Below the Surface

$110.00

Maasai Mara, Kenya 2023

They were in the river checking the area. Only their eyes and the curve of the back showing above the water. I wanted to photograph them at eye level. Hippos are aggressive so we had to keep a safe distance and work from there. What I was after was the balance between the two and the low light on the water — it made the scene feel dramatic, a little mysterious. With an animal that is mostly hidden you only get what it gives you.

Format is something I think about a lot in the field. This one wanted to be panoramic. The water needed space around the animals, the reflections, the dark surface, the light on the back of the bigger one. A tight crop would have killed it. When I press the shutter I am already seeing the print on a wall.

This image belongs to The Heart of the Wild. The whole thing started long before the trip, when I was a kid in Greece watching The Lion King. First time I felt something for wildlife. I couldn't put a name on it then. The Mara stayed in my head for years as a place from films and documentaries, far away from me. Then one day I was on a small plane from Nairobi watching the plains open up below.

Black and white is always my main choice. In a scene like this it takes everything else away and leaves the wet skin, the eyes above the water, the dark of the river. Nothing around to pull at you.

Maasai Mara, Kenya 2023

They were in the river checking the area. Only their eyes and the curve of the back showing above the water. I wanted to photograph them at eye level. Hippos are aggressive so we had to keep a safe distance and work from there. What I was after was the balance between the two and the low light on the water — it made the scene feel dramatic, a little mysterious. With an animal that is mostly hidden you only get what it gives you.

Format is something I think about a lot in the field. This one wanted to be panoramic. The water needed space around the animals, the reflections, the dark surface, the light on the back of the bigger one. A tight crop would have killed it. When I press the shutter I am already seeing the print on a wall.

This image belongs to The Heart of the Wild. The whole thing started long before the trip, when I was a kid in Greece watching The Lion King. First time I felt something for wildlife. I couldn't put a name on it then. The Mara stayed in my head for years as a place from films and documentaries, far away from me. Then one day I was on a small plane from Nairobi watching the plains open up below.

Black and white is always my main choice. In a scene like this it takes everything else away and leaves the wet skin, the eyes above the water, the dark of the river. Nothing around to pull at you.

‘‘You only get what the animal gives you.’’

Below the Surface — black and white hippo fine art print, framed, by Vasilis Moustakas

LIMITED EDITION OF 12

Limited edition of 12 across two sizes. Each size is individually numbered.

Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle fine art paper

45" × 30" unframed

Edition of 6

$3,750

72" × 48" unframed

Edition of 6

$8,950

Prices increase as the edition sells through.

Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle fine art paper. Each print is signed, numbered, and shipped with a certificate of authenticity.

Unframed prints ship flat or rolled depending on size. Framing, acrylic face-mounting, and custom display options available on request.

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FRAMING & DISPLAY OPTIONS