There’s no place like Katmai, there’s no place like Katmai, there’s no place like Katmai. I wish it were that easy to be transported to this extraordinary living laboratory of Alaska’s brown bears. This year we had better than ever photographic opportunities with the bears. From afar with our 100-500mm lenses set at the upper end of the focal length we witnessed at-times violent interactions between older siblings over salmon, tender moments between protective mothers and their cubs, and diverse birdlife of the tundra and waterways. The landscapes are vast and glorious, the wildlife abundant–truly a privilege to behold!
I’ll be heading back to Katmai next summer for two workshops – take your pick and join me next year! Save a few hundred bucks with early bird pricing through October.
Whether you’re a seasoned photographer seeking to refine your skills, a beginner eager to embark on a photographic journey, or a wildlife enthusiast who can’t get enough of the beauty and diversity of the natural world – I’ve got you covered! At this point in my career I’ve had over one-hundred-and-something books published, and my own personal library is filled to the brim with art, photography, and travel books from across the globe. I am very much a book lover both as a consumer and as someone who simply loves seeing a body of work come together.
Photo books make excellent gifts to both give and receive. With each turn of the page, you’ll find yourself embarking on a new adventure. Whether it’s a trek through the lush rainforests of South America, an exploration of the diverse African cultures, or an exploration of a subject from around the world such as the award winning Night On Earth– there truly is something for everyone.
If you’re seeking inspiration to fuel your passion for photography, several of my “how-to” books are an invaluable resource, while those that emphasize the narrative behind the captures such as Photographs From the Edgego beyond the technicalities, delving into the art of storytelling through your lens.
Now is also a great time to pre-order a signed copy of my upcoming magnum opus entitled WILD LIVES: The Worlds Most Extraordinary Wildlife. This is a big, beautiful book full of a lifetime of wildlife photography from every corner of the planet, and I can’t wait until I’ve got it in my hands!
The first decision every photographer must make is simply what to photograph. The best place to start, of course, is finding what appeals to you. If finding subject matter to photograph is easy, making it stand out is harder. Our first impulse when something catches our eye is to simply point the camera, center the subject, and shoot the picture. No surprise, then, that when we look at it later, we are all too often disappointed and wonder, “Why did I take that?”
The novelist and critic Henry James wrote, “In art, economy is always beauty.”
In a landscape, there is often a glut of information. For that reason, artists who sketch in the field will often take a piece of cardboard with a rectangle cut from the middle. By holding it
up to frame various sections in the scene, they can isolate what has potential to make a strong composition.
This can also be a valuable aid for photographers who have trouble visualizing the potential field of view of different focal length lenses. The closer you hold the hole in the board to your eye, the more it approximates the field of view of a wide-angle lens. The farther away you hold it, the more it resembles what a telephoto lens might see.
Isolating the subject is the first step in making a strong composition. This can be achieved in a number of ways-coming in close, backing up, looking down, looking up, changing the direction
of the light on the subject, waiting for another time of day, blurring the action or stopping the action, using selective focus to blur unwanted elements, putting a light subject against a dark background. All of these are potential creative solutions that We will address throughout this book.
Isolating your emotional response to the subject may be more complicated and take time and practice, but it is an important step for an artist. If you can analyze why you feel drawn to make a picture, and work to express the feeling clearly, chances are someone looking at it will ah respond with more than passing interest.
The image gallery above are all examples from my travels to Kenya in which I wanted to focus more on the emotions, textures, and compositions of isolated subjects and families. I’ll be heading back to Kenya in January – join me and make your own memories!
Happy Cinco De Mayo! Raise a toast to long-time friend and prolific ecologist Gregory A. Green. Greg has received much-deserved recognition with a lifetime achievement award for Leadership in Conservation by the Washington Chapter of The Wildlife Society.
