Delaney's Journal: Stories from the Wild
Step behind the lens and into the narrative of each photograph.
Discover the rare moments, raw emotion, and artistic vision that define these timeless black and white artworks.
A Secret Love Affair with Landscapes
"Step into the haunting beauty of Southern Africa with five evocative fine art prints. From the fiery sands of Dune 45 and stormy Karoo skies to the skeletal trees of Deadvlei, Giant’s Playground quiver trees, and the ancient baobab, each image captures a quiet, timeless dialogue with the land."
Landscape photography has always lived quietly alongside my wildlife work. While black and white remain my natural language, there are moments when the land speaks so clearly that it refuses to be stripped back. This small collection brings together five such images, two in colour, three in black and white, bound by contrast, memory, and an enduring pull toward Africa’s open spaces.
Dune on Fire, Dune 45, Sossusvlei, Namibia
A Moment When the Desert Came Alive
“For those who seek the desert’s soul, where wind and sand ignite the earth in a tapestry of fire.”
Dune 45 is one of the most photographed dunes in the world, and finding something personal within such an iconic place is never easy. The constant flow of visitors, climbing from morning through late afternoon, often leaves little room for solitude. But every so often, patience is rewarded.
Late one afternoon, as a sandstorm rolled in, everyone fled for cover. Suddenly, the desert was empty. Alone with the dunes, I watched as the wind erased every trace of human presence, smoothing the sand back into something ancient.
I reached instinctively for my 600mm lens, a choice shaped by years as a wildlife photographer, and crouched behind my 4x4 as the wind whipped sand through the air. The grains stung my face and eyes, but through the long lens the dunes transformed, glowing red, alive with movement and energy. It was a fleeting moment, raw and elemental, shared with my wife Nicolinah, and one we will never forget.
This image, Dune on Fire, is not about a place so much as a moment when nature briefly reclaimed itself. It later received recognition at the Memorial Maria Luisa Competition, but its real value lies in what it gave us that evening, solitude, intensity, and awe.
Storm Over the Karoo, Mountain Zebra, South Africa
For those who yearn for Africa’s dramatic soul.
“For Those Who Carry the Karoo in Their Heart and The Sound of Rain on Dust, Forever”
If Dune on Fire speaks of heat and desolation, Storm Over the Karoo is its natural counterpoint. Together they form a quiet dichotomy, the same harsh land revealed through opposing states of being.
The Karoo has always held a special place for me. Its vast openness and silence bring a deep sense of calm. Yet on a trip to Mountain Zebra National Park, that stillness was broken by a storm of almost biblical scale. Dark clouds built rapidly over the parched land. Thunder rolled across the plains. Lightning tore through the sky.
I had imagined this image for years, but nothing prepares you for witnessing such power firsthand. For a brief window, the land transformed, tension replacing tranquility. This photograph captures that rare convergence, drought meeting deluge, permanence meeting change.
Storm Over the Karoo is a reminder that even the most familiar landscapes can surprise us, revealing strength, drama, and vulnerability in equal measure.
Choje Among the Giants, Giant’s Playground, Namibia
A Monochrome Meditation on Survival in Shadow and Stone
"Beneath the gaze of ancient stone, Choje endures—weathered, bowed, but unbroken."
My relationship with the quiver tree runs deep. Known to the San people as choje, it was once called the Tree of Life, a giver of shade, arrows, and spirit.
At Giant’s Playground, fractured dolerite boulders lie scattered as if tossed by giants, a place steeped in San folklore. Rising among them stands a solitary quiver tree, sculptural and enduring. Cropped low in the frame, the image draws attention to its twisted limbs and architectural form, set against the stark geometry of stone.
Rendered in black and white, the textures of bark and rock become a quiet dialogue. This is not a portrait of abundance, but of survival, a meditation on life persisting where even giants erode.
The Ancient One, Baobab, Kruger, South Africa
Centuries etched in bark, a sentinel of life, endurance, and spirit
“Immerse Yourself in the Echoes of the Past with The Ancient One Baobab Art”
This is not merely a tree; it is a monument to time itself.
Known as the Tree of Life, the baobab is Africa’s great survivor, a symbol of resilience, spiritual energy, and the enduring soul of the wild. Folklore tells of baobabs wandering by night, their spirits frozen in place by the dawn, forever guarding the landscapes they inhabit.
