This Photographer Waited 6 Days for a Perfect Panther ‘Shadow’ Photo
Wildlife photography can often require a whole lot of patience and a whole lot of luck. But those two things just came together for photographer Mithun H, who captured this remarkable photo of a leopard and its black panther “shadow.”
“Saaya and Cleopatra have been courting since 4 years now and whenever they are together it’s a sight to behold,” Mithun writes about the photo, which he titled The Eternal Couple. “The forest comes alive as they trot nonchalantly in his fabled kingdom.
“Usually in the courting pairs generally it is the Male who takes charge and moves around with the female following close behind. But with this couple it was definitely Cleo who was in charge while the Panther followed.”
Mithun spent days trying to nail the perfect shot of the two leopards before a deer alarm caused them to both look in his direction at the same time.
“It was nearly 6 days of waiting for this moment,” the photographer tells PetaPixel.
Mithun specializes in tracking big cats, and he previously worked on the show “The Real Black Panther” for Nat Geo Wild. You can find more of his work on his popular Instagram account.
Image credits: Photograph by Mithun H and used with permission
