Overjoyed frog gives unicorn chaser a run for its money

Photographer Joel Sartore has been shooting nature for 20 years—long enough to amass a great collection of images you can check out at the New York Times.

“The whole point of this project is to really be able to look these creatures in the eye and get to know them,” he said. The animals are beautiful in their variation, their proximity yielding expressions most humans would interpret in emotional terms — anger, humor, pride.

For instance, I interpret this photo as a frog that has just won the Publisher's Clearinghouse.

Ironically, that's probably not actually an expression of happiness. In the Times article, Sartore says the species is known for its vicious reaction to potential predators.

See the full slideshow at the New York Times

Visit Joel Sartore's website

Thanks, Tim Heffernan!

• [millie fink]

  Happy happy joy joy!!

  The NYT gallery is interesting. The photos of animal faces seemed at first to me like attempts to make animals seem human–the whole anthropomorphism problem. 

  But there’s something about these photos that doesn’t do that. Instead, they remind me that human animals aren’t so different from other animals. The latter have different personalities, just like people do, and a careful observer can see that in their faces. They also have intelligence and, no doubt, their own versions of “thoughts.”

  This page does that for me too–

  http://www.jamesmollison.com/project_apes.php 

  These careful, humane (ha!) photos makes me think that the whole concept of anthropomorphism is cracked. Those who fling it about often go too far in perceiving a line between “animals” and “people” that isn’t really there.

• [Katie Joseph]

  Some behind-the-scenes on that frog is at Sartore’s website: 
  http://www.joelsartore.com/story-behind/one-scary-little-frog/

• [WillieNelsonMandela]

  Wow, what beautiful animals. Thanks for posting that.

• [K.O.]

  Wow, what beautiful animals. 

• [10xor01]

  “I interpret this photo as a frog that has just won the Publisher’s Clearinghouse.”

  Or maybe a frog that just finished giving one of his toad buddies a tongue bath.

• [davide405]

  Overjoyed Frog points to Annoyed Puffer-fish and says “What he said.”

• [cjporkchop]

  My first thought: Frog-shaped Fleshlight

• [Greg Buns Mills]

  Joy? I’d kill that thing with a sand wedge if it tried that crap with me. 

  • [millie fink]

    Whoa, Tough Guy talks tough!

    • [Greg Buns Mills]

      Goddamn right. 

    • [Greg Buns Mills]

      (I actually find frogs terrifying)

      • [millie fink]

        Ha, another coward beneath the buster-bluster. Thanks for admitting it. :)

      • [Antinous / Moderator]

        Don’t feel bad.  I have a phobia of pandas.

      • [vrplumber]

        Ya, reading those Frog and Toad books as a kid, I always found the art style frightening especially when their giant mouths were open.

• [Quiche de Resistance]

  Maybe it’s cause I grew up on nature shows but I immediately thought that frog is not overjoyed, he’s either scared or pissed off but he’s trying to intimidate somebody.  It’s a classic move in the natural world:  puff up as much as you can, stand on your tip toes, open your mouth wide, “look out for me, I’m a big huge scary animal!”

• [frogmarch]

  I’d interpret this photo as a frog onstage at a Big Freedia concert.

• [Avram Grumer]

  Yeah, his face looks happy because of the way his mouth is shaped, but the way his sides are puffed out make think he’s either trying to look big and tough, or gathering in air for an extra-loud croak. 

• [OriGuy]

  Hello my baby, hello my honey, hello my ragtime gal…

• [gwailo_joe]

  Damaraland mole rats eh?  Silly of me I suppose to assume that ‘naked’ is the only variety…

  fur or no: horrible, horrible creatures…I thank heavens that they are small and live underground