I found this solitary giant standing sentinel in a parched land. Its ancient, textured bark reads like a living map of centuries, etched with the scars of elephants that have sought its moisture and the quiet history of all who have rested in its shade.
This image forms part of a personal quest to document Africa’s grandest life forms, the iconic baobab and the legendary elephant tusker. In this tree, I found both. The Ancient One carries the strength of a tusker and the timeless wisdom of Africa’s megaflora, a testament not only to survival, but to endurance with grace.
May its presence bring a sense of wonder, strength, and deep time into your space.
Spectre of Deadvlei | Namib-Naukluft National Park
Spectre of Deadvlei, A Realm Sculpted by Time
“For those who find beauty in stillness, solitude, and the echoes of forgotten worlds.”
Thirteen years ago, on my first visit to Deadvlei with my partner, now my wife Nicolinah, I sensed the potential of a particular tree. Walking among the dead camelthorn giants before sunrise was hauntingly beautiful, but the image I imagined never quite revealed itself.
Years later, I returned while guiding a client, teaching the art of photography. As we stood at a distance, a sudden gust of wind swept across the clay pan, lifting chalky dust and fine sand into the air. For only a few seconds, the scene transformed.
Handholding a 200mm lens, I managed to capture what I had envisioned all those years before. Through the haze, the tree emerged like a spectre, its skeletal limbs raised against the towering dune behind it. The dust filtered the light into silvery tones, revealing texture, shadow, and form.
Spectre of Deadvlei is a reminder that some images take years to realise. The land remembers, even when we must wait.
“In the heart of the Namib Desert, there lies a place unlike any other, where the sun beats down relentlessly, and the earth stretches out in endless waves of sand. Welcome to Deadvlei.
Nestled amidst towering dunes that rise like ancient sentinels, Deadvlei is a surreal landscape of stark contrasts and haunting beauty. The bleached white clay of the desert floor stretches beneath an impossibly blue sky, while the skeletal remains of ancient camel thorn trees reach skyward, their twisted branches casting long shadows across the barren landscape.
Yet, despite its inhospitable environment, Deadvlei is a place of undeniable beauty—a place where the interplay of light and shadow, texture and form, creates a truly remarkable photographic landscape. Its ethereal beauty has inspired artists, photographers, and writers from around the world. Its striking contrasts and otherworldly forms serve as a muse for creative expression, sparking imagination and stirring the depths of the human spirit.”
These five images represent a quieter side of my work, a long-standing, deeply personal dialogue with the land.
Print Finishes Available | Museum-Quality Archival Materials
Acrylic glass prints with slimline aluminium frames: gold, silver, black, or white
Canvas prints on solid wood stretchers, with optional floating frames
Archival Hahnemühle Unframed Fine Art prints
Free worldwide shipping
If one of these landscapes speaks to you, I invite you to live with it, slowly, honestly, and with space to breathe.
What Is the Tree of Life — And Why These Quiver Trees Matter
Across southern Africa’s deserts, the quiver tree stands as a living symbol of endurance and spirit. Known as the Tree of Life by the San people, its hollow branches once held arrows and its bark offered refuge. Peter Delaney’s latest fine art black-and-white portraits celebrate this iconic aloe’s raw, sculptural beauty and deep cultural significance. From the twisted limbs of Choje in Namibia’s Giant’s Playground to intimate close-ups of bark etched with time, each print evokes survival, myth, and quiet power. Available as archival loose prints, acrylic glass, or gallery canvas, these works invite collectors to bring the spirit of the desert into their space. Elevate your collection with these timeless botanical portraits that honor resilience and ancient tradition.
What Is the Tree of Life — And Why These Quiver Trees Matter
Fine art black-and-white botanical portraits by Peter Delaney
Across the stony deserts of southern Africa, few forms are as instantly arresting as the quiver tree. These towering, sculptural aloes stand in silence, their rosette crowns and twisted limbs carved by millennia of sun, wind and ritual. They are not merely plants; they are sacred, survivors, symbols.
To the San people, this tree was much more than sustenance. They called it the Tree of Life.
Its hollow branches held arrows for the hunt, its bark offered refuge and moisture. Deep in its fibres, they felt the pulse of spirit and memory. In song and folklore, the choje stood as protector, priest, and guardian of truth.
