Captive Souls Project : The art of saving animals by Jeff Bentz
Over the last few years I have visited wildlife refuges , safari parks , and zoos to photograph different animals and wildlife . Through the process of photographing these animals I have often felt compassion and the need to do something to help animals in need . On a recent visit with my daughter to a local animal shelter , I had the opportunity to observe the great looking dogs and cats in temporary residency . This created an awareness in me that these animals could use some help . With that in mind , I reached out to my friend , and fellow photographer , Walter Santos .
Walter was the logical person to reach out to . He is an awardwinning fine art photographer who has been collaborating in a multitude of spaces , including museums and galleries , to raise animal awareness and awareness of the lands they occupy around us . A great photographer based in the Temecula area of Southern California , Walter also does amazing work through his ongoing photography project to benefit animals called Captive Souls Project . I ’ ve known about Captive Souls for some time , and I have seen the artwork that Walter has donated and put on display in his community – but I wanted to know more .
Walter shared that the idea behind the Captive Souls Project is to generate awareness through art . The project donates the proceeds from sales of art to organizations dedicated to helping animals and underserved children . The mission of the Captive Souls Project is to improve the treatment of animals , and raise funding for children to attend field trips designed to introduce them to the arts . He explained that the goal is to bring awareness to , and change how , we view and treat animals . Currently , there is a fine art landscape photography calendar being produced called Temecula Wine Country Views 2025 . The calendar includes images from nine contributing photographers , and will raise much needed funds for the STAT Horse Sanctuary and the Temecula Theater Foundation . I am honored to share that I was chosen to be one of the contributing photographers .
All sales of the calendar will benefit these organizations . The project will also donate another $ 2000 worth of calendars to each organization which will allow them to earn 100 % of all proceeds from sales to the public .
As part of this project the Mighty Mini Masterpieces 2024 auction will take place at the Merc Gallery in Temecula . Items to be auctioned include fine art photos donated by the contributing photographers which will be printed by the professional photo lab , Colorplak , who is donating their printing services . All proceeds benefit the Temecula Theater Foundation , whose mission is to send underserved students on no-cost field trips to the theater .
The final printed images will also be shown at several gallery shows at multiple venues including local wineries , and smaller shows at coffee shops in an effort to reach a wider audience and
create more awareness . The hope is that the beauty of mother nature photographed by the photographers inspires people to protect the land and animals that live in it .
You may ask yourself , “ why is Jeff telling me about all the stuff that ’ s going on in Southern California ?” I ’ m glad you asked .
The answer : This amazing project has inspired me to see how , through fine art photography , I could make a difference in my own community to benefit local animal shelters and rescues that are at the forefront of animal safety and protection . In the coming months , I will be collaborating with Walter to create a fine art photography calendar that will benefit a couple of shelters and rescues in our area of Gilroy and Morgan Hill . If you are a fine art photographer and would like to participate in this amazing project , please contact me at jsbentz @ yahoo . com for further details . Let ’ s create some art , raise some money for a great cause , and have some fun !! If any of our gmhTODAY readers have any thoughts or ideas , I would love to hear them .
The image on the opposite page is a stitch of six images taken at the French Valley Wildlife Area with a 600mm lens and 2x teleconverter . Most of the pictures at the bottom of the page were taken at animal sanctuaries except for Max , Walter ' s dog who was rescued from a shelter .
The photographers participating in the Captive Souls Project are John Moya , Brian Reilly , Tom Okeefe , Dennis Mortlock , Doug Bailey , Shad Schofield , Brian Giardinelli , Walter Santos , and Jeff Bentz .
Jeff Bentz is a travel and landscape photographer in Gilroy , CA . Follow him on Instagram : @ jeff _ bentz _ photography View his portfolio : jeffbentzphotography . com
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