Muller's Mushroomtongue Salamander, Bolitoglossa mulleri, a rare and beautiful salamander from the remote cloud forests of northwest Guatemala. Robin Moore
Muller's Mushroomtongue Salamander, Bolitoglossa mulleri, a rare and beautiful salamander from the remote cloud forests of northwest Guatemala.
Baron's Mantella, Mantella baroni, from Madagascar Robin Moore
Baron's Mantella, Mantella baroni, from Madagascar
Green Bright-eyed Frog, Boophis viridis, from Andasibe in Madagascar Robin Moore
Green Bright-eyed Frog, Boophis viridis, from Andasibe in Madagascar
The Axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum, from Mexico is the Peter Pan of the animal world, spending its entire life - and even breeding - in the juvenile form Robin Moore
The Axolotl, Ambystoma mexicanum, from Mexico is the Peter Pan of the animal world, spending its entire life - and even breeding - in the juvenile form
Crowned Treefrog, Anotheca spinosa, from Panama Robin Moore
Crowned Treefrog, Anotheca spinosa, from Panama
Emperor newt, Tylototriton shanjing, from China Robin Moore
Emperor newt, Tylototriton shanjing, from China
Golden mantella, Mantella aurantiaca, from Madagascar Robin Moore
Golden mantella, Mantella aurantiaca, from Madagascar
Blue Poison Dart Frog, Dendrobates tinctorius, from Suriname Robin Moore
Blue Poison Dart Frog, Dendrobates tinctorius, from Suriname
Lemur Leaf Frog, Hylomantis lemur, from Panama. Robin Moore
Lemur Leaf Frog, Hylomantis lemur, from Panama.
A Long-limbed salamander, Nyctanolis pernix, an unusual species that disappeared for three decades before being rediscovered in Guatemala. Robin Moore
A Long-limbed salamander, Nyctanolis pernix, an unusual species that disappeared for three decades before being rediscovered in Guatemala.
The Macaya Breast-spot Frog, Eleutherodactylus thorectes, is one of the smallest frogs in the world. This critically endangered species was last seen in 1991 on the Massif de la Hotte in southwest Haiti, before being rediscovered close to two decades later during the Search for Lost Frogs. Robin Moore
The Macaya Breast-spot Frog, Eleutherodactylus thorectes, is one of the smallest frogs in the world. This critically endangered species was last seen in 1991 on the Massif de la Hotte in southwest Haiti, before being rediscovered close to two decades later during the Search for Lost Frogs.
Panamanian Golden Frog, Atelopus zeteki, a species that has become Extinct in the wild in Panama Robin Moore
Panamanian Golden Frog, Atelopus zeteki, a species that has become Extinct in the wild in Panama
Solomons Eyelash frog, Ceratobatrachus guentheri, from the Solomon Islands Robin Moore
Solomons Eyelash frog, Ceratobatrachus guentheri, from the Solomon Islands
Spiny green frog, Eleutherodactylus nortoni, a Critically Endangered species from Morne Pangnol, the Massif de la Hotte, Haiti Robin Moore
Spiny green frog, Eleutherodactylus nortoni, a Critically Endangered species from Morne Pangnol, the Massif de la Hotte, Haiti
Hispaniola Yellow Treefrog, Osteopilus pulchrilineatus, an Endangered species from Morne Pangnol, the Massif de la Hotte, Haiti Robin Moore
Hispaniola Yellow Treefrog, Osteopilus pulchrilineatus, an Endangered species from Morne Pangnol, the Massif de la Hotte, Haiti
Robin Moore grew up in Scotland, where he spent his summers scouring Highland peat bogs for frogs and newts. He collected spawn and tadpoles, dropped them into fish tanks and raised them into adulthood, making his bedroom something of a miniature Jurassic Park. There was something he found innately cool about amphibians—a feeling he never outgrew.
“Frogs and newts were so exotic and strange to me. Pocket-sized dinosaurs,” he says. “I could interact with them and this only served to strengthen the relationship. Birds flew away and mammals bit me, but frogs and newts tolerated my intrusions.”
Moore’s boyhood fascination became an adulthood obsession. With his book In Search of Lost Frogs , Moore hopes to enchant readers with his beautiful macro shots and inspire them to look out for our frog friends. We’ve lost 52 percent the planet’s wildlife in the past 40 years, and while it’s easy to raise awareness of, say, the plight of the polar bear, it is far harder to make people care about frogs. “We tend to value those species that closely resemble us—large-bodied mammals with front facing eyes—whilst leaving those at the other end of the evolutionary spectrum out in the cold,” says Moore.
He relies upon more than eye-catching photographs to convince people that amphibians are worthy of our protection. He’s wrapped 70,000 words around his 400 photographs, sharing the wonder of the animals and explaining the vital role they play in countless ecosystems. “Simply telling people that frogs are disappearing does little to elicit an emotional response if they feel little for frogs in the first place,” says Moore.
Over the years, Moore has photographed more than 200 species and worked alongside research teams that have identified six new species—and rediscovered six others previously thought lost. To capture his stunning images, Moore and an assistant traipse into remote jungles with cameras, a Canon 100mm f/2.8 macro lens, two off-camera flashes and an Octodome softbox (the circular catchlight in the eye looks more natural than a rectangular one).
“I try to place the light source to the side and as close to the frogs as possible so that the light wraps nicely around the frog without creating too much glare on the moist skin,” says Moore who is consistently finding workarounds for limited light and high contrast under the forest’s canopy. Often, too, Moore shoots at night when most frogs are active.
The luminous white backgrounds were made by placing the frogs and salamanders on an opaque sheet of plastic, which Moore carries into the field. The white plastic “brings out the incredible colors and textures, and the personality of the animals” Moore says. The technique was developed by the global Meet Your Neighbours photography project and used by photographers like Clay Bolt in his fantastic series Beautiful Bees .
Moore is one of a growing number of photographers to raise awareness of the need for greater conservation and protection of threatened animals and habitats. He cites Cristina Mittermeier, James Balog, and Joel Sartore as particular influences, but is quick to celebrate everyone within the International League of Conservation Photographers. He hopes that his work, like theirs, will inspire others to take up the cause.
“The photos lure people in,” he says, “but it is my hope that people will be enticed to read the stories and forge a deeper connection. It was frogs and newts that opened my mind to scientific inquiry and fed an insatiable curiosity with the world around me. I would like my son to have that same opportunity for emotional and intellectual enrichment through the natural world.”
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