Meet Your Neighbours is a photographic initiative that reveals

the wildlife living amongst us in an extraordinary way. These

creatures and plants are vital to people: they represent the first,

and for some, the only contact with wild nature we have. Yet

often they are overlooked, undervalued.

Meet Your Neighbours dignifies these common species by

giving them celebrity treatment. Each is photographed on

location in a field studio. A brilliantly-lit white background

removes the context, encouraging appreciation of the

subject as an individual rather than a species. Their own

form constitutes the composition. Seen this way, animals and

plants we thought we knew reveal another side of themselves,

encourage a second glance, perhaps even renewed interest.

The initiative will engage photographers from around the

world to celebrate these animals and ask people in their

communities to “go meet your neighbours”. This is conservation

photography at the grass roots level, asking people to care

about their own natural heritage, where they live and showing

them how extraordinary it is in a fresh way.

If you are tempted to ask “Well, why do we need orchids or

salamanders, woodlice or bullfrogs anyway?” you may as

well ask, “why do we need children, friends, community?”

We can live without all these things but our lives are much the

poorer if we do so.

Niall Benvie, Project Co-Founder

The ConceptMeet Your Neighbours is a global-scale photographic project,

developed to encourage people of all ages to engage and

appreciate the common species and natural environments

within their own communities. Through stunning imagery and

unique presentations, our viewers will gain a new understanding

of just how special their own common ‘backyard’ species are

and be encouraged to take the necessary steps to ensure their

continued survival. It is our goal to nurture a compassion for

even the most humble members of the natural world. Meet Your

Neighbours is a proactive conservation effort aiming to remind

the public that, with care and consideration, today’s common

species won’t become the rarities of tomorrow.

The LookEach subject is shot in the wild against a pure

white background and backlit to highlight its

translucent qualities. The result of the field-studio

approach is an exceptionally detailed, stunningly gorgeous

series of portraits of common species like you’ve never seen them

before! The images show maximum detail – itself often a

source of fascination. Because all images are created on-

location, the need to harvest plants or transfer animals out of

their natural environments is effectively eliminated.

The CampaignImages will be used in a variety of ways to support the Meet

Your Neighbours project. These include: next generation

e-Books with streaming video and sound, a children’s book

series with enhanced digital companion guides, a high

quality coffee table style book and an amazing ‘on-

white’ image catalog from partnering photographers from

around the globe. Photos from the project will also be

displayed in several traditional and non-traditional exhibits,

including projected showings in public areas.

The Funding & SupportUnlike many large-scale projects, which often require massive

amounts of funding before an effort can get underway, Meet

Your Neighbours has been uniquely structured to avoid this

issue. Partnering photographers will shoot in their home

regions, eliminating the need for long-distance travel and

associated costs. In addition, they will work with regional

sponsors to support their efforts, a fundamental point which

serves to not only remove the financial burden from a few

large donors, but also ensures that regional organizations

have a vested interest in making sure each effort is a success.

With the exception of basic administrative costs, much of the

support that will be required for the project launch may be

donated in-kind by sponsors. Examples of the types of in-kind

donations that we are pursuing include: web hosting, digital

projection equipment (on-loan), exhibition spaces, videography

and, of course, publicity and advertising opportunities.

The Rewards• Meet Your Neighbours is a unique photographic

effort supported by the some of the world’s best nature

photographers

• Our message is hopeful and positive; common species

are here, they are amazing and their continued survival is

achievable

• Partnering photographers and sponsors will work together

to reveal a very accessible side of nature that the general

public can see, touch and interact with in their own

communities

• Participants will also receive positive publicity and

exposure through outlets such as magazine articles,

websites, blogs, books, and multi-media; strengthening

their own conservation message through an association

with Meet Your Neighbours

• An opportunity to build relationships with like-minded

businesses and organizations

• Access to an amazing photographic archive featuring a

broad selection of images of common species from around

the world in amazing detail and style

• A way to give back and make a difference in your local

communities and others around the world through a positive

environmental education and awareness program

For More InformationClay Bolt Project Coordinator & Co-Founder

PH: 1.864.905.8797EM: clay@earthlink.netSM: 198 Jenkins Way

Easley, South Carolina, 29640USA

Niall Benvie Senior Advisor & Co-Founder

PH: +44.1356.626.128EM: niall@niallbenvie.comSM: 24 Park Road

BRECHIN, Angus, DD9 7APScotland

Green Veined White Butterfly & Cuckoo Flower (Pieris napi & Cardamine pratensis)

Wet woods & Damp Meadows | Photographed in Norway

Ladder Snake (Rhinechis scalaris)Temperate Forests & Shrubland | Photographed in Spain

Rosyside Dace (Clinostomus funduloides) & Yellow-Fin Shiner (Notropis lutipinnis)Rivers & Streams | Photographed in the United States

Green Tiger Beetle (Cicindela campestris)Dry Woodlands & Open Areas | Photographed in Estonia

Pool Frog (Rana lessonae)Vegetated Wetlands | Photographed in Estonia

Yellow Ladies Slipper (Cypripedium calceolus)Open Woodlands | Photographed in France

Moorish Gecko (Tarentola mauritanica)Dry, Rocky Habitats | Photographed in Spain

Cardinal Flower (Lobelia cardinalis)Wetlands | Photographed in the United States