Those That Didn't Make It

'Tis the season for making collections, gathering images and creating portfolios - it is honestly one of my favourite things to do with the images that I have made over the past few months. In fact, sometimes I feel as if I have more fun putting these together than making the images in the field. Invariably, however, the unavoidable, intimidating task of culling appears on the horizon. While some of my most beloved images don't make it to the final collection, all this means is that I can feature a new selection of images that didn't quite make the cut.

With that in mind, please enjoy the images featured in this blog post. The collection I'm speaking of (that excluded these) is my 2026 Print Portfolio - if you'd like to view it please send me a message. Each image can be best appreciated if it is viewed fullscreen.

I've shared this image before, but it remains one of my all-time faves. I rarely shoot wide, but these sub-adult lions were close enough as they observed the adults slink off into the oncoming night. They were clearly told to wait - many of them clearly desperately wanted to follow.

I don't do many landscapes but this muted scene in the central Kenyan highlands captivated me.

Everyone who follows my work knows I enjoy photographing in very little light. Pre-dawn colour tickles otherwise inaccessible parts of my psyche - here, a patient White-tailed Kite observes the goings-on in the Rupununi Savanna.

The silhouette of a praying mantis is unlike anything else.

At 900m above sea level, clouds were often enveloping the feeder set up at Rancho Naturalista in Costa Rica. The diffuse light made for some interesting portraits, such as with this Variegated Squirrel.

Dramatic light opens the door for low-key imagery. I enjoy the tension created by the hunting Snowy Egret in a mostly dark frame in this case.

A Red Fox hugs the perimeter of a pasture.

A vista at 700mm? Sign me up!

A salt lake in Uganda serves as a salve for wounded beasts. Can you see the waterbuck?

A true prehistoric creature, a Hoatzin catches a sliver of golden morning light.

Despite being the largest turtle on the planet, baby Leatherback turtles have to run a serious gauntlet.

A tiny cousin to the largest land mammal - a Rock Hyrax pauses momentarily on the Sheitani Lava Flow.

Not venomous yet does not kill by constriction, the Solomons Snake eats its prey alive. All the grip strength in the world couldn't prevent this gecko from its inevitable fate. Hinged serpent jaws proved to be the winner in this battle.

Alpha male Chimpanzee, not a charmed life but one filled with responsibilities.

A Pink-backed Pelican seems to arrive to much protest from its clan.

There is always drama in nature. Here, Magnificent Frigatebirds grab a Red-billed Tropicbird in the hope that it would regurgitate its catch of de-finned flying fish.

A White-tailed Tropicbird makes a pass, presumably inspecting potential cliffside nest sites in Dominica.

This pre-breakfast view of a Woodland Kingfisher from 2024 remains one of my faves, for the bird, for the light, and for the glimpse between trees.

Sunlight catches the feathers of this Bronze Sunbird as they do on hummingbirds. Unrelated families, but very similar as they occupy the same ecological niche.

One of the most stunning African starlings is the aptly named Golden-breasted Starling. Such a cornucopia of colours in a fairly large and visible bird!

Many of these images I've never shared on social media - some of them I have, but only a vertically cropped version. I do hope you enjoy, and if you'd be interested in seeing my full print portfolio, please let me know!