Escape The Zoo

Dan Westergren has spent three decades producing award-winning images as a National Geographic Society photographer, photo editor, and social media strategist. He has served as Director of Photography at National Geographic Travel, and as a result, is probably the most well traveled individual that I have ever had the pleasure of speaking with.

Included stories:

- various trips from the North Pole all the way down to the Antarctic Peninsula, where he’s been six times!

- Ernest Shackleton, the famed polar explorer, and the insane, heroic stories of his expeditions

- grappling with fear while climbing the Matterhorn

- cage diving with great whites in South Australia

Please check out and support Dan’s work:

http://danwestergren.com/

https://www.instagram.com/danwestergren/

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2O6hvg3

Full video @ https://bit.ly/2MjSkVs

Richard Peters is a UK-based wildlife photographer and Nikon ambassador who has received numerous accolades for his work, including being named the European Wildlife Photographer of the Year.

Included stories:

- the photo that he almost intentionally deleted that went on to win his first award

- his award-winning collection of beautiful images taken from his own backyard of pigeons, badgers, foxes and other common creatures

- winters in Yellowstone

- puffin colonies of the Skomer Islands

- his flight from Slovenia to the UK that was diverted due to a bomb scare

Please check out and support Richard’s work:

https://www.richardpeters.co.uk/

https://www.instagram.com/richardpetersphoto/

https://www.facebook.com/richardpetersphotography

https://twitter.com/richardpphoto

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2MKmrKP

Full video @ https://bit.ly/2PsomjW

Jed Weingarten is an accomplished wildlife photographer based in Bozeman, Montana who has spent much of his professional career in China.

Included stories:

- being one of the very few to not only see but film snow leopards in the wild

- the current state of conservation in China

- the rush of flying over a waterfall in a kayak

- how to be accepted into a wolf pack!

Please check out and support Jed’s work:

http://www.jedweingarten.com/

https://www.instagram.com/jedweingarten/

https://www.wildwondersofchina.com/

https://www.facebook.com/WWOfChina

https://www.instagram.com/wildwondersofchina/

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2MAXrFR

Full video @ https://bit.ly/2PcNTOh

Tayla McCurdy is a guide on safariLIVE, a live stream from the African wilderness every single day on YouTube and TV. Tayla splits her time between the Sabi Sands in South Africa and the Masai Mara in Kenya leading this unscripted broadcast. She is super fun and I had an absolute blast chatting about her work, her photography and stories from the bush.

Included stories:

- a dangerous moment when her group was stuck between a horny bull elephant and a group of females

- the chaos of the Great Migration

- a recent experience with a mongoose she found doing something so bizarre and so funny that the video quickly went viral

Please check out and support Tayla’s work:

https://www.instagram.com/tay_mccurdy/

https://twitter.com/tay_mccurdy

https://wildearth.tv/

https://wildearth.tv/safarilive/

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2L8giCF

Shawn Heinrichs is an Emmy Award winning cinematographer, photographer, scuba diver, and marine conservationist. You may recognize him from the documentary, Racing Extinction. His conservation focus areas include ending the global slaughter of sharks, protecting manta and mobula rays, and establishing marine protected areas.

Included stories:

- going undercover to expose the endangered species trade

- saving a manta ray

- getting surrounded by a juvenile gang in Ecuador

- finding HUNDREDS of whale sharks together in one place

- his amazing work protecting endangered marine species by guiding and supporting communities towards sustainable industries

Please check out and support Shawn’s work:

www.shawnheinrichs.com/

www.bluespherefoundation.org/

www.bluespheremedia.com/

www.sealegacy.org/collective

www.facebook.com/shawn.heinrichs.artist

www.instagram.com/shawnheinrichs

www.twitter.com/shawnheinrichs

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/D4OBps

Full video @ https://youtu.be/tB6kQHm-Ac8

Yaron Schmid is a veterinarian, wildlife photographer and African safari guide.

Included stories:

- cheetahs jumping onto his roofless car

- watching baby leopards and lions

- dik diks: an antelope the size of a pocket book dog

- the sad story of the murder of Tanzania’s leading elephant conservationist

- staring into the eyes of a baby gorilla

Please check out and support Anand’s work:

http://www.yswildlifephotography.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pg/YS.Wildlife.Photography

https://www.instagram.com/yswildlifephotography/

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2MchE3A

Full video @ https://youtu.be/ko6Tg6YBZEc

Drew Rush is a wildlife and natural history photographer based in Wyoming. If you follow @natgeo and @natgeotravel on Instagram, you will likely recognize his name and photos. He is a remote camera specialist, using camera traps to capture never before seen animal behavior in the wild.

Included stories:

Floating above the world in a powered paraglider

- tracking and photographing wolf packs in Alaska

- being charged by not one, but two grizzly bears

- contracting an mysterious infection in the jungle waters of the Amazon

- getting stuck in waist deep in snow as a mountain lion approaches

- using photography to support research and conservation

Please check out and support Drew’s work:

http://www.drewrush.com/

https://www.instagram.com/drewtrush/?hl=en

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/expeditions/experts/drew-rush/

http://thephotosociety.org/member/drew-rush/

https://bit.ly/2LPB5Mm

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2LxV2uU

Full video @ https://youtu.be/CU_MXjYvUZ0

When I think of stunning wildlife photography, Kenya-based Federico Veronesi always is amongst the top of my list. His imagery is insanely beautiful. Living in Kenya, he has an intimate knowledge of individual animals that he has watched for years and that comes across in his work in a profound way.

Included stories:

- his bold and inspiring journey that brought him from Italy to Kenya to become a wildlife photographer

- his years spent tracking caracals, mysterious African cats that receive much less mainstream attention than leopards and lions due to their elusive nature

- being surrounded by baby elephants

- the complexity and importance of conservation issues affecting African wildlife

Please check out and support Federico’s work:

http://www.federicoveronesi.com/

https://www.instagram.com/federico_veronesi/

https://bit.ly/2Ks3PtR (Facebook)

https://bit.ly/2KrvbUc (his book, Light and Dust)

Full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2tOnD4q

Full video @ https://youtu.be/tCyQWmyDnOc

Alastair Pollock is an underwater photographer based in Sydney, Australia.

Included stories:

- swimming with sneaky sharks that get too close for comfort

- realizing you’ve gone too close to a fur seal colony

- how to find a leafy sea dragon

- what the hammer of a hammerhead shark feels like

Please check out and support Alastair’s work:

http://www.alastairpollock.com/

https://www.instagram.com/alastairpollock

https://www.flickr.com/people/alastair_pollock/

http://www.alastairpollock.com/blog/

Full show notes @ bit.ly/2KxVc0I

Full video @ https://bit.ly/2KiBzhm

Anand Varma is a photographer with a degree in integrative biology from UC Berkeley. He helps biologists communicate their research through photographs, and tell the story behind the science of complex issues.

Included stories:

- mind controlling parasites

- zombie ladybugs

- a near death experience with a volcano

- glowing mushrooms

- bee pollination

- hummingbirds

Please check out and support Anand’s work:

http://www.varmaphoto.com/

https://www.instagram.com/anandavarma/

https://www.facebook.com/AnandVarmaPhotographer/

full show notes @ https://bit.ly/2MkHEpY