Stretching out in the sun and playfully pawing at each other is all in a day's work for the Ngamo pride in Zimbabwe.
When they aren't chasing terrified beasts, they share intimate and tender moments - some of which have been captured here on camera.
The shots show five lionesses, four cubs and one male lion as they take some down time shortly after sunrise.
In the pictures the lions snuggle up in the open savannah grassland and show lots of love and affection for each other.
Carole Deschuymere, 36, got up close to the Ngamo pride in Zimbabwe but they were so enchanted with one another they didn't even realise she was there.
In the pictures the lions are seen cosying up together and playfully pawing at each other as they soak up the warm African sun.
One image shows a cub swiping its father with a paw while another shows a cub inspecting a lioness's teeth.
Carole, who only started taking wildlife shots in 2011, said: 'Lions have always fascinated me because of their power and the way they interact with each other.
'This family of lions were so relaxed here they didn't pay any attention to the car I was in at all.
'At one point when the father came into the pride he was playfully growling at one of his cubs, who gave him a playful slap in the face. It was very sweet.'
Carole, who runs a clothes shop in Oostduinkerke, in Belgium, only took up wildlife photography after being inspired on a holiday to Botswana in 2010.
She added: 'When lions interact with each other in such a way as they do here, you feel very humbled to witness something as intimate as that.'
source: dailymail
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