I am Lorraine Ralfe, a child of Africa.

Africa is in my blood.

Africa is my heartbeat.

 

I was conceived in Northern Rhodesia, now Zambia, in Central Africa. My parents lived in the little mining village of Luanshya where medical services were an hour’s drive away. So my journey through Africa began. Just before my due arrival date, my Mother traveled by train for three days and three nights to the medical net South Africa provided.

 

As a 5 day old baby we again meandered by rail on our journey back to the North.

Some time along the road I must have fallen in love with the filigree leaves of the canopy of Acacias and the broad girth of Baobabs, black maned lions, the silent tread of elephants and the gentle swaying of wild flowers that hold me captive still.

 

I cannot imagine a time without a camera; though do remember fixing an early version of a Brownie Box Camera with the inside plastic sheath of a Bic pen; I was 10 years old then. My earlier cameras made way for more sophisticated models and my years added a maturity to my work. I remain a Naturalist. Out before Sunrise and toasting the end of the day’s shoot in the last rays of a closing sun; became my working hours. Africa, my canvas.

 

Though I feel a part of Africa, and know that Africa is a part of me, as it has been all my life; I am never jaded. There is no lull in the excitement, no getting used to the sensations. I am constantly intrigued by the beauty the beasts and wildflowers hold. The visual spectrum reveals their natural harmony with their surroundings. The spirit of my subjects is what captivates and grasps my excitement.

 

To silently sit and blend with each subject. To Be. I become one with their heartbeat. That is the moment I yearn to capture. It is the moment of Grace. Where the distance between us is compressed in shutter time. It is then that I feel the euphoria that is Life.

The life of a delicate wild flower or the mighty lion at dawn as he weaves through grass wet with dew to his place of rest before the midday sun beats down on him.

 

I do not notice my camera. The moment is a union between the subject and my pulse. A knowing that it is now as it surely was then. A timeless second and sense of connectedness to a life shared. Time stands still for me … often. With each image indescribable joy yields forth the soul of my images. There is much of me in my work. An expression of how I feel as I enter the space of another and the daring to interpret the union of our souls which unite in the image.

 

My images speak of movement and moment; of spirit and sensuality. The beauty that unravels in my images is the gift I share with those too distant to witness for themselves, or those who do, and have the need to tie into the memory. The images are evocative of Africa, a continent of harshness and abundance. The gentle lilt of a zebra crossing the plains, the gentle swaying of a fragile petal thousands of miles away in the semi desert region of Namaqualand.

 

The awesome unfolding of Spring in Namaqualand as the arid soils unleashes an abundance and profusion of colour and pollen. Surely one of Life’s greatest contrasts.

Fragile life in tiny petals bloom untethered and unfettered for all to drink from. It is here too that the miracle that is Life bewitches me. The incredible urge to record this colourful carpet in all its greatness absorbs my being.

 

A rainbow tapestry of petals fall under my tread as I search for the diversity of subjects that yield their crowning glory to the midday sun. Each rainy season lures me to explore the depths and fragrance of the flowers.

 

There is another season for me each year as I follow the game paths of wildlife in Tanzania, Kenya, Botswana, Rwanda, Uganda and South Africa. Paths that have been ambled on for centuries by hooves and paws that are offered to you through my lens. My work is a visual thread of Africa. We have a debt to pay to this beautiful continent we inhabit. Africa is abundant. The biodiversity which is our tapestry, is exquisite, bountiful and varied. Africa teams with life.

 

As a Naturalist, I come to life with each breath I take daily. Every morning the majestic Table Mountain in Cape Town calls my name as I inhale my first life giving breath for the day. The mountain’s magnetism draws me in and my passion is ignited; as in the plains and grasslands of the bushveld of Africa.

 

The smell of Africa fuels me with longing to capture the essence of its life through my lens. In the intimacy of my connection with Africa, comes the realization of my obligation to share my vision, and the spirit of Africa as captured in my images. It is this intimacy that I share with you…. Senses of Africa.

 

www.lorraineralfe.com/blog/