Crew Almost Felt 'the Breath of the Lion'

May 18, 2008 — -- On the Serengeti in Eastern Africa, lions rule.

Amid the zebra, wildebeest, rhinoceroses, gazelles and cheetahs roaming nearly 11,500 square miles of Tanzanian and Kenyan plains, mountains and forests, lions raise their young, hunt their prey and feed on their kill.

"I see the Serengeti as a place that exists as if humankind never did," wildlife photographer and independent film producer Andy B. Casagrande IV told ABC News. "You walk through there and it's as if you're in another world. It's definitely the animal kingdom."

Yet Casagrande, 30, spent over three months there.

One of the world's premier wildlife photographers, Casagrande lived in the middle of lion territory for some 13 weeks, documenting the lives of one of Africa's largest prides, or groups, of lions -- a "superpride," consisting of two adult males, eight full-grown lionesses and 12 cubs. He and his team shot their material for a National Geographic special that will air tonight.

Also, watch ABC News' report on the special tonight on "World News." Check your local listings for air time.

"I very much prefer filming animals over people," Casagrande told ABC News. "I feel that most animals are at a disadvantage against the superhuman species. So if anyone's going to be on their team I'd like it to be me and other conservationists."

The Serengeti is not an easy place to work, and this wasn't an assignment for the faint of heart.

Unlike traditional wildlife photographers who use mostly long lenses and keep a safe distance from the animals they film, Casagrande and his team got close to their subjects.

"People want you to be right up there in the action," said Casagrande. "So we get as close as we possibly can without interfering with the animal's natural behavior."

At times, that meant getting within 10 feet of the ferocious felines.

"You could … almost feel the breath of the lion on your hands as you're filming them," Casagrande said. "We had a few times when we got growls from the lions. It just let us know, 'Hey, this is our kill. Back off.' And we would stand our ground and stay where we were."

During filming, Casagrande and his team lived in a rough camp right in the African wilderness, where they could hear hyenas and lions stalking past the front door, or within feet of the outdoor shower they used.

"One time when I was showering, I heard a lioness calling; [she] must have been calling for her cubs," Casagrande told ABC News. "[It was] quite close to where I was. I was so sort of freaked that I bolted back to the camp naked, covered in soap, and I demanded the crew move the shower closer to the house. ... They all made fun of me, but I was happy not to be showering with the lions any longer."

In spite of such seemingly close calls, the crew rarely felt threatened while filming the predators, Casagrande said. The key, he added, was to know when to back off.

"It's just like with sharks," he told ABC News.

Casagrande spent years photographing great whites and their kin before turning to land-based carnivores.

"You can read their body behavior and language," he said of the lions. "They kind of let you know. If a lion growls at you and bares its teeth … it's telling you, you know, don't get any closer or you're going to see these teeth a little closer than you'd like."

And, as Casagrande described it, over time a kind of mutual respect developed between the lions and their photographer.

"I won't lie, there's definitely times that I really felt quite bad for the prey items," said Casagrande, who witnessed at least 10 lion "kills" while in the Serengeti, in addition to a number of cheetah, hyena and even crocodile slays.

But, he added, "lions are cool, because they kill their prey quite quickly and they'll silence it. And it dies quite quickly. Whereas hyenas, they just start tearing bits off and eating the prey alive.

"I have a lot of respect for lions," Casagrande said, "in that they seem to have a humane killing standard."

"Superpride" first aired on National Geographic Channel tonight at 6 p.m. and will be shown again on May 22.