Issue 2024.01

Get the first issue of Wild Eye magazine for free and read stories featuring stunning images and inspiring ideas from photographers Paul Nicklen, Erin Babnik, Ted Orland, Reuben Wu, Amy Gulick, David duChemin and more. Open Wild Eye and explore the very best in nature, wildlife, and underwater photography.

Subscribe for Access

Issue 2024.01

Photography as Conservation

Photo of an orca and a school of fish — © Paul Nicklen Orca Ballet. An orca corrals a school of herring underneath the surface of an icy fjord off the coast of Northern Norway.

Paul Nicklen on Keeping the Wild in Wildlife Photography

Words by Cynthia Haynes, Images by Paul Nicklen

For over 30 years, Paul Nicklen, award-winning National Geographic and fine art photographer, marine biologist, conservationist, and co-founder of SeaLegacy, has dedicated his life—and his photographs—to protecting wildlife and their habitats. Since setting out in 1988 to make his first underwater shot with a brand-new Nikonos V that promptly flooded, he’s worked tirelessly to raise awareness to effect change through the power of photography. “It’s our job as photographers to tell stories, but we have to put the health and well-being of the animals first,” he says. So, in pursuing good photographs, how do you make photographs that do good?

Preview