These five new black-and-white portraits celebrate the quiver tree in its elemental glory,
Its strength, its silence, its testament to endurance and spirit.
Canvas with Floating Frame | 160 x 120 cm (62.99 x 47.24 inches)
"Create a Sanctuary of Inspiration with Quiver Tree Black and White Art."
The San and the Tree of Life
Northern Cape, South Africa
"Between root and sky, the San found spirit."
This image is more than portraiture; it is a visual invocation.
Stark and reverent, it frames the sacred connection between the San and the quiver tree.
Its symmetry speaks of balance.
It’s silence of knowing.
A centrepiece of meaning and stillness—an anchor for spiritual collectors and desert dreamers alike.
Whispers Beneath the Tree of Life
"Sculpted by Nature, Captured in Art."
Welcome the Spirit of the Desert Into Your Space
Explore how each image serves as a gateway into a place, myth, and quiet power.
Each print is available in three timeless formats:
Heirloom archival prints on 310 gsm Hahnemühle museum-quality paper
Gallery canvas (hand-stretched on solid timber frames, with optional 15 mm floating frame in black oak, brown elder, natural or white maple)
Luxury acrylic glass prints in crystal-clear floating style with slimline aluminium frames (gold, silver, black or white)
Free worldwide courier shipping on all orders.
Choje Among the Giants
"Transform Your Decor with the Mystical Aura of Quiver Trees."
Choje Among the Giants
Giant’s Playground, Keetmanshoop, Namibia
"Beneath the gaze of ancient stone, Choje endures—weathered, bowed, but unbroken."
In the surreal, time-smoothed chaos of Namibia’s Giant’s Playground, one quiver tree rises, tilted, twisted, and defiant. Known as Choje in the San tongue, this aloe has long been more than a tree.
It is a sacred witness in a land shaped by myth and stone.
This print is a meditation on tension and grace, on the form of survival. Between fractured dolerite sentries, the tree leans but does not fall. It offers no flourish—only presence.
A poetic portrait of endurance beneath weight and time.
The Guardian of Giants
A bold, sculptural centrepiece for interiors drawn to geometry, myth and strength.
The Guardian of Giants
Giant’s Playground, Keetmanshoop, Namibia
"Some trees rise not just from earth, but from legend."
Amid fractured basalt, this quiver tree stands sentinel, still and grand.
For the San, such trees were protectors, vessels of ancestral presence. Its branches once held arrows; its roots hold memory.
A bold, sculptural centrepiece for interiors drawn to geometry, myth and strength.
Tree Of Life | Loose Fine Art Print
A textural, intimate piece for lovers of detail, story, and elemental form.
Tree Of Life | The Bark Remembers
Northern Cape, South Africa
"Each crack tells a story. Each shadow, a silence kept."
Stripped of its rosettes and leaves, this close-up reveals raw bark etched with time.
To the San, the tree held memory in every groove and twist.
A textural, intimate piece for lovers of detail, story, and elemental form.
Resilience | Loose Fine Art Print
A tribute to humble tenacity and sculptural elegance.
Resilience, Bowed but Unbroken
Northern Cape, South Africa
"Even in surrender, there is strength."
Gently leaning, this tree wears its scars with grace.
Its rosettes reach skyward, a testament to quiet defiance. To the San, such a form mirrored their endurance.
A tribute to humble tenacity and sculptural elegance.
Sentinel of the Silent Hills
"Embrace the Desert’s Guardian with Stunning Quiver Tree Prints."
Sentinel of the Silent Hills
Northern Cape, South Africa
"Alone, but never forgotten."
Alone atop a ridge, this quiver tree stands tall, rooted in stone and sky.
Seen by the San as desert guardians, such trees watched over both land and people.
A powerful statement piece, defined by minimalism, presence, and quiet grandeur.
Why These Prints Matter
In a world that races forward, the quiver tree calls us to pause. To consider survival and spirit. To honour what thrives in stillness.
The San understood that the desert does not erase—it remembers.
This series is more than photography. It is a visual prayer.
A way to bring silence into space, myth into form, and endurance into view.xa
Canvas with Floating Frame | 160 x 120 cm (62.99 x 47.24 inches)
"Bring Wisdom and Beauty into Your Home with Quiver Tree Art."
Elevate your collection with one or all of these sacred icons.
Invite stillness. Invite spirit.
Own not just a print, but a portal.