many people to thank for keeping their discipline and encouraging me to keep mine.

The greatest credit for this piece of art should go not to me, but to Juma Wanyama, my local guide for the last eight years in Amboseli. He found and incentivised the scouts that tracked Tim, but more importantly, he knows both this elephant and me equally well and he allowed me to put myself potentially in harm’s way. Had our relationship been nascent, there is no way this picture could have been captured, because at its heart there is a triangular trust between three mammals. I have had to earn that with Juma and Juma has certainly had to earn it with Tim. It is this simple dynamic that is the secret to the image – trust.

It was this trust that offered me the chance of a ground up perspective and that was key to the composition, as was the 58mm lens – an optical dream of a lens – and the very same lens with which I shot Mankind with in 2014. It will always be my favourite lens now – how can it not?” – David Yarrow

Archival Pigment Print

“This is the shot – my cigar shot of 2020. This photograph may have taken just 1/500th of a second to capture, but it was many years in the making as the pivotal factor to the execution was trust and trust does not come overnight. I trust the guide and ranger who were with me and they trust me. More importantly, however, Craig, the world’s most celebrated big tusker, trusts me and I, in turn, trust him. This trust triangle allowed me to work on the ground no more than seven feet from Craig who was advancing towards me. Three years ago, or indeed, even a year ago, I could never imagine using a 35mm lens to take a portrait of such a giant of an animal – more mammoth then elephant. During Covid 2020, I have spent about 10 days with Craig and that has certainly helped to build a mutual understanding of each other’s behaviour. I see this image as the end validation of an investment of time, not just in Craig, but also the good people of the Kenyan Wildlife Service. I want to thank Daniel Kipkosgei, the Senior Park Warden at Amboseli, for his support and encouragement throughout the summer. Of course, there is a huge amount of fortune involved, most notably the clear sky allowing Kilimanjaro to add a layer of narrative and also the fact that we found Craig that day in open ground. I would estimate odds of that double to be around 10/1. I guess I still had to do my bit and I probably held my nerve for longer than I expected as the elephant advanced. This was, however, a team effort and everyone played their role – Craig most of all. Time for a cigar.”
– David Yarrow