Marai Mara, Kenya

My Backside is the Best Anyway!

01 / 01

OM-1 Mark II · OM 150-600mm F5.0-6.3

251 mmƒ6.31/1000ISO 200

The story

It's just past nine in the morning and we can already feel the savanna starting to heat up. In the shimmering air, we watch a solitary elephant making its way through the landscape in the distance.

I spot an acacia on the horizon and immediately start composing the shot in my head. Driven by my semi-autistic soul, we edge forward a few dozen metres — just to be safe, just to make it ultra perfect. "Tree on the left, elephant on the right, heading toward the tree, both subjects on the golden ratio, absolute banger!" I run through it in my head. I take a few shots, check them, and realise the savanna's perspective is partly gone — I'd zoomed in way too much.

The composition shifts in the meantime, because the elephant is obviously not waiting for me and strolls cheerfully on. "Fine, tree on the right, elephant on the left, maybe it'll turn around…" I stay optimistic. But then another jeep rolls into the frame in the distance, once again shattering my zen-filled vision.

"Round three, come on, walk toward us, mate!" I mutter under my breath. The elephant turns and… it's clearly run out of patience with us. It presents us with its magnificent backside and disappears over the horizon a few minutes later.

It's only months after the fact, writing this now, that I realise it's actually that backside that pours the most zen into my veins. So here you go…

Marai Mara, Kenya · February 14, 2026