21st Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Feline ecstasy

Artistic rendering of a leopard (Panthera pardus) gracefully raising its head in ecstatic posture with closed eyes while straddling the forked bough of a tree during a post-prandial nap. The foreground and background were darkened purposely in post processing to heighten the sense of feline ecstasy, hinting that the glowing bliss of the feline is lighting it from inside and reverberating to the supporting bough. Captured in Tarangire National Park near Mpingo ridge, Tanzania.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 06.2022
Date Uploaded: 11.2023
Photo Location: Tanzania
Camera: NIKON D500
Copyright: © Philippe Rouquet