Today: the majestic photographs of Nick Brandt. Born and raised in London, England, Brandt studied film and painting at St. Martins School of Art. After college, he moved to California and became a well-known music video director for stars such as Michael Jackson (Earth Song) and Moby (Play). It was while directing “Earth Song” in Tanzania that Brandt‘s love of East Africa and its animal inhabitants began.
Brandt’s style is unlike other wildlife photographers who tend to focus on “action shots”. Instead, his black and white, fine art photos, are intimate, capturing not only beautiful landscapes, but also the personalities of his subjects.
Many of Brandt’s photographs look like paintings. He achieves this effect by getting extremely close to the animals, (using no telephoto lenses) and includes as much of the sky and landscape as possible so that the animals are seen in the context of their environment. He sometimes tracks his subjects for days to discover the perfect composition. Brandt admits his photos are unashamedly idyllic and romantic. “They’re my elegy to a world that is steadily, tragically vanishing.”
Brandt has had numerous solo exhibitions across North America and Europe and published the book “On This Earth” in 2005. His new book entitled “A Shadow Falls” will be released in September 2009.
To enjoy more photographs visit NickBrandt.com or the Young Gallery for a detailed biography.
Related Books:
A Shadow Falls
On This Earth: Photographs from East Africa
Sources: NickBrandt.com, Young Gallery
You may also like:
As an avid photographer, I’m happy to have found your website. It’s always nice to see other’s work and get new ideas; it’s refreshing and gets the creative juices flowing. Everyone’s style is so unique. Check out my site if you’d like at http://www.ducktrapphoto.com
I just found out about Nick Brandt, and I’m completely blown away by his work. The only question that comes to mind is, when working with carnivorous creatures many times your own body weight with focal lengths that don’t surpass three digits, how is he not resting at the bottom of a lion’s stomach?