Some of the rarest animals on this planet are on the brink of extinction. Some of the rarest animals on this planet have been forever captured through the lens of Joel Sartore. Lets all take a moment to thank Sartore, because we are going to need a whole lot more than a Nalgene water bottle trend in the form of a conservation movement if we really want to preserve this earth.
His new book Rare might just be leading a the way. Sartore has been a photographer for more than 20 years (17 with National Geographic), and as if that wasn't cool enough he has been putting all the globe trotting to good use snapping photos of creatures like the California Condor (first pictured).
Rare present a total of 80 iconic images, (a few of which I posted here) representing a lifelong commitment to the natural world and a three-year investigation into the Endangered Species Act. Sartore first stuns readers with an intimate look at the species the act seeks to preserve. With crisp up-close portraits on every page even non-animal lovers like me start to swoon.
The creatures are so human-like. I find the images in his book incredible because they capture the essence of each animal. In this behind the scenes video you can see the animals crawling and sliding around the photo set.
RARE from Joel Sartore on Vimeo.
The anthropromophic view of the St. Andrew Beach Mouse is my favorite. (pictured below) Sartore said in an interview, "My flash even had a hard time stopping them. Only when this mouse paused to groom did I get a moment to take a picture.”
