Robert Ross Taylor (June 16, 1940 – August 15, 2013), also known as Bob Taylor, was a Canadian wildlife photographer. He was known for his images of

polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...

s, great grey owls and

bison Bison are large bovines in the genus ''Bison'' (Greek: "wild ox" (bison)) within the tribe Bovini. Two extant and numerous extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American bison, ''B. bison'', found only in North Ame ...

Life and work

Taylor was born June 16, 1940 and grew up in the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

area. He earned a degree in 1963 from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute with a major in science photography. Taylor began his career working with government agencies, museums and universities, first in

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada, western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on t ...

and then in Manitoba. Eventually he went out on his own, working as an independent photographer for the remainder of his career. His photographs were published in numerous magazines including

LIFE Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energ ...

, Canadian Geographic, and Reader's Digest. He published several books, focusing on his work in nature photography. Taylor was also involved in the production of several films, mostly documentary shorts of nature subjects. Taylor travelled widely and was actively involved in arranging and leading trips so that others could experience photographing wildlife. Some credit his photography for encouraging interest in the destination of

Churchill, Manitoba Churchill is a town in northern Manitoba, Canada, on the west shore of Hudson Bay, roughly from the Manitoba–Nunavut border. It is most famous for the many polar bears that move toward the shore from inland in the autumn, leading to the nickname ...

to view the annual polar bear migration. Taylor was an accomplished carver who helped launch the Prairie Canada Carvers Association.

Books

* ''The Edge of the Arctic: Churchill and the Hudson Bay Lowlands'' Winnipeg, Manitoba: Windemere House Publishing, 1992 * ''The Manitoba Landscape-A Visual Symphony'' Altona, Manitoba: D. W. Friesen Sons, Limited, 1993 * ''The Great Gray Owl: On Silent Wings'' Winnipeg, Manitoba: Windemere House Publishing, 1997 * ''Manitoba: Seasons of Beauty'' Winnipeg, Manitoba: Windemere House Publishing, 2002.

Awards

* Bronze Award, Columbus Film Festival for ''Assiniboine Forest'' * Award for Creative Excellence, U.S. Industrial Film Festival, for ''Prairie Insights''

Honours

* Order of the Buffalo Hunt, Government of Manitoba *

Royal Canadian Academy of Arts The Royal Canadian Academy of Arts (RCA) is a Canadian arts-related organization that was founded in 1880. History 1880 to 1890 The title of Royal Canadian Academy of Arts was received from Queen Victoria on 16 July 1880. The Governor General ...

* Master of Photographic Arts, Professional Photographers of Canada * Fellowship, Professional Photographers Association of Manitoba

Notes

External links

Robert R. Taylor (personal site) http://www.polarbearphotography.com/ {{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, Robert R. 1940 births 2013 deaths Artists from Toronto Canadian photographers Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts Toronto Metropolitan University alumni