The making of The Tiger Project was nearly a year-long process. It was full of research, meetings, practice, learning, adjusting, and then going back and practicing all over again. It was this way for a reason. I knew that working with animals this incredible and this powerful demanded an enormous amount of respect and appreciation. It was an opportunity very few people ever get, and I wanted to make sure we approached it the right way.
Along the way, I talked with friends, family, and clients about the project, and the questions were endless. Eventually, it became clear that we needed to start writing them down. We figured if the people around us had this many questions, chances are some of you did too. So, with the help of my friend Derek Jones, who produced all of the video for the series, I sat down in front of the camera and tried my best to describe what it is actually like to photograph a tiger.
But there was someone on the other side of the camera I wanted you to meet as well. Brittney Olson is the keeper of the tigers and the person who stood beside me throughout this entire project, making sure the safety of the animals, as well as my own, remained the priority while we created the series. And while people had plenty of questions for me, I probably had even more for Brittney. So we turned the camera around and asked her some of them, including one I think everyone has wondered at some point: What does tiger fur actually feel like?
Brittney also gave us a perspective on these animals that I could never provide myself. In one of the few instances where you will ever hear me support Meta glasses, she wears them while working with the tigers. They offer an incredible first-person look at what it is like to have free contact with a tiger, but they also serve a practical purpose. The footage can be reviewed if the team ever needs to pay closer attention to something specific regarding an animal’s health or behavior.
She has generously allowed us to share some of those videos, and I still watch them routinely. Because, really, how often do you get to see what it looks like to stand face-to-face with a nearly 500-pound tiger while feeding it a bottle of milk? And while we’re on the subject of things I didn’t expect to learn during this project: did you know tigers moo?
I’m incredibly grateful for how many of you have enjoyed this series, followed along with the process, and shared in our fascination with these animals. And somehow, we’re already underway creating the next series. I guess you’ll have to wait a little while to find out what it is… Or maybe you can enjoy a quick sneak peek.
