Meet The Pro: Pusetso Nteta

In this episode of the Pangolin Podcast, host Toby Jermyn chats to Pangolin’s own photo host, Pusetso “Miss P” Nteta, a young and exciting Botswana native who has grown from short term intern status to full-time guide and excellent wildlife photographer. She chats about her journey, her goals and her favourite photographs.

Here is a link to a gallery of Pusetso’s images: https://pangolin.smugmug.com/SmugMug-Website/Website-Pages/Meet-the-Pro-Pusetso-Nteta

Since the recording of this episode, Pusetso has gotten married and going forward will be using the name Pusetso Whittle. We wish her a hearty congratulations!

Connect with Pusetso:
• https://www.pangolinphoto.com/pusetso-nteta
• https://www.instagram.com/pusetso_whittle_photography/

The Pangolin Podcast was produced and edited by Bella Falk: https://www.passportandpixels.com

In this podcast, Pusetso discusses her journey to becoming a photo host at Pangolin, her four favourite photographs, and her passion for wildlife and Chobe. She also talks about being mentored by Janine Krayer - https://www.pangolinphoto.com/janine-krayer

Pusetso chats about how shows uses Adobe Lightroom Classic for editing. Click here to take a FREE online course from Pangolin Photo Academy - https://link.pangolinphoto.com/4adTGhB

Pusetso also co-presents Wildlife Photography for Beginners, another great FREE online course on the Pangolin Photo Academy website https://link.pangolinphoto.com/3Me8PY2

00:00 Introduction
01:05 Guest Introduction: Pusetso Nteta
02:30 A Brief History of Pusetso’s Journey
03:47 The First Image: Yellow Billed Stork
09:53 The Second Image: Wild Dogs
19:01 The Third Image: Lions at Sunset
26:23 The Fourth Image: Elephant Silhouette
32:52 The Final Image and Conclusion

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We are Pangolin Wildlife Photography, based in the Chobe, Northern Botswana. When we are not making videos for our channel, we host our guests and clients from all over the world on our Wildlife Photography safaris throughout Botswana and the rest of Africa—and sometimes beyond!

Learn More about our safaris here: https://link.pangolinphoto.com/BZ-Safaris

Chapters

• 3:47 The First Image: Yellow Billed Stork
• 9:53 The Second Image: Wild Dogs
• 19:01 The Third Image: Lions at Sunset
• 26:23 The Fourth Image: Elephant Silhouette
• 32:52 The Final Image

Transcript

Toby says:
Hello and welcome to another brand-new episode of the Pangolin Podcast. I’m your host, Toby Jermyn. Thank you very much for joining me.

In each episode, I invite a professional wildlife photographer to imagine themselves in a remote location. Along with their camera gear, they are allowed to bring five photographs to hang on the wall of their humble dwelling. Four of these must be their own, and the final image is one they admire by another photographer.

If you’re watching this on YouTube, you can see the images as we talk. For audio listeners on other platforms, there is a link in the description to a gallery.

On today’s show, I am joined by someone truly special. Ninety-nine percent of our guests are lovely, but today’s guest is something of a trailblazer and role model—particularly impressive for someone still so young.

In the traditionally male-dominated safari industry in Botswana, she is, as far as we know, Botswana’s first homegrown female wildlife photography guide. Not only does she host guests from around the world, but she also inspires young girls to enter the safari industry.

We are proud to say that we spotted and nurtured her here at Pangolin, where she has been one of our photo hosts for nearly five years. It is, of course, the one and only Miss Pusetso Nteta.

Hello P, how are you today?

Pusetso says:
Hi Toby. I’m good, thank you. How are you?

Toby says:
I’m very well, thank you. For those who may not know, would you like to tell everyone where you are in the world at the moment?

Pusetso says:
I’m at the Pangolin Hotel here in Kasane, in the Chobe—my home, pretty much.

Toby says:
Your home and your office. And it’s rather warm today, so for anyone who can hear a slight hissing sound in the background, we’ve allowed Pusetso to keep the air conditioning on. Otherwise, we’d be watching her expire live on the podcast, which wouldn’t be a great start.

Thank you very much for joining me, P. I believe you’ve literally just said goodbye to a group of photographers. How was your last trip?

Pusetso says:
Yes, I just did. They were wonderful. We were very lucky—we ended with a cheetah, which is an extreme luxury here in the Chobe, and an impala kill. That was just magical.

Toby says:
Cheetahs are incredibly rare here. Leopards and lions, yes—but cheetahs with a kill is something special. Happy clients, then?

Pusetso says:
Very happy clients—and a very happy Pusetso as well.

Toby says:
Perfect. If you are happy and the guests are happy, then everyone’s happy.

Now, we asked you to choose four images from your ever-growing portfolio. How easy—or difficult—did you find that task?

