A walk in the wild side

A magical encounter with a gorilla changed Jan's life forever Jan Latta, 83, Sydney, NSW

Never make eye contact with a gorilla, it's threatening,' the guide warned me before we set off.

Visiting Rwanda in East Africa, I was keen to see a mountain gorilla in the wild. We'd trudged up a mountain for two hours before the guide stopped.

Suddenly, a big silverback appeared just two metres away and gazed at me.

I couldn't help looking right back into his dark, mesmerising eyes for a moment, breaking the rule the guide had given me.

Luckily, the magnificent creature chose not to attack, and lumbered into the forest.

But that moment when we locked eyes changed my life forever.

I discovered there were fewer than 600 mountain gorillas left in the world.

Stunned, I decided to pursue a career in wildlife photography, and create books for children on the importance of protecting endangered animals.

I'd never had a photography lesson, but I had my own publishing business and figured I could self-publish my work.

Over the next three decades, I made 11 trips from my home in Hong Kong - and then Sydney - to Africa, the continent seducing me in a way no man ever had!

Once, in Nanyuki, Kenya, a rhino began to rock the spare tyre of our jeep with its horn. It was scary but I had to laugh.

It's like he's using the car to scratch his nose!

I chuckled.