Whether it be big cats, primeval tuskers or breaching sharks... when photographing wildlife I have a tendency to go for “the big ones”.
Having traveled to Uganda a number of times to get a big shot of probably the most impressive primate that wanders the earth is a challenge. It’s the ultimate of encounter,but most shots of endangered mountain gorillas are reportage rather than art. To bring home something interesting from these Jurassic World-like jungles is difficult.
There are strict enforcements when it comes to encounters with these primates. To prevent cross-contamination between the animals and humans and safety reasons, you’ll have to keep a 7 meter distance. Everyone, no matter if you are a tourist with an iPhone or romantically reporting for National Geographic, one hour is all you’ll get. Due to this 3.600 second timeframe there’s no time to wander around without a clear plan of action. And to top it all off, this deadline occurs in an extremely vegetated jungle, which kills the possibility for a wide, contextual narrative shot. There’re simply too many tension points which delete the opportunity for a clean image. Due to these variables you can only do it right by learning how to do it wrong.
The plan was simple. Go for the alpha male; the big one which is more impressive and overwhelming than any other gorilla. The group we were tracking came over from Rwanda. Their habitat was growing too small which testifies to their magnitude. After a 2,5 hour hike we found the big ones on a steep hill. This helped as I felt I needed to lie down to make this shot interesting and stand out from the mundane. However, gorillas don’t obey to stage calls and aren’t regulated by the “7 meter rule”. This resulted in some intense moments when the alpha male walked straight towards me. It’s an heart pounding moment while standing ground when a 200 animal walks towards you...
We did a test run for printing this image. It’s pinsharp and is worthy of the magnificence of this guy. It not only holds up in a big format print... It emphasizes the strength of these emotional animals in a whole new way.
Jochen van Dijk
Kisoro, Uganda
23/01/2020