Smithsonian magazine's 22nd Annual Photo Contest | Made possible through the support of MPB.com

22nd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Natural World
Kilimanjaro Queen

A lioness strides past the iconic Mount Kilimanjaro, fixated on her search for the next meal. Capturing this image took three separate trips to Amboseli—it takes a lot of luck for everything to align. The lioness had to position herself perfectly in front of the mountain, and most importantly, Kilimanjaro had to emerge from behind its often-elusive veil of clouds.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 09.2024
Date Uploaded: 12.2024
Photo Location: Kenya
Camera: ILCE-7M4
Copyright: © Michael Stavrakakis