Description
Limited edition fine art print of 6 – This image is the most memorable experience of my entire wildlife photography career. I spent the morning with my guides and rangers looking for chimpanzees in Nyungwe National Park, Rwanda. In the darkness of the cool morning, we set off on foot down a slippery trail leading deep into the forest. The earth squished beneath each step. Mud and dead leaves clung to my boots, making the already impossible terrain even more slippery. We arrived at a pair of chimpanzees just waking up. We could hear them in the bush ahead of us, cooing and snapping twigs. Both chimpanzees were apprehensive of our presence and darted off into the bush and across the canopy in a matter of minutes. I tried to photograph them, but focusing on a fast-moving black animal in a dark jungle is nearly impossible. A few exhausting hours later, we came upon the rest of the troop. Nearly out of water, bug-bitten and drenched in sweat, we finally had our moment with them. I feverishly took out my 100-500mm lens to capture intimate portraits of our nearest wild ancestors.
My mind raced between capturing environmental portraits where the chimpanzees’ place in their ecosystem was apparent or tight shots of their expressions. After only a few minutes, the troop was on the move again. We followed closely behind to maximize the last few remaining moments we had with them. One ranger standing close to me pointed to a chimpanzee up in the canopy, eating. Again, I pulled out my long lens to photograph the scene unfolding when I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was the ranger. Without speaking a word, he motioned to me to get down and not make a sound. I had no idea why I was doing this. In these situations, you have to do exactly what the ranger tells you to do. He then told me to spin around slowly on my butt. My heart exploded. I was only a few feet from a female chimpanzee, and neither of us had seen the other in the dark underbrush. I set my camera down. At this point, my long lens was way too much focal length to get a decent shot. She and I just sat there looking into each other’s eyes. My heart was pounding. The pounding you can hear behind your ears.
She made a series of facial gestures. I asked the ranger what I should do, and he replied, “Just enjoy the encounter. She likes you”. For what seemed like forever but was more likely one a minute, we just looked into each other’s eyes, making the sweetest series of expressions. All I could do was smile. When I felt comfortable, I grabbed my portrait lens and managed to capture this portrait of her, which you see above. I set my camera down and promised her I would do everything in my power to help protect her home. You see…the Nyungwe National Forest is a protected land; however, the local communities keep expanding into it for farm land, supplies, and food. The communities are in direct competition with the chimpanzees for resources. Forest fragmentation has separated once critical habitat into isolated islands. Often, these islands are too steep to cultivate or build on. My hope is that my encounter triggers an emotion inside of you. My wish would be for you to go see the park yourself. The more tourism dollars a park brings in, the more the government will protect it.
I am donating 100% of the profits from this photo to Dr. Gabby Wild’s foundation. She is a wildlife veterinarian working in places like these, providing free medical care to animals in need. As a fine art photographer, I need to sell photos to make a living. However, this encounter was so precious to me that I want to give my full heart and money to doing the right thing. To me, that is protecting endangered species.  Photo © copyright by Derek Nielsen
Hello! I'm Derek.
DEREK NIELSEN PHOTOGRAPHY RAISES AWARENESS ABOUT THE GLOBAL NEED FOR CONSERVATION THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHY AND DONATES UP TO 15% OF ALL SALES BACK TO ENVIRONMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS AROUND THE WORLD.
