The eyes of a creature

Forget about BeetleCam and other devices. A British photographer risked his life as he captured these wildlife shots.

Jonathan Griffiths held his camera just inches away from tigers, bears and cougars as he took the pictures. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

The 32-year-old endured minus 40 degree Celsius temperatures at a Canadian wildlife breeding reserve as he gained the trust of each animal over two or three days. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

He enticed them with meat – mainly chicken – to photograph them close-up in his 15-month project. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

..and in another shot a tiger left condensation on his lens with its breath. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

The currency trader flew to Canada, where he stayed in a lodge by a wildlife breeding reserve. He would wake up at 5.30am each day, trekking off mountain trails in search of snow leopards, wolves and black leopards. A guide at the wildlife reserve stood by his side as he came face to face with some of nature’s most dangerous animals to capture them in intimate detail. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

Jonathan said: “At first I was quite nervous being so close to the animals as I did not know what to expect and they are wild… (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

For Jonathan the scariest moment came when he came face-to-face with a black leopard, “which made me fear for my life and I thought it could attack at any moment. It was was just mean and did not like humans full stop”. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

My family think I’m a bit nuts and worry about the consequences if something went wrong. But I just like getting as close as possible to get a different kind of shot.” On the approach….a Bobcat. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

Two Brown bears roar at the camera. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

A Siberian tiger bares its teeth. (Jonathan Griffiths/Solent)

More photos!