The split-second moment a bull elephant explodes in dust, this amazing image just won Travel Photographer of the Year

A colossal bull elephant erupts in a cloud of dust, frozen in perfect clarity at the exact moment everything aligns – and this powerful monochrome image by Dana Allen has now been crowned Travel Image of the Year at the prestigious Travel Photographer of the Year (TPOTY) awards.

Shot using a Sony Alpha mirrorless camera paired with a 200-600mm telephoto lens, the photograph stands out for its extraordinary timing and detail: every grain of dust, every crease in the elephant's skin, and – crucially – the animal's sharply visible eye come beautifully together.

It's this split-second clarity that ultimately earned Allen the Travel Image of the Year title, as well as the Winner – One Shot: Travel in Monochrome category.

Chosen from more than 20,000 entries across 160 countries, his photograph topped one of the most competitive travel photography contests in the world.

Allen, a seasoned wildlife photographer and founder of PhotoSafari, has spent more than three decades living and working across Southern, Central, and Eastern Africa. His work has previously been recognized by awards like the Wildlife Photographer of the Year, making this latest win a continuation of an already remarkable career.

About the winning shot

The image was captured in the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, Tanzania, a UNESCO World Heritage Site renowned for its dense wildlife populations and dramatic landscapes.

Allen's photograph shows a massive bull elephant bathing himself in dust – a natural behavior used to protect his skin from insects and the sun – captured in a fraction of a second, when everything aligned.

That visible eye – clear, sharp, and expressive amid the chaos – transforms the frame into a portrait.

The TPOTY praised the image for its razor-sharp timing, saying: "Sometimes photography is about the defining moment, and you don't get much more defining than this.

"A fraction of a second earlier or later and the elephant’s eye is obscured, and it becomes simply a picture of dust."

A winning gear combination

Capturing moments this precise demands equipment that can keep up – and Allen relied on a proven photography setup.

The image was captured using a Sony A1 II, alongside the Sony FE 200-600mm f/5.6-6.3 G OSS.

With its full-frame sensor performance, dependable AF tracking (autofocus) and stabilization, Sony's Alpha system proved perfectly suited to capturing a moment like this.

Paired with Sony's super-telephoto zoom – a lens prized by wildlife photographers – Allen gained exceptional reach, sharpness, and optical stabilization.

Shooting at 1/750 sec, f/6.7, ISO 1000, the shutter speed ensured crisp detail, while the telephoto compression added drama and scale to the scene.

If you want to explore more winning images, please visit the Travel Photographer of the Year website.

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