Camera: Sony ILCE-1

Lens: Sony 400mm G OSS f2.8, with Sony 1.4x teleconverter

Aperture: f8

Shutter speed: 1/1250s

ISO: 640

Description: Bahati and her cub stare across a river before crossing

Story from behind the lens: We had been following Bahati and her cub during an unusual mid-morning movement until they disappeared into dense vegetation. On a hunch, our drivers took us to a nearby river, where we waited for 10 minutes - and then she emerged on to the bank with her cub close behind. After a minute of careful survey, Bahati chose a route across the river and sped across with her cub in pursuit. Although the cub appeared self-confident, it was clear that it deferred to Bahati's decisions. As both mother and cub were strongly backlit here, I had to markedly underexpose the image so as to preserve the highlights of the fur. In processing, I increased the exposure in the dark parts ('shadows') to resemble the original scene.