cover image Living Landscapes: Creative Visions of the Wild

Living Landscapes: Creative Visions of the Wild

Andy Rouse. Argentum Press, $39.95 (159pp) ISBN 978-1-902538-56-3

Wildlife photographer Rouse is a prominent presence on television and in print (including National Geographic) whose previous books include the stunning Concepts of Nature. Through years of field expeditions, Rouse has become a naturalist as well as an artist; having grown less interested in wildlife portraits, Rouse now focuses on the everyday activity of wildlife. From a polar bear roaring into a storm to the astounding Picasso-like formations of starling flocks, this volumecaptures the ecological landscape of which animals are just a part: a distance shot of a Bengal tiger reclining in a temple ruin overrun by jungle captures the jungle cat in intimate relation to its place and time. Some images feature a sharply-focused animal against a time-lapsed background: a crouching lioness amidst blowing tree branches, a Sally Lightfoot crab enveloped in surf, the cascading motion of birds in flight. Rouse's captions illuminate not just his photographic technique, but his ecological concerns; he also provides sound photographic advice throughout. Non-photographers will enjoy the artwork, and nature-lovers should be riveted.