A male tiger's face fills the frame, looking directly at the camera with mouth slightly open, showing amber eyes and white facial markings against a blurred green background.

Staredown

Camera: NIKON Z 9
Aperture: f/6.3
Shutter Speed: 1/800s
ISO: 4000
Focal Length: 600mm

I didn’t really expect to have to worry about the 13ft minimum focus distance of my 600mm lens… but when this 250kg tiger walked towards us out of the forest less than 30 feet from our safari jeep, it briefly crossed my mind – before I was again caught up in the magic of seeing one of these amazing cats in their own domain.