“The back of an elephant is the best way to get close to tigers, rhinoceros, and other animals.” © Joan Myers

The images in Joan Myers’s new book, The Jungle at the Door, were inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s jungle stories, which the photographer read as a child. However, the magnificent animals featured in the book are threatened with extinction, hunted by poachers eager for their skins, teeth and claws. And their habitat is shrinking in the face of increasing development. Myers says, “Seeing a tiger in the wild is a rare and special gift.  I fear that, with their numbers steadily decreasing, it is unlikely that my grandchildren will have the opportunity I had to see a tiger in Kipling’s forest. And as we lose these wild animals and wild places, we lose a primitive and mysterious wildness that has long been part of our human psyche.”

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© Barry Steven Greff. “Downward Spiral,” from the series “FLOW,” 2006.

The photography of Barry Steven Greff, whether borne of water, land or air, is adept with an appreciation for the natural world. His series speak to the connections that humans have with nature and the need to protect these fragile environments. A solo exhibition of his work is on view at 25 CPW Gallery in New York City through January 13. An artist’s reception will accompany the opening tomorrow (January 10), from 6 to 9 p.m.  (more…)

We confess: Even when we’re knee-deep in producing a professional photo magazine, we’re easily distracted by pictures of cute animals. Here at PDN we’re conducting our second annual Faces contest, seeking today’s best portrait photographs. Below is a sneak peek at some early entries in the Animal Portraits category. These are not the winners of the Faces Contest. These are a few early favorites based on popular votes on the People’s Choice page. There’s still more great work being entered in Animal Portraits and the three other categories: Celebrity/Editorial Portraits (studio), Environmental Portraiture and Self-Portraits. The contest remains open for entries until April 7, 2009. Select winners will be exhibited at the PDN PhotoPlus International Expo from October 23 to 25, 2009 in New York City, and a winner’s gallery will appear in the December issue of PDN. To see more People’s Choice entries, or to enter the contest yourself, visit the PDN Faces portrait photo contest.

Photo by Camille Cier.

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