Wayne's Elephant (Special 2:3) - Limited Edition Photograph

She should not have survived.

Born with tusks that curve inwards rather than out, this matriarch faced a challenge few elephants do. Unable to lift her trunk in the usual way, she had to teach herself an entirely new way to eat, weaving her trunk through the gap between her tusks—an instinctive adaptation that ensured her survival.

Adam first saw her on his arrival at Rhino Safari Camp, set along the shores of Lake Kariba. He knew immediately that she was special, but each time he tried to approach, she would vanish into the bush, wary of human presence in a land that had not always been kind to her kind.

For days, he searched. Each sighting was fleeting, each attempt to capture her portrait ended in a blur of movement. Then, on the final evening of the final day, just as the last light faded, she stepped in front of him. Still. Watching. Trusting—if only for a moment.

The result is Wayne’s Elephant, a portrait unlike any other. The inward-curving tusks frame her face in a way that no other elephant portrait could. Her gaze is piercing, wise, filled with a lifetime of hardship and resilience. The black-and-white tones amplify every crease, every scar, every texture of her weathered skin, allowing the viewer to feel her presence—close enough to touch.

This image is as rare as she is. A testament to survival, adaptation, and the quiet, enduring power of the wild.