Nick Brandt. Lion family portrait, Masai Mara, 2004
Nick Brandt. Zebras turning heads, Ngorongoro Crater, 2005
Nick Brandt. Wildebeest arc, Masai Mara, 2006
As a (very) amateur photographer, I will admit that when photographing wildlife it is tempting to try and catch them in the midst of something spectacular, some moment of supreme action.
Nick Brandt, however, moves in the opposite direction, capturing impossibly dreamlike images of the wildlife simply being. This is wildlife photography elevated miles above the usual constraints of the genre. The serenity and majesty of his images speak for themselves. Apparently a big part of the magic is that he doesn’t shoot telephoto, and thus is able to a) capture a large expanse of sky and b) has to get very, very close to his subjects.
I highly recommend a look through his whole portfolio. Yet another set of books I am going to have to track down and acquire.
Chris is most often found flying a desk, but he delights in studying the Golden Age of Aviation (1919-1939). He admires all the pioneering men and women who navigated the skies with nothing more sophisticated than a map, compass and sextant—and the conviction that there was no place they could not reach.
