The Real Simba

Marlon du Toit

Title: The Real Simba

Small: Unframed: 111cm x 138cm / Framed 143cm x 170cm 

Large: Unframed 148cm x 180cm / Framed 180cm x 212cm 

Archival Pigment Print

Limited edition of 10 prints for each size, signed by the Artist and delivered with a certificate of Authenticity.

About:

Since 2014, I’ve returned time and again to Ndutu in the Southern Serengeti — a land I know intimately, a place where lions thrive. Here, they live in abundance, sustained by the great migratory herds that bring new life each year. Strong, healthy, and proud, the lions of Ndutu are among the finest in Africa.

On a cool morning, I encountered a young male who stopped me in my tracks. In him, I saw something familiar, something iconic. He was the embodiment of Simba, the lion of our imaginations, brought to life in the wild. His stance was regal, his eyes steady with youthful confidence, his mane just beginning to form.

I lowered my camera to the earth, allowing him to rise above me in the frame. From this perspective, his presence became towering, his spirit unmistakable.

In that instant, I wasn’t simply photographing a lion. I was witnessing a character from story and legend made real — the living, breathing Simba of Ndutu.