The Black Leopard: My Quest to Photograph One of Africa’s Most Elusive Big Cats

by Will Burrard-Lucas

This inspiring book tells the story of a photographer's journey to find the mysterious black leopard.

There are few creatures as gorgeous and elusive as the black leopard. In Africa, these magnificent cats are so rare as to be the stuff of legend. Will Burrard-Lucas's love for leopards began during his childhood in Tanzania and propelled him into a career as a wildlife photographer. In his quest to create intimate portraits of animals, he developed innovative technology, including a remotely controlled camera buggy and a high quality camera trap system for photographing nocturnal creatures. Then, one day in 2018, he heard about sightings of a young African black leopard in Kenya and with the help of people from the local community, he succeeded in capturing a series of high-quality photographs of the elusive cat. In this compelling and visually stunning book, Burrard-Lucas tells his story of creativity, entrepreneurship, and passion for wild animals, alongside awe-inspiring images of lions, elephants, and the black leopard itself.

• STAR WILDLIFE Will Burrard-Lucas's passion for nature and expertise in camera technology have earned him coverage from National Geographic, The New York Times , and the BBC—and over 1 million fans enjoy his breathtaking work online.
• NATURE'S HIDDEN Black leopards are individual animals in whom a gene mutation results in excess melanin and an elegant black coat. Most are found in Southeast Asia, where lush vegetation offers them camouflage. In the semiarid shrub lands of Africa, black leopards are extraordinarily rare. Burrard-Lucas's images—showing these beautiful creatures prowling their territory under cover of night—are vivid reminders of nature's hidden wonders.
• INCREDIBLE This is an adventure story that takes place in remote and wild corners of Africa. It reveals Burrard-Lucas's devotion, vision, and innovation that led to him capturing photos that are not only incredibly rare, but also breathtakingly beautiful.

Perfect

• Aspiring and professional photographers
• Photography buffs
• Nature and animal lovers
• Big cat enthusiasts
• Conservationists
• National Geographic readers
• Fans of memoir and adventure stories
• Travelers to Eastern and Southern Africa

Genres: Nature, Nonfiction, Cats

208 pages, Hardcover

Published March 2, 2021

About the author

Will Burrard-Lucas is a British wildlife photographer and conservationist.

Reviews

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is no other animal as enigmatic, mysterious and elusive as the black panther, and like me the author developed an obsession for this creature, for him the holy grail of wild animal sightings. This book tells the full story behind the stunning images of the individual Burrard-Lucas photographed (remotely) over several weeks in Kenya. Almost studio-like in the stillness of the cat against the sparse backdrop of an African night sky, the photos are truly spectacular and the result of a confluence of factors and culmination of a life time's practice as a wildlife photographer.

I am thankful for these rare and beautiful shots shared by the author, shots that demanded a high level of technical expertise as well as knowledge of animal behaviour and movement to set up. As for the book, a large part was a brief autobiography of his journey from childhood right up to the events around those images, which was strictly speaking extraneous to the core subject.

[Robert Mulvihill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book, well-written and, of course, with impressive photographs. The author, with help from family and lots of good contacts in Africa, manages to realize his dream of photographing a black leopard. In fact, he succeeds beyond his dreams!

[Ambur Taft · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome life story, amazing pictures, fantastic book!

[Joan Baslow-Temple · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just beautiful.

