Charlie Wemyss-Dunn
Camera: Canon R5
Lens: EF 200-400 F/4
Aperture: F5.6
Shutter speed: 1/250
ISO: 5000
Description: A male lion shakes his wet mane in a thunderstorm while devouring a wildebeest carcass recently stolen from two cheetah brothers
Story from behind the lens: A golden afternoon turned into a dramatic evening as one of the Masai Mara's famous thunderstorms unleashed on our drive back to camp. We spotted two brother cheetahs hunting among a large herd of migratory wildebeest as the skies opened properly and the rain lashed down. Suddenly one of the brothers took off and caught a baby in a quick takedown. While one of the brothers delivered the death bite and the other started feeding, a hyena suddenly appeared and chased them both off. Before we had time to react the hyena bolted from the carcass and a big male lion appeared standing over the wildebeest as thunder rumbled all around. The male began to eat his scavenged prize while I awaited a potential head shake and stopped my shutter speed down. Just before we had to leave back to camp the male shook his mane and my slow shutter gamble paid off! The Mara delivered this evening.