Does a wildlife photo book needs a foreword to point out, ad nauseam, that it's subjects are having a hard time?



Is it necessary to accompany wildlife images with eloquent writings? Or do those texts steer you away from the essence of the image?



Does a wildlife portrait need extensive processing techniques like duo-tones, dodging and burning? Or does it isolate the subject from it's natural colors and environment, like a caged animal in a zoo?



In a book like this one, does the wild need to be romanticized, not only by words, but also by choice of images, almost as to give it a Disney-like image?



This book shows African scenery and wildlife as it really is. Animals eat, drink, mark their territory, copulate, devour other animals. There is no need to justify their actions. There is no need to make them more beautiful than they already are.



I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed taking them. And if you are sympathetic to their cause, go on a safari. Your visit justifies their existence. As harsh as that may sound; without economic value they WILL disappear.



Just for the record; the cover may look strange, but it is a panorama that covers the whole book and shows about 300 elephants. Yes I counted them the correct way. I counted the legs and divided by four. ;-)