Desert Army

David Yarrow:

"Ambroseli is an unrivalled spectacle in the natural world. This image shows a battalion of elephants in one seamless, cohesive unit charging through the desert. To see this scene played out is a real privilege and really got the adrenaline flowing. At the eerie silence and the serenity of this desert, I can't help but think about how the Desert Rats - the byname for the 7th Armoured Division - would have made more noise in their celebrated campaign against Rommel in North Africa in 1941.

The photographer’s job when encountering such a desert army of elephants demands both quick positioning and a strong understanding between him and his driver. We now always use a 200mm lens for these shoots because anything shorter is too loose whereas more compression risks cutting off some of the elephants. This was not an easy image to capture, and I did have a cigar that night - perhaps like General Harding, or General Rommel".