The giant Komodo Dragon is the largest lizard species on the planet, found only on a small group of islands in the Indonesian archipelago. Theo Allofs closed in on one for a remarkable photographic assignment.
The Komodo dragon is the world’s largest lizard. Known to grow as long as three metres and weigh up to 150kg, the Komodo has survived on the Lesser Sunda Islands in Indonesia for millions of years. This powerful reptile seems like a relic of the dinosaur era. Today almost all Komodo dragons live on the islands of Komodo, Rinca and Flores with the current population estimated to be between 3000 and 4000. Habitat loss as well as illegal hunting of deer (their main prey) have been the key factors responsible for their declining numbers.
A few years ago I was looking forward to visiting Komodo Island for a week to observe and photograph the dragons in their natural habitat. I learned through my guide that a number of people had been killed by the dragons, their remains never found. I also learned to my surprise that these large reptiles don’t directly kill their prey with their teeth and strong jaws. Unfortunately for the victim the death is slow. The dragon’s saliva teems with over 50 different kinds of bacteria and the victim usually dies of blood poisoning within 24 hours. There is some scientific dispute as to whether the dragons release venom which helps kill their prey. Among the reptile’s prey are deer, smaller dragons and even buffalo!
It has been observed by local fisherman that the dragons sometimes chase deer into the ocean. They then patrol the beach until the exhausted animal comes back on shore too weak to escape. I found this story fascinating and I wanted to photograph a dragon on the beach walking along the water’s edge. Two local fishermen helped me with the shoot. My goal was to portray the dragon in such a way that it would do its name and size justice. In order to achieve this I had to lie flat on the ground to get a low-angle shot. I also needed to wait until the Komodo dragon was close enough so that its head was at an impressive angle above my own head. My guides’ English was very poor and they only spoke a few words. But one sentence they learned to perfection during the days they helped me with the dragon shoot was, “Be careful, Theo! Be careful!”
To capture this tight shot of the Komodo Dragon, Theo Allofs needed patience, timing, and nerves of steel. These lizards, the largest on the planet, have been known to eat humans, so capturing this shot from a low angle was only safe with the use of a telephoto lens.
