Photography Techniques and Inspirations
As Photo Ark turns 20, Joel Sartore photographs 18,000 animal species (News.Mongabay)
Summary: Joel Sartore’s National Geographic Photo Ark turned 20 this year, reaching its 18,000th animal, a critically endangered red handfish. The project aims to photograph every species in zoos, aquariums, and sanctuaries to move people to care about extinction. Sartore has photographed species that have since gone extinct, including the northern white rhino Nabiré and the frog Toughie. He works seven days a week and is preparing his son Cole to carry the project forward.
Why it matters: Photography can be an essential part of conservation, giving a face to a story or, in the case of the famed Ark, drawing international attention.
Context: The Photo Ark was born out of love for both animals and his family. Two decades ago, Sartore was traveling the world on assignment for National Geographic when his wife was diagnosed with cancer. He came home to be near her and started photographing animals at nearby zoos.
"We want to show people what biodiversity looks like at this point in time,” he says, “so people will wake up and care and want to do something other than fight with each other." — NEWS.MONGABAY
Date: August 28, 2026 11:16 AM ET
URL: https://news.mongabay.com/2026/08/as-the-photo-ark-turns-20-joel-sartore-photographs-18000-animal-species
Generated Analysis Tone: Neutral (50%)
Source Registry Score: 7.0/10 — Medium
Generated text and tone describe the analysis; the source registry score is not a factual truth rating.Post ID: 1e559627