Clarissa Human, Hazards of orchid hunting (ANIMALS 2022)

A completely unexpected encounter with a Carpet Python that was sunbathing on a granite outcrop. During my almost single-minded pursuit of orchids, my awareness is concentrated on finding the shapes and colours of wild orchids but, unfortunately, this makes me vulnerable to hazards underfoot. So, it was quite a surprise to suddenly notice this beautiful specimen less than a metre away from me, its response to my presence was to rear up defensively but as soon as we both realized there was no danger, it settled down and I began taking photos with my Canon 100mm macro lens.

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.