Wildlife Close Up Photos

Ready for your close up? Photographer snaps elephants, tigers and lions from just a few FEET away

• Brad Wilson captured the wild animals portraits by offering them snacks as he inched towards them
• Animals are trained not to attack and are normally used in films

While some may say never work with children or animals, photographer Brad Wilson decided to ignore this pearl of wisdom.

The snapper wanted to work with something 'a little less predictable' and certainly achieved that, by bringing in hungry wild animals and taking their portrait.

Mr Wilson brought in hungry mountain lions, cheetahs and orangutans, who were trained not to attack humans, and using their favourite types of food managed to take their photograph in a studio by rewarding them with snacks.

Keeping an eye out: An elephant stares into the lense in graphic close up as part of Brad Wilson's collection

Detailed: The close up of this mountain lion shows its beauty in close up

Almost human? This orangutan's face seems almost human as it looks into the camera, while a Siberian tiger lets out a roar under the keen eye of photographer Wilson

He began by calling wildlife sanctuaries and handlers that provide animals for Hollywood movies, he told Petapixel.

The photographer based in Santa Fe, New Mexico, said the most difficult part was 'pre-production' of his ambitious idea.

He said: 'Trying to find the animals I could bring into the studio, find the right trainers to come with these animals, and even just to find a space that could contain an elephant, contain a giraffe - and that was a big part of it.'

Once he had the animals he needed, he signed large insurance policies and liability contracts so, if an animal died during a shoot, Mr Wilson owed $500,000, the website reported.

 

He says, technically, the animals are considered trained, although 'not trained in the sense that a dog is trained... They are basically trained to not come out on to the set and try to attack you; beyond that, they are really going to do what they want to do.'

He would allow them to sit on the set - sometimes while held by their trainer - and then inch up until he managed to take the perfect picture of them.

He said despite the chaos around the situation, he aimed to find the perfect moment where he captured the animal.

The photographer wanted to achieve a sense of isolation with his wild subjects, he told the website.

The images - entitled Affinity - were the stunning results of his work, giving a close up view more normally gleaned from zoom lenses in the wild - all from a 90×120-foot sound stage in a Los Angeles studio lot.

I'm ready! The animals were brought in so the photographer could try and capture their portrait

The photographer got up and close personal with the animals, which have been trained not to attack

Who are you looking at? The photographer managed to get the unique shots after bringing the creatures into his studio and rewarding them with food

Beauty: The stark beauty of the arctic fox is captured against the black background - in a studio lot in LA

Made a mistake? This chimpanzee clutches his head, looking as if he's just remembered something