The Project
Creation of a series of poems, “Five Shooter”, in support of the New Big 5 project, an international initiative to create a New Big 5 of wildlife, the Big 5 of wildlife photography, not hunting. Shooting with a camera, not a gun.
More than 250 global photographers, conservationists and wildlife charities have come together to support this global initiative including Jane Goodall, Paul Nicklen, Save the Elephants, Dian Fosset Gorilla Fund, Conservation International, The Ellen Fund, One Earth, WildAid….
Created by British Photographer Graeme Green, the project’s aim is to raise awareness about the crisis facing the world’s wildlife from threats including habitat loss, human-wildlife conflict, poaching, illegal wildlife trade and climate change.
‘Five Shooter’
Five
Like fingers
Each one different
Distinct in purpose
To hold, close your hand
Which one would you choose to lose
One less important than the other?
Big Five
Like fingers
All different, come together
Hold on for dear life
Which one would we choose to lose
One less important than the other?
Old Five
Like fingers
Hold a gun, one for a trigger
Squeeze off a round
One comes down
Which one did they choose to waste
One more prized than the other?
New Five
New hand dealt
Fingers come together
To hold a camera
One finger for a different trigger
To shoot yes, only to capture
No need to choose, shoot them all
Five shooter
All prized equally
Shoot as many times as you like
No harm will be done to any one
Finally a hand, a steady hand
Five fingers to capture the big five
Without making them captive
Only their powerful images
Capturing the brilliant truth
The sentience of their existence
Their majesty in the wild
Their right to live and roam
In their home
Untouched plains and jungles
Mountains and ice flows
That’s the prize, the trophy shot
The New Big Five
Alive
By Anthony E. Lovell
New Big 5 Film
The film was produced by One Earth, The Ellen Fund and New Big 5 project.
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