The term ‘drowned rat’ characterises someone who has been drenched by the rain and is looking thoroughly depressed as a result. This lion certainly fits the bill! I was recently (October 2023) on an evening game drive in the Maasai Mara when the heavens opened. For most photographers (myself included) the coming of a thunderstorm, coupled with diminishing daylight, would be a cue to pack-up and head back to camp. (Particularly when you have forgotten to pack your raincoat and your lens cover!). On this occasion, however, I decided to stay out and chance my luck in the hope of catching something ‘unusual’. I have a million shots of male lions looking ‘regal’ in all of their splendour. Photographing them while they’re ‘out of their comfort zone’ was a relatively new experience. Despite his bedraggled appearance, my subject (a male lion – part of a mating couple we had been following) posed beautifully for me. In order to better capture the streaks of rain, it would have been ideal to have had a darker background. At the time I took this picture, despite the fact that the overall light was dimming, the background was relatively bright. In order to compensate, I had to massively increase my iso setting which introduced a little bit of ‘noise’ into the photograph. However, after a few adjustments in Lightroom, I am delighted with this end result.