Wildlife Photographer’s Work on Display at the PMA
The work of Michael “Nick” Nichols, a famed wildlife photographer and photojournalist, is currently on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art (PMA). The exhibit, called “Wild: Michael Nichols” shows off some of the artist’s most notable works. “Wild” spans Nichols’ career, encompassing his work for National Geographic and other magazines, as well as other examples of how he defies photographic conventions.
“Photography has a lot of rules, and the only way you can make a great photograph is to break some of those rules. I became a photographer, which is a realist interpretation of the world, but I always wanted to see if I could make it a little bit unreal,” he says.
This incredible image is one of many by famed photographer Michael Nichols at the PMA.
One picture that showcases Nichols’ remarkable talent is shown here, an image of a tiger jumping directly at the camera. As a viewer, one’s initial reaction is shock: how on earth was such an image captured without harm to the photographer? But Nichols explains his innovative approach, which involved setting up cameras with automatic timers at places where animals were likely to walk by. Such a method resulted in a lot of wasted images, true, he admits, but the ones that were hits are spectacular. Tigers are far from the only majestic beasts that Nichols has captured. The photographer has also snapped unforgettable images of gorillas and chimps next to Jane Goodall (who is slated to give a speech about their experiences at PMA in the fall), elephants in Kenya, lions in Tanzania, as well as breathtaking snaps of the natural beauty of Yellowstone National Park and the Grand Canyon.
According to the Metro, “The museum places Nichols’ work in an art-historical context with works from its collection, depictions of the natural world by artists including Rousseau and Brancusi.” The website ended with one more profound quote from the photographer: “To be here in this museum is something I never dreamed of,” Nichols says, while pointing out that those artists could let their imaginations roam, while his own work required him to accept what nature provided. “I’m an artist here, but as a journalist I couldn’t do everything that I wanted. Photography loses its soul if it’s not honest.”
