Wildlife Photography as a tool for conservation.

While i’ve touched upon it briefly in previous posts, my background is heavily focused around wildlife conservation.

For 5 years, i studied Zoology and Conservation at Bangor University, completing both a BSc in Zoology with Conservation & then furthering this with a MScRes in Conservation.

I am therefore, very aware of my impact on a species and try to ensure conservation is at the forefront of everything i do.

In a previous blog post, i wrote about ethical wildlife photography and how, while ‘ethical’ can be interpreted in many ways, for me being an ethical wildlife photography is to ensure that the individual animal that you are photographing, be it hummingbirds in Costa Rica or lions in Botswana, is not impacted by your presence nor your efforts to get the shot.

Conservation however, needs to be looked at with a much wider scope.

To use wildlife photography as a tool for conservation is an absolute dream and an aspiration of mine, but to see that realised, beyond simply ‘exposure’ for a species, is difficult.

True conservation success stories are those that are both championed & spearheaded by science, with funding from the academic world that can closely monitor and analyse data to determine a net positive impact.

Whether it be the return of beavers in Scotland thanks to years of hard work from policy makers and conservationists on the ground, or the endless pursuit of eliminating rats on small islands so as to increase seabird breeding successes on small islands.

These are real world successes, which unfortunately cannot be compared to that of a photographer raising awareness of a species through sharing images online.

While it is true that raising awareness and sharing the beauty of our planet is a tool for conservation, it is a limited one with few real world applications.

When I think of photographers who I think truly make a difference in the field of conservation, i think mainly of Paul Nicklen who, alongside Christina Mittermeier & Andy Mann, co-founded Sea Legacy.

Using his photography as a platform, this movement was founded to truly make a difference to our oceans conservation, and working with scientists and other organisations it’d be difficult to argue otherwise.

Other forms of wildlife photography that i feel has the biggest direct impact on conservation is that that is done by dedicated individuals who document species they are truly passionate about. The kind of photography that captures incredibly intimate moments, showcasing new behaviours and creating huge emotional responses possible only made possible as a result of the years of ‘quiet work’ that so often goes overlooked.

Indeed it would seem like the greatest impact you can have on conservation as a photographer is to focus on your local wildlife & spend time documenting the plight of animals on your local patch, put in the work that no-one else can in an area that you are best situated in.

Big shiny conservation success stories look great in the news, but many small scale local conservation work also helps build towards a net gain in wildlife conservation.

What most people tend towards, and what i am guilty of myself, is spending as much time as they can with charismatic ‘iconic’ wildlife to bolster their portfolio. Not only

When i started my backpacking journey start of 2023, this was what i had in mind. Finishing my trip with a month in both Costa Rica and the Galapagos searching for the big species, like the Galapagos tortoise, resplendent quetzal and blue footed boobies.

Even though i’m incredibly proud of the images i captured there, these images have done nothing to further the conservation of the species, obviously.

Across my travels the most ‘at risk of extinction’ species that i’ve photographed is without doubt the helmetted hornbill. I photographed this bird as a result of shear dumb luck, looking up towards the sky at the right moment while our group was watching macaques on the shore. Across the jungles of Thailand it is estimated that fewer than 100 of these birds are present, making the one i photographed in Khao Sok incredibly rare.

Did me capturing this image help raise awareness towards the plight of this bird? No, of course it didn’t. It brought me incredible joy and i can still remember how i felt when i realised what i’d photographed, & while i described my excitement on instagram and shared the image, it wasn’t an award winning photo nor was the audience i shared it to in a position to help.

So how, as a wildlife photographer, can we help further the conservation of wildlife?

Ultimately i think in the future they’ll be three main avenues that will be able to have direct impacts on conservation efforts.

The first being raising money through the selling of prints or books or wildlife calendars in which profits go towards a realistic local conservation effort.

For me focusing on small scale local community conservation projects have the potential to be most greatly benefited from smaller pots of donations.

The second being trying to use my background in conservation to try and document and get involved first hand with research projects in the field.

Dan O’neill does an incredible job of this, disappearing off into the field for months at a getting hands on with snow leopard and various other conservation efforts.

And the third being continuing to raise awareness and trying to shine a spotlight on conservation efforts.

By continuing to grow on social media, creating and sharing high quality images and clips it is possible some small difference can be made over time. Holding myself to as high a standard as possible when it comes to conservation and ensuring at every opportunity i push myself to be the best i can be and make as much a difference as i can make.

I think, as with many things in life, when the opportunities present themselves to actually push towards positive conservation efforts i will pursue them full force. These opportunities i see coming more often the better my online presence is and for now this means continuing to post and grow and learn as much as possible.

As always i appreciate you reading my ramblings on this.

I’d love to hear your thoughts/opinions on this as well, reach out on instagram or email and let me know what you think!