TITLE: Prince of Darkness

Lions and Leopards are very different if you see them by day and if you see them by night. By day they can appear sluggish and altogether different from the common perception of an apex predator. It's at night however that they truly come into their own, with their night vision giving them an aura of invincibility. The drama is further heightened by the fact that we humans can only see them with the light of a passing vehicle or a torch. This series attempts to highlight the awe, mystery and thrill of catching glimpses of these princes of darkness in their element. All photographs were taken at Sabi Sands Game Reserve and South Luangwa Valley.

AUTHOR: Preeti and Prashant Chacko (India)

We are Preeti and Prashant Chacko, Indian photo artists. Together, we go by the handle “Composing the Wild”. Our work celebrates nature through the beauty of its wild animals, photographed in timeless black and white. We favour monochrome for its ability to distil emotion and to create a vision of a time past but hopefully never lost.

What inspires us is not just the visual drama of the wild, but the emotion it stirs. Over years of photography, we’ve learned that the images we cherish most are those that express beauty and emotion. Through our lens, we try to portray the grace of the wild and invite viewers to see these beings not as beasts, but as wonders worthy of awe, empathy, and protection.