Photographer captures amazing images of lions after submerging himself in watering hole for three months

"Wildlife photographer Greg du Toit was so determined to capture the perfect image of wild lions drinking he sat submerged in their watering hole for three months.

"The defiant photographer had endured a year of failed attempts at getting the right picture after building hides and digging trenches near the animals' drinking spot.

"In a final desperate effort, the 32-year-old decided to take the plunge and climb into the murky pool with his camera and ended up contracting several tropical diseases.

"He began a long-term waiting game where he sat semi-submerged for 270 hours to get the big cats on film.

"But as these never-before-seen pictures show, his hard work - three hours per day for seven days a week in the water - was definitely worth the wait.

"It came at a huge price for the photographer who was diagnosed with Bilharzia and contracted several parasites which he soaked up through the dirty water in the drinking hole."

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Blood, Sweat and Photographic Tears
By Greg du Toit

"After eight months, my wife’s patience was wearing thin and my skin was covered not only in strange bites but persistent red bumpy rashes, the cause of which I finally put down to baboon urine! One particular week, the mercury in the camp’s thermometer soared way above forty, as I once again found myself firmly entrenched in my muddy quagmire. The heat wave persisted throughout the week until late that Friday afternoon, when it seemed to be reaching breaking point. Sitting in the water was no doubt the best place to be in terms of escaping the heat, but the light was about to fade and soon I would have to leave the waterhole and return to camp for another impatient night of torment. Just as I was about to pull my rear end free from the muddy bottom and begin my trek back up the escarpment, my ever-faithful pair of Egyptian Geese leapt from the bank and hit the water with furious honking and hissing. Wondering what on earth had alarmed the geese, I quickly scanned the horizon, only to see two full-grown lionesses sauntering purposefully towards the water. This was it, I thought: eight months of literal blood, sweat and tears and now finally, my chance to ‘get it right’?

"Lowering my head, I scanned my camera settings and pushed my film to cope with the lowering levels of light. Looking up again, I was horrified to see two desperately thirsty lionesses lapping away at great pace a mere five meters in front of me. I recall noticing their piercing yellow eyes and their bulging muscles, which seemed to tower above me. Had I been standing, my knees would have been knocking! Was it possible that the two felines had not noticed me? My subconscious being had decided that this was highly improbable, which manifested itself through the uncontrollable shaking of my hands. Unknowingly, my adrenal glands had been pumping adrenaline into my body, which now needed to escape but had nowhere to go, as I had to sit motionless. The result was that my hands began to shake vigorously, in such a way that even my vibration reduction technology would have been rendered utterly useless. Closing my eyes and lowering my head, I became conscious of the irony unfolding before me. Here I was, after months of patience and preparation, with my ultimate shot just meters away and no way to capture the image?

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Greg du Toit