While devoting nearly five decades of his life to conservation biology, Greg is a prolific photographer in his own right. We have been frequent travel companions, and Greg has been the perfect fit as the written voice accompanying the many photos in my latest project, Wild Lives—due out this October with pre-orders available soon. Sign up for my mailing list to be informed as soon as it’s available. Learn more about Greg and check out his photography on his website, greggreenphoto.com.
Red alert for fans & collectors of wildlife books! There are a couple titles that I am involved in that I want to highlight that are either being funded or published this week. While they are different in their subject matter and approach, they both deserve your consideration and support.
Remembering Wildlife is now funding Remembering Leopards, their eighth in the Remembering series which has raised over $1.3 million for wildlife conservation. My photo of a leopard is a featured print in the limited edition book, of which there will be fifty copies. The aim of the creators is to make the most beautiful book ever seen on the featured species and to use that to not only raise awareness of conservation issues but also, more importantly, to raise funds for organizations working for its protection. The Kickstarter for this book is now live. You can pre-order the book (as well as grab many other rewards) to give the producers the cashflow to make it happen!
Being published this week is author/photographer Graeme Green’s The New Big 5: A Global Photography Project for Endangered Wildlife. Over five years ago he contacted us about an idea he had about creating a new Big Five of wildlife photography. The Big Five was a term coined by game hunters and includes the African lion, leopard, rhino, elephant, and buffalo. Graeme took this phrase and has turned it on its head. In his book being published on April 4th, he has brought together 165 wildlife photographers (including me) and conservationists to raise awareness of the crucial issues facing the world’s wildlife. Order your copy today!
Today is World Elephant Day, and as you know – I’ve got at least a couple of photos of these amazing beasts! Enjoy the slide show, and if you’re so inclined I happen to be running a sale on all my books through the end of the month – treat yourself or get some early holiday shopping done with a singed/inscribed copy of Wild Elephants! Use code AUG22SAVE20 and get a 20% discount. Request a signature or inscription if you’d like one – just keep in mind this could delay your order as I can only sign when I’m in town!
I’m currently headed out of town to lead our Katmai tours but I’ll be back in mid-August to sign any orders that we receive prior to my return and my staff will then get those shipped out ASAP. orders coming after Aug. 15th will be shipped in September when Gav and I return from our Africa tours.
Live like an artist and surround yourself with inspiration! Use code AUG22SAVE20 at checkout on the store on artwolfe.com – and don’t forget to leave a note with your order any special notes you might want with your signature!
It’s no secret that I’ve been working on a wildlife book coming out Fall 2023. Editing images has been an exercise of joyous frustration—if only I had better equipment on that photo shoot in 1983 (or really, if only I had been a better photographer!). Putting together books is a great way to relive past successes, missed opportunities, and just plain great memories. But the editing is far from done, I will be photographing and editing images up until the very last minute when the files get sent off to the printers next year.
Sign up for our mailing list and follow me on social media and you will get the first news of progress reports and special offers – if you’ve enjoyed and purchased any of my previous books you won’t want to miss this massive collection of my best wildlife shots!
This week (April 22 – 30) is International Dark Sky Week!
It may seem like a small thing that most may not ever think about, but artificial light pollution can be problematic for a number of reasons. Not only does it disrupt the natural habitat of wildlife by stifling reproduction, disrupting migration, and increase predation – it can also have harmful effects on human health and negatively impact climate change. Last but not least if you’re a photography enthusiast or simply someone who enjoys staring up at the heavens, light pollution greatly obscures our view of the universe around us.
There are a number of ways to get involved in curbing light pollution in your community. Most major cities may already have an organization or two to join or work along side. Community members can help measure light pollution and share data using their cell phone, and there are several things you can evaluate at your own home to cut down on the amount of artificial light contributed to the evening skies.
For more information and to find out what you can do to be an advocate for curbing light pollution in your community, visit darksky.org. Following the release of my latest book Night On Earth I had the pleasure of presenting with the International Dark-Sky Association’s Executive Director Ruskin Hartley. This is a fantastic and well-organized group doing great work. Check them out and get educated on light pollution and how you can help minimize it!
