Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

19th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
The Beauty and the Beast

We were back at camp for a lunch break, and as we were about to leave on our afternoon game drive, I saw a Black Rhino and her calf approaching the waterhole. I waited for them to come and drink, just to watch them without intending to photograph them. That's when I saw a pair of Grey Crowned Cranes not far from the water. I walked over in front of the cranes, "placing them" in front of the rhinos and waited. The rhinos were drinking, and the cranes were busy eating seeds from the ground, and all I wanted was for all of them to raise their heads at the same time so I could take my photo and go on the drive. It took several minutes and multiple attempts but I finally managed to get 3 out of the 4 with their heads up (the baby rhino didn't cooperate...).

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 09.2021
Date Uploaded: 11.2021
Photo Location: Kenya
Camera: NIKON D5
Copyright: © YARON SCHMID