A Virtual Exhibit: Conservation Through Wildlife Photography

The fascination with wildlife has been present in human society since the beginning. Originally, wildlife needed to be closely monitored to keep track of food sources and potential predators. As societies developed that fascination turned into a prize to be won. Trophy hunting has been a long-standing tradition for many generations. Taxidermy was an art form and if the royal and wealthy wanted to display their prizes, this was the way to go. Since that time, the view of wildlife has drastically changed. Although trophy hunting still occurs, scientists have a much better understanding of the necessity of wildlife in an ecosystem. With these developments many have chosen to continue to hunt wildlife around the world, but they have put down their guns and picked up a camera.

Aditya Sing- Sawai Madhopur, India, n.d.
http://www.ranthambhore.com

The Early Days of Wildlife Photography

Throughout the late 1800’s and early 1900’s photography was mainly used to document landscapes and people who were willing to sit still for long periods of time. Because it could take several minutes to process a photo it was difficult to focus on wildlife as a viable subject. Unpredictable actions, movements and equipment were large roadblocks to producing a viable artistic photograph instead of a blurry mess.

George Shiras took the first wildlife photograph published in a magazine in 1906 for the July issue of National Geographic. Although he succeeded in his task of capture wildlife on camera, you can see from the picture that the time between him trying to take the picture and when the actual picture was taken resulted in the deer being spooked as jumping away from the camera. It would be many more decades till the technology developed enough to sustain a new art form.

George Shiras, National Geographic, July 1906

Documenting Nature

By the 1970’s environmentalism was sweeping the United States. People were more than ever aware of their environment and how much damage had already been done. The Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1969 had brought wildlife to peoples attention. During this same time period the development of the camera had reached a level where the shutter speed was well suited to snapping fast photography with limited disturbance to the subject being photographed.

Photography of Endangered species became an important form of public awareness. Photographs showed the beauty of these creatures that were on the brink of extinction. The hope was that these photos of snow leopards, tigers and panda would hopefully save their species, not just document their existence for biological textbooks. Although many artist set out into the wildlife to carefully hunt their targets without disturbance, one photographer, James Balog, took a different route.

Balog has been a leader in Naturalist photography since the 1980’s. His work is focused on the impacts of climate change around the world. He began the documenting many glaciers and creatures before they were determined threatened.

Asian Elephant SURVIVORS, published 1990, James Balog

In his collection titled Survivors he set out to photograph some of the worlds most endangered species outside of their natural habitat. He brought 62 endangered animals into a studio or setting controlled or influenced by humans. Contrary to what other conservationist were doing to protect species, Balog’s photographs do not skirt around the idea that these mass extinctions are cause by human influence on the dwindling habitat of wildlife.

Florida Panther SURVIVORS, published 1990: James Balog

 

I think that this collection is one of the most influential pieces of wildlife conservation art. Each photograph grabs at your attention. You cannot just glance at these photos and skip by. They have a thought provoking emotion tone specific to each animal. I think that it what I liked most about each one. The composition of each photograph seems to hold a meaning that animal’s natural history. With his photograph Asian Elephant, the large white sheet seems to let the elephant fade into to the picture. You can still feel the large power and mass of the creature but it is slowly disappearing in to this human landscape. In the wild, this has been the trend for those creatures. Slowly dwindling population numbers, fading away and no one will notice. The Florida Panther featured above served as the cover for his collection. Now, just 24 short years on the timescale of the Earth, there are less than 100 known Florida Panthers in the wild. Almost none of them are genetically pure bred. I think his photograph Florida Panther depicts how quickly this extinction is happening. Just like the flash of the camera and the surprise on the big cats face, the species is almost gone. Even with all the conservation efforts occurring, it is hard to stop the extinctions from continuing down their path.

