The Black Panther Club

"The making of this photograph has been on my mind since I saw the promotional material that accompanied Nat Geo’s Black Panther film release of 2020. The posters leant on composite art, not a photograph, and whilst they were very true to the panther’s facial structure, it is not easy to achieve the highest of granularity in the face with a paint brush. Nevertheless, the PR campaign certainly grabbed the attention with the black negative space adding to the sense of the panther’s menace.

We set about building a structure in a black panther’s 4-acre sanctuary in Dinokeng, South Africa and brought in a heavy-duty cage for me to work from and then it was simply an exercise in patience as well as the unique talents of Kevin Richardson—The Lion Whisperer. Our 12-year friendship has forged exceptional trust and we both know how to get the best out of each other. There is no way we could have taken this image a few years back—we have learned and iterated. Panthers are dangerous and safety and creativity had to find a balance. At all times I was working from the cage.

The key to me in this one-off portrait is the position of the pupils in the panther’s eyes. They equate to less than 1/400th of the total photograph but they elicit a proper sense of menace. A bit lower down in the eye and his menace is lost. It is about the smallest of details and today’s cameras, in low light, are high-performing enablers.

I think the cinematic format is perfect for this photograph. After all, the term Black Panther elicits heavy Hollywood vibes. It is an animal that has created many metaphors."

- David Yarrow