Leopard Pictures - Pg 1

Although daytime sightings do occur in national parks where leopards have become accustomed to vehicles, such sightings are usually fleeting.

In addition, your subject will often be well-camouflaged, making it even more difficult for the photographer. So count yourself lucky if you ever come across a leopard lying relaxed on a tree branch, in good light!

Leopard snarling, close-up

Click on any picture to enlarge
Leopard mother and cub	Male leopard portrait	Leopard in tree at night
Close-up of male leopard	Young leopards play-fighting	Leopard in tree with kill
Leopard lounging on tree stump	Leopard walking in short grass	Watchful Leopard in tree
Young Leopard Close-up Magic of Africa T-shirt  Love Africa Leopard T-shirt
Leopard Close-Up, Side View Leopard sitting on its haunches Leopard walking, front-on Leopard making eye contact Leopard looking back Leopard walking along track Leopard seated on tree stump Leopard climbing down tree
Leopard relaxing in tree	Big male leopard lying on branch	Leopard partially hidden in tree

Dappled Shade
Dappled shade may be attractive to the eye but, combined with the leopard's natural camouflage, will often make your photograph too confusing and "busy".

For this reason professional photographers will often use fill-in flash to soften the shadows and put highlights in the eyes of the leopard.

Bear in mind though that flash, if not handled with care, can also present its own problems, causing animal "red-eye" or over-exposure of your subject.

Elephant Plains Game Lodge
Virtually all the leopard photos on this page were taken in the Sabi Sand Wildtuin. We were based at Elephants Plains Game Lodge, a small family-run lodge within Sabi Sand that has gained a reputation for providing guests with outstanding opportunities to view and photograph leopards.

Although there are good numbers of leopards in the adjoining Kruger National Park, they are not easy to see and photograph, mainly because visitors cannot stray off the designated roads - something which is permitted in private reserves.

Experienced Trackers
In many private game reserves visitors also have the luxury of an experienced tracker in the safari vehicle. Add the guide/driver, and you have two sets of exceptionally sharp eyes that can pick-up tell-tale signs of leopard and other wildlife that would escape the rest of us.

Also, because leopards are territorial, the game rangers get to know where the individual cats hang out and will take their guests there, usually with successful results.

For most visitors to the bush, finding these superbly camouflaged cats in thick foliage or high in the branches of a leafy tree can be tricky.

See the picture below that clearly illustrates how a leopard's markings blend in with the background of dappled shade.

See also Leopard Pictures 2

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