text: Crawling commando-style underneath an open-sided Land Rover, I came virtually nose to nose with a 4,500lb horned rhino. I tried to slow my breathing as she looked straight at me. I needed to be calm to take my shot. There were three other rhinos with her and, let's be honest, they're not called a crash of rhino for nothing. I raised my camera and began to photograph what could soon become an extinct pachyderm. The luxurious Ulusaba Game Reserve is  in South Africa's Sabi Sands and is Sir Richard Branson's private reserve . Thankfully the female found my scrawny presence of absolutely no consequence, and instead wandered off in search of tastier herbivorous options. I was with my mate James and we laughed awkwardly as we climbed back into the vehicle. My mum – Sky TV presenter Kay Burley – was sitting statue-still on board, having adopted her best nonchalant expression, but she wasn't fooling either of us. The holiday at Ulusaba, Sir Richard Branson's private game reserve in South Africa's Sabi Sands, was my reward for graduating. I have been on safari before but this was different. I'm an amateur car photographer and wanted to swap taking photos of Ferraris and focus instead on the roar of a bush lion, the yawn of a hippo, the prowl of a glorious leopard or a close-up of a fearless rhino. We achieved all of them. Kutner came face to face with three rhinos, along with documenting the roar of a bush lion, the yawn of a hippo and the prowl of a glorious leopard . Just the day before, we had tracked the crash of rhino on foot. With 1,000 rhinos killed by poachers in South Africa last year alone, they are increasingly difficult to view. Danny, our brilliant tracker, who could find a spelling mistake in a dictionary, had eventually located them, but with dusk fast approaching we reluctantly headed back to the Land Rover. The African bush is not a place to be on foot in the dark. We should know. We'd spent the earlier part of the day up close and personal with a pride of lions. Our ranger, Trevor, steered the Land Rover as close as he dared without disturbing the big cats. The lioness, who could have taken any one of us out with a casual swipe of her front paw, looked in our direction, checked her cubs and allowed us to stay. Trevor, also a photographer, whispered advice on appropriate settings for my Nikon D600 to achieve the best results. Heading back to the luxury accommodation at Cliff Lodge, a two-bedroom apartment within Rock Lodge (Mum described it as glamping but with solid walls, luxury furnishings, soft sheets and a chef to conjure up our favourite food), we talked about all the other animals we wanted to see, if possible. Alexander Kutner with mum, Sky TV presenter Kay Burley, at Ulusaba, Sir Richard Branson's private game reserve in South Africa's Sabi Sands . Trevor said he and Danny would try but couldn't promise anything. Nevertheless, given the conservation, ecology and anti-poaching work being carried out by Ulusaba and adjoining camps, we were feeling confident. The following day we found ourselves slap bang in the middle of a herd of buffalo, mean-looking guys who glare at you as if you owe them money. Danny, who will happily track on foot for lion, leopard, elephant and rhino – four of the Big Five – makes an exception for buffalo. Alexander said a lioness looked in his group's direction, checked her cubs and allowed them to stay . Trevor started up the engine and we moved on. Pausing at a watering hole, we were delighted to see two young male elephants wandering towards us. They made their way into the water and proceeded to perform for us – a photographer's dream! We returned to the lodge to relax and sort through the hundreds of photos we'd captured. Chef served up kudu burgers for lunch. We'd seen plenty of these handsome antelope during our morning game drive… and Mum decided to pass on that meal. Ulusaba means 'place of little fear'. That's because the koppie where Rock Lodge sits provided the ancient Shangaan warriors with the perfect lookout point . Trevor wondered what else we'd like to see. 'Cheetah, please,' we cried. He took us on a long, bumpy drive to the wide-open plains where cheetah can run free in their hunt for food. They are extremely rare in this area of the Sabi Sands and, despite hour after hour of tracking, there were no paw-print clues. However, Trevor had one last surprise. Danny heard the call of a honey bird and a solitary warning from an impala antelope. These led him on foot to a pair of leopard cubs frolicking up a tree. There is no sighting quite as magical as a leopard, and six-month-old cubs are the perfect age to provide incredible images of their playful behaviour. Eventually, with a heavy heart and my camera packed away, we left the African bush. Until the next time... Virgin Holidays and Hip Hotels (vhiphotels.co.uk, 0844 573 2460) offers five nights at Ulusaba Safari Lodge from £2,669 per person. This includes return flights to Johannesburg, internal flights and all-inclusive accommodation. The price is based on a June 8 departure.
target: Alexander Kutner travelled with his Sky presenter mum, Kay Burley .
  They stayed at the Ulusaba reserve in South Africa's Sabi Sands .
  The  stay at Cliff Lodge had luxury furnishings, soft sheets and a chef .