[Bryce Kirkham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember clearly the first time I saw the National Geographic post that said something along the lines of "first black leopard spotted in Africa in over 100 years" and the strikingly beautiful image of the leopard at night that accompanied it. As you'll read in this book, the post's heading wasn't entirely accurate and Mr. Burrard-Lucas only claimed to have taken the first high-quality images from a camera trap of a black leopard in Africa. Even so, the heading and image certainly grabbed my attention as I am a huge nature lover and leopards are my favorite animal with the melanistic ones in particular being of great interest to me. I found myself wanting to learn more about this story and the black leopard that it was about and somewhere during my internet browsing I found out there was going to be a book by none other than Will Burrard-Lucas! I instantly pre-ordered my copy and now having read the book, I think it's a masterpiece. Not only will you find stunning photographs of the African landscape and some of it's rarest animals such as the black leopard himself, Ethiopian wolves, "tusker" elephants, black rhinos, lions etc. but the writing here is also engaging, always interesting and informative. In particular, I found the sections detailing how he created the BeetleCam (and the pesky lions and elephants who destroyed it) very interesting as it has become very well-known and it was great to see the creative process and innovation that went into it. The chapter detailing his work in night photography I also thought was outstanding and had some of my favorite images with the hyena in the rain and crocodile with the stars backdrop really standing out to me. Of course though, the black leopard is the star here and the sections detailing his capture of this incredibly elusive and breathtakingly beautiful predator were riveting and filled with hope and that sense of magical wonder that only the untamed natural world can bring. And the images are the best of any black leopard I have ever seen and I was blown away while flipping through these pages time and again. Overall, this is a fantastic book about hope, determination, human spirit and innovation, and most importantly, the wild beauty of our natural world and why we must protect and cherish it at all costs. Cannot recommend this highly enough.

[Anne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely beautiful book with an interesting story of the author's career in the photography of wild and exotic animals. All the pictures are amazing and the story as a whole held my attention, but it was the black leopard himself that drew me in. As someone who volunteers at a big cat sanctuary that rescues abused and neglected big cats, hearing stories of these cats in the wild and seeing how magnificent they are in actual wild photos is so uplifting. And leopards - especially melanistic ones - are my favorite by far. I'm so happy to see this wild big cat's story told and his picture shared.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible book with some of the most magical photography i have ever seen. Very relatable if you have spent a huge amount of time on safari searching for your favourite animals and also associate the African continent with adventure and the thrill of being alive. The African black leopard is much rarer and more elusive than the Asian black panther and these photographs proved the existence of a what was previously a mythical creature. I might try my luck next in the Aberdare ranges or Mount Kenya!

[Hen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not much on coffee table books, but ill make a wholehearted exception for this one. Great wildlife pics along with an autobiography made this very interesting to me, and the photos are best in large format. I follow willbl on Instagram and this explains how he came up with the beetlecam and photo "traps". All revolving around his successful search for pics of black leopards in Africa and India.

[Iftekhar Naim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best photography books I've ever read! Will Burrard-Lucas is not only an incredible photographer, he is also an extra ordinary story teller. From the first page to the last, it beautifully narrates his photographic journey. With breathtaking photographs and equally captivating back stories, the books would blow away any nature lover's mind!

[Andrew Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

My wife and I are huge wildlife enthusiasts and photographers. We have also visited Africa a few times so this book scratched many itches. Absolutely amazing photographs and a nice story tying them together.

[Tamás Borbás · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book with beautiful photos and an amazing story. I also learnt a few things what I can use myself.

[Vincent Goosen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and inspiring, both the images and the story.

[Paul Lehane · Rating 5 out of 5]

A magical book..& great companion piece to Peter Matthiessen's 1978 classic Snow Leopard

[Holly Brantley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing photography and story to go with it. If you love animals and exceptional photos, check it out!

[Jose · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have the 2 different cover versions of the book, slightly different covers. One is signed as well, regardless of cover the dustjacket once removed has beautiful binding under. So I got 3 books, the text isn't completely on said black leopard and only a few photos. It's more self-serving and then talks about theClimtatemyth. Once you get to the photos it's what is worth it about the book. Disappointing otherwise. For a good read I'd recommend Kenneth Anger book The Black Panther of Sivanipalli, of which i have an orginal but which has been rereleased alot and for documentary on disney NatGeo recent release The Real Black Panther which I had burnt for me on a disc because sadly national geographic have yet to release it on bluray

[Marcus Workman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rarely write reviews unless the book is a special one! I could not put this book down, the photography is truly breathtaking, especially the black leopard shots. I also found the back story of Will extremely interesting and the lead up to the final quest of the camera trap shots of Blacky the male melanistic leopard. Just the front cover of this beautiful hardback catches your eye from across the room on a bookshelf. I look forward to reading the Authors other book after enjoying this one so much. Highly recommend this book to anyone with a love of adventure, photography or the natural world!!!