Cover image via Stephen Wilkes/ National Geographic
[Stephen Wilkes] (http://www.stephenwilkes.com) has been producing a magnificent body of work proving his reputation as an iconic photographer since 1983 — but he's unlike any other photographers!
The narrative photographer captures a place in every moment, day and night, and crafts these thousands of images in a single photograph.
It's like time traveling within a photograph if you ask us!
Image via Stephen Wilkes
His editorial work has appeared in, and on the covers of, leading publications such as The New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, TIME, Fortune, National Geographic, Sports Illustrated and many others.
Image via Stephen Wilkes
His extensive photographic journey, "[Day to Night] (http://www.stephenwilkes.com/fine-art/day-to-night)", started in 2009 which became his most renowned project to date
[National Geographic Society] (http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/national-parks-centennial-text) will be featuring his works for its centennial anniversary edition to be published by [Taschen] (https://www.taschen.com/) in 2017.
Last 19 February, [TED] (https://www.ted.com) invited Wilkes to give a talk for its 2016 DREAM Conference's "[Wake Up!] (https://conferences.ted.com/TED2016/program/speakers.php#2858)" session
Image via Twitter
More than three months since the conference, TED posted Wilkes's talk,"**The Passing of Time, Caught in a Single Photo**", in full today.
During his TED talk, he simply blew the minds off of his audience for his exemplary photographs and amazing dedication to his [fine art] (http://www.stephenwilkes.com/fine-art)!
Image via Stephen Wilkes
Image via Stephen Wilkes
Image via Stephen Wilkes
A little trivia: Wilkes is a huge fan of Albert Bierstadt. His whopping 30-hour photograph of the Yosemite National Park was actually inspired from the painter's "Looking Down Yosemite Valley" masterpiece in 1865!
Image via Stephen Wilkes
"Painting has always been a really important influence in all my work and I've always been a huge fan of Albert Bierstadt, the great Hudson River School painter… I was literally on the side of a cliff, capturing the stars and the moonlight as it transitions, the moonlight lighting El Capitan. And I also captured this transition of time throughout the landscape. The best part is obviously seeing the magical moments of humanity as time changed — from day into night," said Wilkes during his talk.
"And on a personal note, I actually had a photocopy of Bierstadt's painting in my pocket. And when that sun started to rise in the valley, I started to literally shake with excitement because I looked at the painting and I go, "Oh my god, I'm getting Bierstadt's exact same lighting 100 years earlier," he added.
Here's Albert Bierstadt's painting of the Yosemite National Park 100 years ago.
Here's Stephen Wilkes's photograph of the Yosemite National Park today.
