Sheila Peake, Kalahari Wildlife Encounters (ANIMALS 2026)

The southern Kalahari Desert, of Namibia is a stunning and unique landscape unchanged for millions of years and still uncompromising towards man. The blues of the sky, white of the salt pans, the red sand merge with tree and shrub savannah into a colourful palate, setting the backdrop for iconic African animals. An early morning foray to photograph the landscape was when I met this cheetah. I was laying low to the ground photographing the sand dunes, when it unexpectantly came around a small bush. I think it was more surprised than I was at this up-close encounter. Mid-afternoon a Meercat mob, of around 40, were popping in and out of their burrows, with this little guy proudly standing as a sentry for the mob. A sundowner drive allowed the changing colour palate to be on show, as I watched a Rhino clamber over the dunes, to relieve himself! The ever-changing colours of the sand and sky produced dramatic variations in each photograph, which perfectly suited how I wanted to show the small, the fierce and the large.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.