The Big Cat Blog

CIWEM Environmental Photographer of the Year 2011 Awards: A male leopard tries to stalk and hunt a porcupine in Mashatu Game Reserve, Botswana.

Picture: Shem Compion / EPOTY.ORG / Barcroft Media

Photo by: fademphotos

Photo by: richardrichard

A lion decides he’s had enough of being photographed - and tries to steal a photographer’s camera. The lion and his pride had been followed by a film crew in Okavango Delta, Botswana, for days - and obviously decided it was time to have his turn behind the camera. The lion broke away from the pride and ran up to the camera before trying to drag the camera and tripod away. The photo was taken by British photographer and tour guide John Sobey, who runs horseback safaris for photographers throughout Botswana. He said: “He had a good look down the lens and we watched, amazed. It was only when he decided to try and bite them camera that the film crew got worried, and shouted at the lion, scaring him away.”

Picture: JOHN SOBEY / CATERS NEWS

Photo by: ticktockdoc

Photo by: Earth-touch Admin

Photo by: jurvetson

Photo by: platours_flickr

A leopard leaps onto a Land Rover for his big close up. Sergey Kotelnikov was shocked when this overly camera-friendly young leopard jumped onto the roof of his vehicle in Namibia, close to the border with Botswana. Sergey Ivanov, who snapped the photo from an adjacent vehicle, said: “My friend was scared. I was frightened, too, even though I was on the roof of the other car, as you expect it to begin attacking. But we soon relaxed when we realised that this big kitten was just playing.”

Picture: Sergey Ivanov / CATERS