Pusetso says:
It was quite a challenge. I’ve been doing this for some time now, and picking just four was tricky. Some images are very sentimental—not because they’re technically strong, but because they remind me of when I was starting out. Others represent how much I’ve grown. Choosing images from different stages of my journey was difficult.

Image One

Toby says:
Let’s start with your first image. Would you tell the listeners about this photograph?

Pusetso says:
This is an image of a yellow-billed stork with giraffes blurred in the background. The bokeh is soft, and it’s very telling of where you are. A yellow-billed stork and giraffes together is such a classic Chobe scene, especially with a beautiful sunset behind them.

I love yellow-billed storks—they’re some of the most characterful birds we get here. This one is in breeding plumage, with that beautiful pink coming through.

Toby says:
It’s extra special. How long ago did you take this photograph?

Pusetso says:
It’s quite recent—just a few months ago—on a houseboat trip, actually, on the Namibian side of the river.

Toby says:
What was going through your mind as the bird came in?

Pusetso says:
I was using a 400mm f/2.8 at the time. I saw the stork coming in from the side and noticed the giraffes in the background. I love playing with bokeh, so I thought, “I have this amazing lens—let’s see what I can get.”

I had to think quickly: exposure, shutter speed, positioning. It landed at just the right moment. Only one or two frames were sharp, but it worked.

Toby says:
Which body were you using?

Pusetso says:
The Canon R6 Mark II.

Toby says:
As the stork approached, were you silently begging it to land in front of the giraffes?

Pusetso says:
Absolutely. I was thinking, “Please don’t mess this up.” It was such a short window. I shot continuously—spray and pray—and it paid off.

Image Two – Wild Dogs

Toby says:
Let’s move on to your second image.

Pusetso says:
This image shows two wild dogs photographed from behind, looking into the distance. You can’t see their faces. It was taken in the dry season—August—deep winter in the Chobe.

I chose it because wild dogs are endangered, and the emptiness in the image reflects that. The environment is bare, dry, and unforgiving. I love the image, but it makes me sad. It speaks to drought, declining populations, and how brutal nature can be.

Toby says:
This is often considered the best time of year to photograph—but it can be heartbreaking.

Pusetso says:
Exactly. Guests love the clean landscapes, but we sometimes forget the impact on the wildlife. When you live here, you see the toll it takes—elephants with visible rib cages, animals under real strain.

Career Journey

Toby says:
Let’s talk about your journey with Pangolin. You studied tourism management, didn’t you?

Pusetso says:
I did. In 2019, I needed to complete my internship. A friend introduced me to Pangolin, and I rotated through departments before ending up in photography with Janine.

She encouraged me to come back after finishing my degree. I did—but it wasn’t an obvious career path in Botswana, especially for women. I worked in PR for a while and collaborated with Pangolin on projects, including Canon Women in Photography.

Eventually, Janine told me I had to decide. I spoke to my parents, took a leap of faith just after the pandemic—and here we are, almost five years later. I think I have the best office in the world.

Image Three – Lionesses at Sunset

Toby says:
Let’s move on to your third image.

Pusetso says:
This image shows two lionesses lying at sunset, one almost directly in front of the sun. Lions being lazy worked in my favour. They stayed still long enough for us to position the boat perfectly.

I underexposed slightly to preserve the sky while keeping detail in the lions. In post-production, I lifted the shadows and enhanced the colours. It’s about understanding light, timing, and how to use your camera’s dynamic range.

Editing & Philosophy

Toby says:
You edit in Lightroom Classic?

Pusetso says:
Yes. Editing is an art. It’s about enhancing what’s already there, especially when shooting RAW. I don’t believe editing is cheating—unless you’re adding elements that didn’t exist.

Image Four – Elephant and Calf

Toby says:
Tell us about your fourth image.

Pusetso says:
It’s a silhouette of a female elephant with her calf standing beneath her. You can clearly see both outlines. Living in the Chobe, elephants are everything to us. This image feels nurturing and maternal—very special to me, especially as a mother myself.

Admired Photographer

Toby says:
You also selected an image by another photographer.

Pusetso says:
Yes—an image of a squirrel by Malini Chandrasekar. It’s an autumn scene, likely in Europe. The colours are beautiful, and the subject is small within the frame. It’s a reminder that not every image needs a clean background—sometimes the environment tells the story.

Final Question

Toby says:
If you could hang these images anywhere in the world—where would your humble dwelling be?

Pusetso says:
Somewhere I could see puffins every day. That would be quite epic.

Toby says:
On that note, thank you so much for your time, P. Go enjoy some well-earned rest with your family.

Thank you for joining me on another episode of the Pangolin Podcast. As always, we’d love your comments and feedback. Please subscribe, leave a review, and sign up for the Pangolin Photo Safari Friday Focus newsletter.

The Pangolin Podcast was hosted by me, Toby Jermyn, and produced and edited by Bella Falk. Thank you.