Look, Photo Ark wants people to care

Man behind sombre animal portraits wants to prevent more species from becoming extinct

National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the (from lef
National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. PHOTO: DIOS VINCOY JR FOR THE STRAITS TIMES
National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the (from lef
Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the (above) proboscis monkey, Gyps africanus white-backed vulture and Sri Lankan leopard. Some of the animals he has photographed have gone extinct. PHOTO: JOEL SARTORE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO ARK
National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the (from lef
Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the proboscis monkey, (above) Gyps africanus white-backed vulture and Sri Lankan leopard. Some of the animals he has photographed have gone extinct. PHOTO: JOEL SARTORE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO ARK
National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the (from lef
Mr Joel Sartore's portraits of the proboscis monkey, Gyps africanus white-backed vulture and Sri Lankan leopard (above) . Some of the animals he has photographed have gone extinct. PHOTO: JOEL SARTORE/NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC PHOTO ARK

Most wildlife photographers consider the great outdoors their office.

But National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore, 55, has immortalised animals in zoos, aquariums, wildlife rehabilitation centres and private collections.

The portraits he takes of animals under human care are part of the National Geographic Photo Ark project, which aims to raise awareness of species decline.

Photo Ark aims to document some 15,000 species of birds, fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates.

Mr Sartore has already photographed more than 7,500 species, after visits to close to 350 wildlife centres, aquariums and zoos, including the Singapore Zoo.

Some of the animals he has photographed - such as Toughie, the world's last Rabbs' fringe-limbed tree frog in the Atlanta Botanical Garden - have gone extinct.

And he wants to prevent more animals from disappearing forever, through the Photo Ark project that aims to get people to care about all animals.

Speaking to The Straits Times when he was in Singapore last week, Mr Sartore said: "We think that (the total number of species in the world) may contract over time, because many animals don't breed in captivity, and you can't get them from the wild anymore because the woods have all been cut down or burned, or because they've been hunted out of existence."

National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore taking pictures of a bearded dragon lizard at the Singapore Zoo. He was here to give a talk, and photograph about 30 animal species from the zoo for Photo Ark. PHOTO: DIOS VINCOY JR FOR THE STRAITS TIMES

What is important is to convince people that animals are part of nature, and that a healthy, functioning planet is key to human survival, "because the planet is going to be very impoverished, the way we're going", Mr Sartore added.

He was in town to give a talk at Marina Bay Sands, and to photograph about 30 animal species from the Singapore Zoo for Photo Ark.

These include the regal horned lizard, Australian green tree frog and the critically endangered Burmese roofed turtle, said Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, deputy chief executive and chief life sciences officer from the Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS), which manages the zoo. During Mr Sartore's first visit to the zoo in 2016, he photographed 131 species, including the proboscis monkey, southern river terrapin, Singapore freshwater crab and black-winged starling.

Mr Sartore works with the zoos in deciding which animals to photograph, based on the lists of species the institutions have and what would be feasible for them.

All his animal portraits are taken against a sombre black or white background. But, Mr Sartore said, the goal of Photo Ark is not to become "the world's largest obituary of all the animals we have squandered".

Quite the opposite. He wants to give people the chance to look an animal in the eye and recognise the value of each one, great and small.

As a National Geographic photographer, Mr Sartore spent at least 16 years photographing animals such as elephants and gorillas all over the world.

That changed in 2005, when his wife Kathy was diagnosed with breast cancer. He has two sons and a daughter, who are between 14 and 24 years old now.

Mr Sartore said of his wife: "She's okay now, but I was home for a year, and needed to think about something to do for the second half of my life. I was 42, and I came up with this."

"One thing I learnt the most doing Photo Ark shoots, is that every bird, every grasshopper, every toad, newt or salamander, or tiger, they are all thinking, sentient beings. They are trying to figure me out, as I am trying to figure them out. I get the same feeling photographing a bird of paradise, as I do a grizzly bear."

Dr Cheng said the Photo Ark project is unique, as it brings the animal subjects up close and personal to viewers, establishing an emotional connection.

"When we think of wildlife, we expect to see them in a naturalistic setting. By presenting individual animals away from their background clutter, he is forcing the viewer to concentrate on the species and on individual animals... and that each species matters," said Dr Cheng.

"Ultimately, we will only take action for animals we have feelings for."

Mr Sartore hopes that his project would, "through a steady drumbeat of awareness" over the years, help people realise that individuals can make a difference.

The project is already making an impact. After Mr Sartore's talk last Saturday, a young member of the audience wanted to know how he could help.

Mr Sartore urged people to vote with their wallets by making sustainable purchases, to volunteer or donate to good wildlife institutions, or even start a blog to raise awareness about wildlife issues.

"We can't save the whole world, but maybe we can concentrate on doing one thing," he said.

• For more information on the Photo Ark, visit natgeophotoark.org.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 01, 2018, with the headline Look, Photo Ark wants people to care. Subscribe