Two Tigers on the Riverbed

the story

I found them out in the open, on a wide bed of grey pebbles and river-worn stones where there was nowhere to hide. The tigress was down, stretched low against the ground, clearly tired after hunting for food the whole day. Her sister's cub was clearly not that tired.

the encounter

The pair filled a small part of a very large frame of stone and dust, and I let the emptiness stay in the picture. The cub stood over the resting tigress, both heads turned towards each other. The light was flat and cool, which suited the scene. Against all that grey, the tigers' warm coats and heavy black striping did all the work.