Dinokeng, South Africa, 2026
It’s the right name for the bar and the right title for this playful photograph which was taken at Kevin Richardson’s lauded lion sanctuary in South Africa. The lion’s name is Yame - the most handsome of the lions under Kevin’s care.
Yame was a cub when he was rescued from a petting zoo in Spain by “The Campaign Against Canned Hunting”. They asked Kevin if he would take him and his brother George into his care. He has been at the sanctuary for more than a decade now, and the relationship between him and Kevin is one of mutual love and friendship. This makes my job easier, although I must work from a cage; Yame would not be friendly to me at all.
Whatever set I construct with Kevin, it is marinated in gratitude that we have these opportunities. Very few photographers can work here these days - in fact it may be just me and that constitutes a great privilege. Access will always remain the most important word in a photographer’s dictionary.
I prefer to have my main subject as close to the camera as possible; it helps lead the eye and offers a sense of immersion. To also offer context and background narrative, I will avoid lenses that magnify. This shot was taken on a standard lens which largely replicates what the eye can see. Of course, that means that the girls become a little abstract, but that enhances the story and allows the lion to jump out of the frame. Focus can deliberately include and deliberately exclude and on this occasion it does both.