When we hear the term ‘Portrait Photograph‘, what naturally comes to mind is a close-up photograph of a person inside a studio. But it cannot be stereotyped like that. A portrait photograph can be either close-up or a full body shot, it can be inside a studio or outside. What makes a photograph a portrait is, the quality of showcasing the personality of the subject.
“It’s one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like, it’s another thing to make a portrait of who they are.”
Paul Caponigro
What we are featuring today is not a bunch of conventional portraits. But they fall well within the definition of portrait photography since they have are showing the personality of the subjects well, in a dramatic manner.
Image credit & More info: bradwilson.com | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter
Brad Wilson is an American photographer based in Santa Fe, New Mexico at the moment. He is a talented fine art photographer who has been featured in Paris Match, Vanity Fair Italia, CNN, CBS News, World Wildlife Fund, Greenpeace, Audubon, Wildlife Conservation Society, etc.
Capturing animals in the wild may not be enough for him, so he may have decided to go for fine art portraits with them because he himself is a fine art photographer.
With the collaboration of zoos and wildlife sanctuaries, he brings animals to his studio and creates dramatic portraits of them. According to Brad, this makes the animals appear more grounded and three-dimensional and emphasizes their magnificent, approachable, yet mysterious nature.
In an interview with PetaPixel, he further describes the situation as a kind of “controlled chaos,” but in the end it allows him to create images that show each animal as an individual being with its own personality and dignity.
This project has started more than a decade ago and it is still running creating uniquely beautiful fine arts. Each of these portraits conveys deep emotion that might not come out in a typical wildlife photograph.
Visit the photographer’s website and social channels for more artistic images. And don’t forget to share your thoughts about this outstanding project, in the comments section. Enjoy the rest of the images below.
