Hyderabad wildlife photographer Sushanth Nakkana captures Amboseli’s elephants and Mount Kilimanjaro

Hyderabad-based wildlife photographer Sushanth Nakkana recounts his memorable trip to Kenya’s Amboseli National Park, describing its vast grasslands, elephants and rich birdlife. He highlights encounters with cheetahs, hippos and crocodiles, calling it a paradise for nature photography.

Hyderabad: For the City-based wildlife photographer Sushanth Nakkana, it has been a truly memorable trip to the magical Amboseli National Park in Kenya which is dotted with many spectacular picturesque landscapes and more importantly Mt Kilimanjaro.
Interestingly, Sushanth, like many wildlife lensmen from India prefer to beat the heat in the comparatively colder destinations in Africa during this time around.

“Amboseli is a paradise for the photographers in particular and nature lovers,” says Sushanth in a chat with ‘Telangana Today’.  “And what a beauty it was. In the of vastness the grasslands, this is the true land of the gentle giants. The elephant herds were a sight to behold, the Kori Bustard another giant was a very pretty bird again while the highlight of the Amboseli trip was seeing a Cheetah with her 3 adorable cubs,” recalls the advertising professional with more than 20 years of experience.

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” The park is filled with amazing birds and other mammals. The dream was to get an elephant with the Mt. Kilimanjaro in the background but due to overcast conditions that wasn’t possible. But then again that’s something to look forward to in the next trip,” says Sushanth.

“The whole topography is very different in Africa. The vast grasslands are just endless it’s like you can almost see the horizon. The Indian jungles have a certain intrigue and you actually never know what’s waiting for you in the next corner. While the African grasslands have a charm of their own,” he says.

“While spotting animals especially the big cats in India is not very easy because of not just the terrain but also the tigers and the leopards are solitary animals while the lions and cheetahs are a lot more social and this helps in a big way to spot them quite easily,” Sushanth explained.
What is the most challenging feature of the entire trip?

“As we were staying in the jungle in a tented accommodation with Hippos and Crocodiles in a small stream that was running just outside our tents,” he said. “Honestly, it is all about being at the right place at the right time. Having the right gear – Makes all the difference in terms of catching / freezing action,” Sushant says.

” Considering modern cameras are quite easy to operate but having said that the higher you go the more complicated they get,” the 48-year-old photographer said.

“In Amboseli, we had elephants walking right next to the property and the size of the elephants in Amboseli are something else. There are a lot of water bodies within the park so its excellent for birding there were flocks of Flamingos and Great white Pelicans with lots of other birds including a variety of raptors and owls,” Sushant said.

“Seeing Mount Kilimanjaro reminded me of the Indian jungles where the big cats play hide n seek, while it was right in front of us we could get a glimpse of the peak for just a small window of 15 mins before the clouds magically wrapped around it and said the show is over,” he said.

“Photography comes second, the most important aspect is respecting nature and accepting the fact that we are very much a part of nature. Nature has its own ways of teaching us a lot of life lessons and patience being the most important aspect. Photography is just an aid for us to capture those beautiful moments for eternity,” he signed off.