Giant Panda SURVIVORS, published 1990: James Balog

The last piece I am show casing is his Giant Panda. I this was my favorite piece from his collection. The use of the theater for the backdrop and the white sheet is a stark contrast from where you would expect a panda to live. Except, a theater of sorts is where a panda is most likely to live. Kept is well-protected panda sanctuaries and zoos, they are harshly protected and have strict protocol to maintain their species. They are watched all over the world. Every panda cub born in a US zoo ends up on the news. This setting is able to convey how much change and influence humans have on this species.

Antarctic Innovations

Much of wildlife photography focuses on exotic rare animals throughout all lands. One of my favorite parts of wildlife photography are photographs of animals that are almost never found on land. With the development of camera technology and interesting growing in the rapidly changing poles, underwater wildlife photography is one of the most prestigious assignments given to a photographer.

One of the most famous polar underwater wildlife photographers is Paul Nicklen. He has been documenting changes in the poles since 1995. He grew up in the Canadian arctic and is a marine biologist. This experience along with scuba training for frigid water, he has been able to use extreme under water camera to capture a world only seen by a select few and the many creature that inhabit the waters.

Paul Nicklen-Rebreather Head Shot, Antarctica

Teamed up with National Geographic, Nicklen has been able to capture some of the most astonishing shot of the mysterious creatures. Some of his most popular shots come from his experiences with a Leopard Seal. While exploring the Antarctic waters he got himself and his camera face to face with a 800 pound seal.

“Leopard Seal” Paul Nicklen, Antarctica 2014

The story goes that the curious seal continued to interact with Nicklen. It had come to think that the large camera lens was this odd creatures mouth and that it could not fend for himself in the water. As a result this fierce creature tried to feed him penguins. Live ones, sick ones and dead ones, it continued to bring food for him and pushed it near the camera lens. It made for some fantastic shots that exhibit the beauty and curiosity of these animals. The underwater background of unlimited blues highlights the vastness of the ocean and how solitary the world is. His recordings of these animals help the world see how necessary these places are. When they hear that ice is melting and animals are loosing their habitat, it may not seem to have an impact. Pictures like these bring those words to life and people can connect with what they are trying to conserve.

“Leopard Seal” Paul Nicklen, Antarctica, 2014

Paul Nicklen is able to connect animals moving in their habitats with the beauty of nature. It is a very different approach compared to Balog but both cause people to look at the nature of this world. Nicklen’s well-timed shots allow for people to be transported to the moments of his pictures and get a special glimpse at the world. I think his photo’s of Emperor Penguins is a great show of the movement he is able to portray. The reflections on the surface of the water and the streams of bubbles makes it feel like these penguins just jumped in right on top of you.

“Emperor Penguins” Paul Nicklen, Ross Sea Antarctica, 2009

Photography has changed the way artist document to world. They are no longer subject to reporting everything with canvas and paint. They are able to use these snapshots in time to show the world what nature truly looks like. By using this art to document wildlife, photographers can become an advocate for a greater cause. They are documenting the natural history of the Earth and changing the way we view ecosystems. Discoveries can be recorded and shared instantaneously while bringing attention to a world that may never be seen, but is no less important that our everyday landscape. This art will forever preserve their species as a moment in time.

Works Cited

Balog, James. “Endangered Wildlife: 1987-1997.” James Balog Photography. James Balog Photography, 1990. Web. 27 July 2014. http://jamesbalog.com/portfolio/endangered-wildlife/

Harvey, Martin. “The History of Wildlife Photography Dates Back Far.” Martin Harvey Photography and Videography. N.p., n.d. Web. http://www.wildimagesonline.com/wildlife-photography/history-of-wildlife-photography.html

Nicklen, Paul. “Emperor Penguins.” Paul Nicklen Photography. N.p., 2009. Web. 27 July 2014. http://www.paulnicklen.com/

Shiras, George. “Milestones in Wildlife Photography — National Geographic.” National Geographic. National Geographic, 2013. Web. 27 July 2014.

http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photos/milestones-wildlife-photography/