Wildlife photographer Dave Kiely is used to keeping his distance, using a zoom lens to capture animals in stunning detail from afar. But one of his most intimate photo sets came from him stepping away entirely — and letting luck take over.
While on a tour of Patagonia, in South America, Kiely happened upon a puma’s recent meal on the rolling terrain. Knowing the puma was likely to return to the spot to finish eating, Kiely set up a motion-activated camera to record the scene.
Checking the camera later on, Kiely was stunned.
Upon returning to his prey, the puma instead decided to settle down directly in front of Kiely’s camera.
In a way, the puma then began taking selfies.
“It felt like witnessing a private moment in the wild rather than an encounter,” Kiely told The Dodo.
After letting out an epic yawn, the puma then plopped over to enjoy a peaceful snooze.
“I never expected the puma to be sleeping next to the camera,” Kiely said. “It truly was unexpected.”
The puma, unaware he was being photographed, was completely at ease.
“Seeing the puma at rest was striking,” Kiely said. “There was no tension or alarm — just quiet confidence. The image captured a side of the animal people rarely see: calm, composed and completely at home.”
Kiely enjoyed photographing pumas so much that he plans to return to Patagonia soon in hopes of gathering more stunning images like the ones above.
And, perhaps, there’ll be more surprises.
“Nature does give us some unexpected moments,” Kiely said.
To see more impressive wildlife photographs, follow Dave Kiely on Instagram.
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