Leopard storm!

The cyclone gave me company all through my journey from Hyderabad to Kabini, and even after reaching Kabini, the storm showed no signs of calming down. I remember me and Praveen Siddannavar discussing about "sacrificing" the first evening safari and forgetting all about cat sightings. The major part of the drive into the jungle went that way: lots of birds, deer and other herbivores but no trace of cats. With just about 15 minutes to go in the safari, our driver spotted this elusive Leopard resting in the canopy. He seemed to be comfortable with our presence and made no effort to hide himself. Of course, the unfortunate part was that the light was extremely low but then one wouldn't mind photographing Leopards even in darkness. At the end of the day, it wasn't the real cyclone but the Leopard that took us by storm!

Later discussions with a few friends in Kabini resulted in a conclusion that this Leopard was actually a new male in the area and ours was the first ever sighting of him. A local and a dear friend from Kabini also commented that there was another big and strong resident male Leopard in the area and he wouldn't expect this young male to stay around for long.

Canon EOS 7D, Canon EF 30 f/2.8 L IS II USM + 1.4x extender III | f/4, ISO 2500, 1/40sec, EC -1, evaluative metering, handheld | Kabini, November 2012.

Nice pose and eye contact. Is this a crop? Thanks for sharing.

Thanks Mrudul. yes this is a crop, but a small one. It is approximately 92% of the original frame.

Cheers

Nice sighting under difficult conditions. Lovely pose and composition. A short write-up extends our imagination and a thought creeps into the mind as if we were also there.Thanks for sharing.SaktiWild

Nice pose & eye contact.Nice feel in the image.
TFS

Nice shot.Clear and Sharp.
Relaxing position by Forward Right Leg.
Eyes are telling take more photographs and love us.