Buffalo
Across Africa, few animals have left a stronger impression on me than the African buffalo. Photographing them in Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania has been a repeated lesson in respect, patience, and awareness.
My encounters with buffalo are rarely casual. Even when standing still, they project a physical presence that is impossible to ignore—dense muscle, heavy bone, and eyes that seem to measure every movement. In the savannah or along riverbanks, their silence often feels more powerful than motion. When they move, it is with purpose; when they stop, it is with authority.
Working in black and white allows me to focus on what defines them: texture, scars, dried mud on thick hides, and the tension in their posture. Without colour, the images emphasize mass and structure, the curve of horns worn smooth by years of dominance battles, and the quiet cohesion of the herd. The buffalo’s strength is not theatrical—it is grounded, controlled, and uncompromising.
There is also an unmistakable intelligence in their behaviour. Buffalo do not flee blindly. They assess, they remember, and they stand their ground when necessary. On several occasions, I have lowered my camera, not out of fear, but out of respect for an animal that commands space simply by existing within it.
These photographs are not about aggression. They are about resilience, survival, and the raw physicality of one of Africa’s most formidable animals—captured in monochrome to reveal their essence, free of distraction.
