James Balog (b. 1952) American, Endangered Species Stamps First Day Issue. The top says ‘Endangered Species.’ Below that, there are 15 different stamps. To the right it says, ‘National Stamp Collecting Month 1996 highlights these 15 species to promote awareness of endangered wildlife. Each generation must work to protect the delicate balance of nature, so that future generations may share a sound and healthy planet.’ The bottom says ‘Photographs of the Endangered Species by James Balog - Camera and Lenses: Mamiya 645 PRO. c US Postal Service - First Day of Issue.’ Signed James Balog in the lower right. Proceeds from this sale will benefit students at the Ringling College of Art & Design. 

Size: 30 x 22 in. 

#4249 . 

James Balog was born in Danville, Pennsylvania on July 15th, 1952. He is an American photographer whose work explores the relationship between humans and nature, and is best known as the founder and director of Earth Vision Institute in Boulder, Colorado. His childhood fascination with nature led him to become an avid adventurer while obtaining his undergraduate degree in geology at Penn State University. As his adventures grew more and more complex and scenic, he decided to learn photography in order to document the experiences, continuing to experiment with nature photography while completing his masters in geomorphology at the University of Colorado. Since the early 1980s Balog’s photographs have appeared in National Geographic, The New Yorker, Life, Vanity Fair, The New York Times Magazine, Smithsonian, Audubon, Outside and numerous trade publications such as American Photo, Professional Photographer and Photo District News. Assignments and personal projects have included documenting the aftermath of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, the 2004 tsunami that devastated Southeast Asia, Hurricane Katrina’s collision with the U.S. Gulf Coast, and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Gulf oil disaster. Balog has received many awards for his work, and in 1996 he became the first photographer ever commissioned by the U.S. Postal Service to create a full set of stamps. He is the author of seven books, including Extreme Ice Now: Vanishing Glaciers and Changing Climate: A Progress Report (2009), Tree: A New Vision of the American Forest (2004), and Survivors: A New Vision of Endangered Wildlife (1990), described as a conceptual breakthrough in nature photography. He is a founding Fellow of the International League of Conservation Photographers. He lives in Boulder, Colorado, with his wife, Suzanne, and his daughter.