SUNDAY VIBES
He also cites the pure white and blue landscapes of Antarctica which make incredible backdrops for photos of leopard seals, penguins, whales and more. But there’s a special love for Africa where he recently spent much time on assignment in Kenya and Tanzania. “Ruaha National Park in Tanzania is one of the world’s greatest wildlife locations, a massive wilderness with lions, leopards, cheetah, elephants, hyenas, lizards and hundreds of different birds. I think I took some of the best pictures of my career there. But honestly, I’m always excited to discover somewhere new that I haven’t been before.”
Currently on the move in Asia, Green is no stranger to Malaysia either, making visits every few years. As much as he enjoys the city life of Kuala Lumpur, it’s the wildlife that attracts him — but not the kind roaming around the watering holes at night along Changkat Bukit Bintang. Some of those are far too wild!
One of his favourite locations is actually Sarawak’s Bako National Park. “There’s such diversity there, from proboscis monkeys and silver leaf monkeys to pit Cheetah mother and cub, Mara Naboisho Conservancy, Kenya. vipers hiding among the trees. For me, wildlife photography doesn’t have to be about the Big Five or iconic creatures. Smaller, less familiar animals can be just as fascinating to see and photograph, and there are plenty to be found, if you look, in Bako,” confides this adventurous traveller.
Over in Gunung Mulu National Park, he recalls the challenge of photographing the “bat exodus” (“thousands of black dots in the sky might not seem initially to be that photogenic”) which prompted the need to dig deeper into his creative resources, eventually producing a shot that he’s particularly proud of. Bat exodus, Sarawak, Malaysia.
Compared to other types of photography, capturing still images of wild animals is particularly challenging. “You always need to be ready in wildlife photography. Life moves pretty fast, and you don’t get a second chance to capture a moment that passes. If you’re photographing a monkey leaping from a tree or a pair of big cats facing off in a fight, it’s very hard to politely ask them if they’d mind doing it again!” The key is to think ahead, shares the self-taught photographer, and that means learning about animal behaviour, their daily routines and environment, in order to try and predict their next movement.
Green recalls the challenge of trying to photograph Gelada monkeys, also known as bleeding heart monkeys, living up in the Simien Mountains of Ethiopia. For several days, he sat up on the high plateaus with hundreds of them as they went about their daily life, eating, grooming and mating. Yet it was difficult to get a clear, proper frontal shot. “They were a challenge to photograph. Because they tend to like privacy when they’re eating, they turn their backs a lot. That struck me as funny: here’s an animal that’s happy to engage in mating surrounded by several hundred of their friends and family, but they don’t like to be seen putting a bit of grass into their mouths!” Blue Eyed Lizard, Sarawak, Malaysia.
When I ask him what kind of response or impact does he hope his photos will have on people, the roaming Briton replies: “In these times, when people are bombarded with thousands of images every day, I think just getting people to stop and look at an image is a response in itself. There has to be something remarkable in a photo to get people’s attention and get them to pause or stop scrolling.”
Green has received many different responses over the years, some small, some large. Those from renowned industry peers are always satisfying, such as from Art Wolfe, an American photographer and conservationist, whose testimony described how “...Green’s skills pack a onetwo punch for writing and photography. As a writer, he brings humour and compassion to his subjects; as a photographer, he brings them to life.”
Our little blue planet is teeming with so much fascinating wildlife, most of which the average person will only ever admire through the lens of someone like Green. Without the dedication and compassion of wildlife photographers, we would likely never know the beauty within the animal world and also its fragility. I know that I’ll never forget that image of the lifeless polar bear, a species, which to me, serves as a barometer of our planet’s health.
Done the right way, Green believes that photography is a powerful force for good. I can’t agree more. “Some images have a huge impact, but we’ve all become very good at passing by or ignoring urgent stories and messages we should pay attention to. If a photo can help get people more interested in protecting the natural world, it’s doing an important job.”