« Expressions of Red Deer Stags During the Rut in Black and White » – A Collection of Fine Art Prints

The Story of the Collection

I believe that red deer stags have a magnetic gaze. Their eyes are sharp, insistent, curious, and very introspective. These are all the qualifiers that immediately come to mind when I imagine a red deer stag staring at me.

I have always been fascinated by deer. They are the first large mammals that I had the opportunity to meet when I started wildlife photography. The rut of the deer was the spark for my passion.

Each year, I walked in the shaded outskirts of the forest of La Coubre in Charente-Maritime in the southwest of France. I listened with whole-hearted attention to the bugle of the deer when dusk set. It was impressive to listen.

Deer are not very numerous in this forest because they are hunted. I have been fortunate to have the permission to photograph deer, doe, and wild boar in one of the private areas of this forest. The first photos of a large male bugling on the edge of the wood will forever remain in my memory.

Over the years, I have learned to recognize the different songs of the bugle. I have learned how to place a blind in the right place and to study the habits of the animals, anticipating their next move.

With experience, I have learned to photograph the eyes of deer during this rutting period. Their gaze is very evocative and inquisitive, but always determined. This is their fight. Only the most valiant males will be able to sway a herd of does. It is not necessarily the most muscular who gains the prize, rather, it is he who has the most energy.

For this collection that praises the beauty of these wild animals, I chose black and white. This creative technique allows me to highlight the figures and the coats. The use of black and white helps me to illuminate the extraordinary expression of these lords of the woods and meadows.