In the midst of the arid harsh beautiful wilderness that is Tsavo East National Park in Kenya, I came across a herd of elephants around a waterhole. They had walked for miles across a barren landscape dusted with the red soil of Tsavo in 34-degree heat. This female wondered to the edge of the waterhole and started her ablutions. Whilst she was definitely enjoying splashing in the cool water and mud, I came to realise there was a methodical ritual unfolding before my eyes, not dissimilar to human personal cleaning rituals in the shower. It was also like watching a painter working on his canvas as she slowly changed from reddish grey to black with each splash. I hoped to capture this in the series below.

Thank you! I hope you enjoyed this amazing ritual of elephant bathing as much as I enjoyed photographing it! They are such incredible animals.