What It Takes To Get That Perfect Wild Animal Portrait

What happens when you try to take a portrait of a wild animal in captivity? Take look as National Geographic photographer Joel Sartore gives us a glimpse of what he goes through all in a day’s work:

It may seem a bit weird to be trying to capture professional portraits of animals who’d rather be anywhere else but in a photography studio, but Sartore is on a mission—he’s working to create portraits of 12,000 endangered species before they disappear. The project is called the Photo Ark and already includes more than 5,000 species. His hope is to spread the message that it’s not too late to save some of the planet’s most endangered species.

Photographing 12,000 Animals

As you can see from the video, Sartore definitely has his work cut out for him. Poop, pee, and raw curiosity abound. Not to mention fully uncooperative models. So, if you ever feel frustrated while trying to get that perfect portrait of Fido, remember—you could always be wiping the butt of a tortoise or something worse!

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