Yasuni National Park, Ecuador
For the January 2013 issue of National Geographic magazine, I was part of a team of five Nat Geo photographers including Ivan Kashinsky, Karla Gachet, David Liittschwager and Steve Winter. We went to Ecuador for one month to document the biologically richest place on the planet, Yasuni National Park, and the important conservation issues and human cultural issues surrounding it. Here is the feature story at Nat Geo.
You can see how all our efforts came together to tell the story in this interactive.
Also, Spencer Milsap of Nat Geo produced this video piece, which my assistant Anand Varma and I also helped to shoot. It captures what it was like to work on this story in the Amazon rain forest of Ecuador.
Field gear for a Birds-of-Paradise trip
In my work, every wildlife picture usually has a lot of gear and a lot of planning and preparation behind it. In this shot I am in a hotel room in Lae, Papua New Guinea, getting organized to make an expedition into the Huon Peninsula to photograph the Huon Astrapia, a very poorly known member of the Birds-of-Paradise family, back in 2006. After the international and domestic flights to get to Lae, I had to repack for a bush plane flight into a remote airstrip called Yawan. From there, I would hire villagers to help carry my gear, and make a strenuous all day hike up to a research camp. That's why here in this hotel room, I needed to repack from the large duffels used for international air travel, into reasonable porter loads consisting of small pelican cases and dry-bag backpacks. Sometimes I feel like I spend more time packing and repacking than shooting.
Recent Media Coverage of the Birds-of-Paradise Project
Over the past three months, a lot has been going on with my Birds-of-Paradise Project. Here is a collection of some of the main websites that have picked up the Birds-of-Paradise Story:
WIRED magazine: “Rare Glimpses of Amazing Birds-of-Paradise Courtship Rituals”
DISCOVER magazine: “Capturing the Courtship Rituals of Bizarre Birds-of-Paradise”
THE WASHINGTON POST: “Top 10 Museums of 2012”
THE BOSTON GLOBE: “A bird’s-eye view of nature’s flashiest showmen”
PETAPIXEL: “Gotta Catch ‘em all: Photog Spends Eight Years Capturing the 39 Birds of Paradise”
NPR - SCIENCE FRIDAY: “Birds Gone Wild”
HARVARD GAZETTE: “Glimpses of Paradise”
New Articles in National Geographic
Check out the two latest issues of National Geographic magazine for Tim's articles:
December 2012 features the Birds of Paradise story. See the story at National Geographic.
January 2013 is a Special Issue of National Geographic kicking off the 125th Anniversary of the Society and celebrating Exploration. Tim was part of a team of five photographers sent on assignment to Yasuni National Park in Ecuador to document the most species-rich place on the planet.
This issue of Nat Geo has a series of five covers on the front of the magazine. Tim's image above is featured as the "second" cover. See the story at National Geographic.
World Premier at the Banff Mountain Film Festival
Last weekend the Banff Mountain Film Festival premiered "Winged Seduction - The Birds Of Paradise". This National Geographic television film is a part of the Birds of Paradise project that goes along with the Birds of Paradise book, National Geographic Exhibit and article. Birds of Paradise Revealing The World's Most Extraordinary Birds is now available for purchase. You can purchase a signed copy of the Birds of Paradise book from Tim Laman's online store.
Sunrise at Running Creek
On the East coast of Cape York, Drew Fulton savors the pre-sunrise sky show with his morning coffee before we head off to photograph birds.
Blue Bird-of-Paradise
Tim has had his images published in Canon's Wildlife As Canon See It series many times over the years. His latest one was in July issue of National Geographic and it features the beautiful Blue Bird-of-Paradise. This image is also used in Tim's new book Birds of Paradise: Revealing The World's Most Extraordinary Birds. Contact the office to preorder your signed copy!
Cockatoo Pair
I am still in the Cape York Peninsula of Australia. The spectacular Sulfur-crested Cockatoos are so common here, that we rarely give them a second look after several weeks in the field. But this pair at a nest cavity was worth a shot.
Trials of the Backroads
Tim is still in the Cape York Peninsula of Australia on an assignment for National Geographic. Below are his latest Instagram posts.
Eri Mulder and Drew Fulton change a flat on a remote track during our explorations of the Peninsula.
A Nepenthes pitcher plant highlights a wetland called Sheldon's Lagoon, an example of the incredible diversity of habitats on the Cape.
Elliot Falls, one of the falls along the beautiful pristine rivers of the Peninsula, photographed from mid river.
Eclectus Parrot Males
Tim's photo of the day is two male Eclectus Parrots squabbling at a nest cavity, revealing their incredible colors.
Yellow-spotted Monitor Lizard
Tim laid on the ground to capture the feeling of this two meter long Yellow-spotted Monitor Lizard closing in.
The Drop into Palm Creek
Eric Hahn guides Pete Ikin into the drop at the Palm Creek crossing on the Overland Telegraph Line track up the center of the Cape York Peninsula. These are the kinds of bad roads we encountered in some remote parts of the Cape York Peninsula.
Green Python!
Tim is now in the rain forests of the Iron Range National Park, and he was lucky enough to find the famous Green Python. Certainly one of the world's most beautiful snakes, and another species showing the former New Guinea connection to this part of Australia.
Singing Wings
Back in May 2012, National Geographic published Tim's story on Manakins. Tim went to Ecuador to photograph the Club-winged Manakin, along with other species of Manakins, for Kimberly Bostwick, an evolutionary biologist at Cornell University. Visit Kim's Beta website at www.SingingWings.org to see Tim's videos and learn more about these interesting passerines. To see Tim's photographs of Manakins, including the Red-capped and Wire-tailed Manakins, visit Tim's Online Archive. You can also see the moonwalk in the Red-capped Manakin video.
Flying Foxes
A late afternoon hike took us to a roosting site of the Little Red Flying-foxes, which were hanging upside-down in incredible numbers, including these two. Flying-foxes are of course not foxes at all, but large fruit eating bats, and are among the most abundant mammals here.
Birds-of-Paradise Book
It has been eight years in the making, but Tim’s book, with collaborator Edwin Scholes, BIRDS OF PARADISE: REVEALING THE WORLD’S MOST EXTRAORDINARY BIRDS is finally complete and currently being shipped from the printers. Tim just received his advanced copy, and we are happy to report that the printing quality fully meets his expectations. It will be on sale from Oct 23, so please contact the office to reserve a copy now. If you buy it directly from us, Tim will sign and even personalize your copy if you like. This is a book like none other that you are not going to want to miss.
Papuan Frogmouth
This nocturnal bird, the Papuan Frogmouth, is a perfect example of a species found only in New Guinea and this part of Australia. Tim found it by spotlighting at night. Notice the large red eyes that it uses to catch pray in the dark.
Milky Way
Tim is in remote Cape York Peninsula, Australia, for an assignment for National Geographic. He has been sending out pictures along his journey where you can see them here or @TimLaman on Instagram. The Milky Way lights up the night over camp near the Archer River. It is nice to be so farm from the cities that the stars shine this brightly.
Spotted Cuscus
Out spotlighting at night for nocturnal mammals, we found this Spotted Cuscus, another one of Australia's unique marsupials, along the Archer River. On assignment for National Geographic in the Cape York Peninsula, Australia.
Agile Wallaby
Tim has an Instagram account! Tim will be regularly posting to his account @TimLaman as well as @NatGeo. Here is one of his more recent posts from Australia where he is currently on assignment for National Geographic.