Stories Behind the Images: Effy Varley

Get a behind-the-scenes look on these Maasai Mara wildlife images

There is a good reason why Kenya’s Maasai Mara is a top safari destination. It’s an incredibly wildlife-rich savannah that gives us some of the best game viewing in the world. It’s where lions roam around your game drive vehicle, cheetahs hunt right in front of you, and large herds of elephants roam on rolling hills. It’s where you photograph sunsets with silhouetted giraffes. It’s also where you might witness the Great Migration, an epic spectacle of enormous herds of wildebeest migrating.

So there are also plenty of reasons why the Mara isn’t cheap; it’s an exclusive destination with a hefty price tag. We’re pleased to offer a unique and more-affordable-than-average way to experience this area through our Wildlife Photography and Conservation Workshop; a program that allows photographers to hone their skills, make full photographic use of the area during game drives, and explore some conservation efforts that are happening in the Mara.

One of the photographers who joined us last year is Effy Varley, a wildlife photographer from the UK. “Kenya was on the top of my list for a long time due to its incredible biodiversity,” says Effy, “but I could never have imagined coming away with so many images from countless breathtaking sightings over the two weeks I was on the wildlife conservation photography tour. It was not only a chance to improve my photography skills and learn about Maasai culture but also meet passionate and talented people who shared my appreciation for the natural world.” Effy was happy to share some of her images from Kenya, and tell us the stories behind the images.

A long day with an unexpected reward

“These images were taken during an unexpected but incredible leopard sighting. The morning had been long and somewhat unproductive, and we weighed up the benefits of staying during the midday sun – typically a time avoided by many guides and photographers due to the heat driving animals into the shade and the harsh lighting. But we agreed to continue and see what our last afternoon in the bush would surprise us with. And what an afternoon it turned out to be!

Sankuet is a leopard who is well known by locals and tourists, and her location was shared late morning. She had kept well hidden with little opportunity to get a clear sighting, let alone a decent photograph. As the other cars headed to their lodges for lunch, we grabbed the cooler box from the boot, found a spot close enough to spot her, and proceeded to eat lunch while staring at the bush she was in, cameras resting on window frames and ready for action.

All of a sudden, she began to move, and we followed. She sauntered in and out of the light, sometimes straight past the bonnet, sometimes stopping to scout the movement across the savanna. In total, we tracked her for around four hours, as she navigated the thicket, made an attempt at catching something in the dried up riverbed, and finally took refuge in an acacia tree.”

1. Stalker

Technical Details: Shutter Speed: 1/3200 | ISO: 1200 | F Stop: 6.3

“We were lucky. We had an amazing driver, Amos, who by this point knew the angles that worked for us and the behaviour Sankuet was likely to display, which offered us a number of brilliant opportunities. For me, a good photo needs intention. The first image captures her stalking, shoulders raised, head low, moving slowly through the grass with that characteristic black-tipped tail.”

Challenge in the field: Shutter speed and distance
“Do I want motion blur? Should it be just the grass, or her and the grass? Should she fill the frame? Would a close up or portrait be better? These are just some of the questions that flooded my mind when she began emerging from the thicket. I hold my hands up and admit that a lot of good wildlife photography is down to luck. You definitely need to know your camera and understand light and composition, but sometimes you’re in the right spot at the right time, and sometimes a large blade of grass will grab your camera’s autofocus and make you miss the shot. It’s part of the experience and I was lucky this time that everything lined up and I was able to answer those questions quickly in the moment.”

2. Hidden

Technical Details: Shutter Speed: 1/3200 | ISO: 1250 | F Stop: 6.3

“We continued to follow Sankuet as she moved into a thicket and laid in the shade. She was hard to make out, but I could see the flick of her tail every once in a while and wanted to try for a more atmospheric shot, something that had a sense of place. And so, focusing through the bushes on the small pockets where the light was reaching, I waited for that whip.

Sometimes it’s easy to default to only taking the ‘clear’ shot, the one where the animal is in full view or it’s facing your way, but there was something messy and almost dreamlike in my viewfinder and I love the end result and the atmosphere it portrays.”

Challenge in the field: Low light and busy foregrounds
“Shooting through a small gap in the bushes is always hard as you often need to swap to manual focus to avoid your camera jumping about, but it’s hard to know for certain what is in focus just through the viewfinder, especially when it’s low light like this was.”

3. Cat’s Eye View

Technical details: Shutter Speed: 1/2000 | ISO: 1,200 | F Stop: 6.3

“The feeling of making eye contact with a big cat feels like holding your breath underwater. Everything is still and quiet except the thumping of your heart from your chest to your ears.

The leopard had jumped into the tree sitting proudly as if waiting for a photo, whilst scanning the horizon for predator and prey. Over time, her body slumped, relaxing into the crevices of the tree. Her huge flat paws kept her steady, before they finally flopped either side of the branch and her head rested, eyes closing. We stayed for a short while as she snoozed in what now was late afternoon sun, that kind of golden light that makes any photographer swoon over mother nature’s beauty.

With the subject slightly off centre, I chose an image that captures the shapes and texture of the tree, because of the light coming from the left and dispersing across the branches and her relaxed demeanour. As well as the eye contact, of course!”

Challenge in the field: How low or high to shoot from
“I had two options; photograph through the window, or perch my camera on the roof – a choice that determined the backdrop, because of the trees in the distance. Despite pockets of sun, it was quite an overcast day, which meant the sky became a diffuser and shooting low meant I had more of the cloud and therefore more backlighting. However, shooting closer to eye level meant a dark busy background on top of the tree she was in, preventing her from standing out. I am still considering editing out the trees in the back to make it a more aesthetic image.”

4. Hanging Out

Technical Details: Shutter Speed: 1/2000 | ISO: 1200 | F Stop: 6.3
“Once she was asleep, her legs dangled in a way that you’re told to look out for when on game drives if you want to spot a leopard. You can start to really appreciate her coat pattern and the makeup of a leopard’s spots.”

Challenge in the field: Angles and cropping
“When people ask me for photography advice I remind them to look for the abstract shot. What is the minimal amount of the subject you can get and still tell a story? On this occasion, the dark background really helped due to the low light and colour of her fur, which gave a good contrast. I would have liked her fourth leg in the shot but she was using her paw as a pillow. I had to decide on the angle and how much of the legs to incorporate. I have a similar shot of just the paws but felt it lost some context with less of the branches.”

Effy’s Camera Bag and Editing Style

“For all shots, I used the Canon EOS R6m2 with a Sigma 150-600mm lens and took with me a beanbag to rest my lens on, which helped stabilize the telephoto lens when at full zoom.

My editing style is very minimal and it’s largely done in Lightroom. I make adjustments to the levels to create blacker blacks and reduce off-putting highlights and love to use the mask feature on subjects to make them stand out by darkening the background and denaturing it slightly. I do remove small objects that may cause distraction if they can’t be cropped out, but generally want to keep the image as close to what I saw as possible.”

Get your own wildlife photography on and join us in the Maasai Mara!

Inspired to venture onto a wildlife photography adventure of your own? We’re now taking bookings for our Wildlife Photography Workshop in Kenya’s Maasai Mara for August 2025. It’s a 3-week program, but you can join for 1 to 3 weeks; whatever suits you best. You can expect tutoring from a professional photographer, company from other keen photographers, insights into conservation initiatives, and – of course – epic wildlife photography opportunities.