The moment a Great Ape stops to pose for the camera

By Rebecca Chitolie

BREATH-TAKING images of a proud Sumatran orangutan posing in its natural habitat have been captured from only 13 feet away.

Pictures show the great ape as it sits nestled among the twisted vines of a Strangler Fig tree in Indonesia.

Other images reveal an orangutan with its young manoeuvring around the trees and in one shot the youngster can be seen hanging upside down.  Additional pictures show the orangutans staring quizzically into the camera, and relaxing on the ground.

The Sumatran orangutan is almost exclusively arboreal, living among the trees of tropical rainforests.  Females virtually never travel on the ground and adult males do so rarely.

Their name is derived from the Malay words meaning, “person of the forest”.

Habitat loss from the destruction of Borneo and Sumatra’s rainforests, illegal killing, and wildfires are the biggest threat driving orangutans toward extinction. Sumatran orangutans are sadly critically endangered.

Marco Gaiotti (41) Associate Professor at the University of Genova, Italy, took these images using a Canon EOS R5 with EF 16-35 f/2.8 III lens in the Gunung Leuser National Park, in Sumatra, Indonesia.

Marco was six to 13 feet away from the orangutan which weighed approximately 200lbs and he explained how he felt after he captured the images.  

“There are not many trees of this type in that forest, and this was definitely the most beautiful one I had the chance to observe in my days in the park,” said Marco.

“Furthermore, the photos were taken just before sunset and in partially cloudy conditions, consequently the light was strongly softened, improving the result in the photo.

“I had the feeling that the photos were interesting for the set where I was able to take the shots.

Marco captured these images while on a ten day trek in the Gunung Leuser National Park with the help of a local guide.

“The goal of the trek was to find and photograph a large male orangutan,” said Marco.

“At the edge of the park live many females with cubs which are accustomed to the human presence.

“The males tend to live further inland and finding them can be difficult.

“They’re not accustomed to humans, and so approaching these large males is not always easy.

“After eight days of searching we managed to find this large male, completely relaxed on a strangler fig.”

Marco described the moment of the capture.

“He was completely relaxed and quite curious about our presence,” said Marco.

“After a very cautious and patient approach we managed to position ourselves a few meters from the animal and observe its behaviour.

“The animal moved at a low height from the ground clinging from one tree to another, until it found this immense strangler fig, on which it decided to rest for a while.

“It remained almost still on this tree for about half an hour.

Marco described what he loves most about shots like this.

“I like to show the interaction between wildlife and the environment, especially when I’m dealing with animals at critical risk of extinction, such as this case,” said Marco.

“In fact, many of the species at risk are affected by the disappearance of the habitat in which they live, and using landscape elements to give strength to the photographic composition tends to emphasize this connection.

“When you are so close to an animal of this size, and potentially dangerous, you are very fascinated by what you have in front of you, but at the same time you have to keep your attention high and perceive all the signals that may indicate stress on the part of the animal.

“The presence of expert local guides who know how to perceive these signals promptly is essential in these cases.”

“People are fascinated by my images of the large animal and its peculiar pose.”