Photographer David Yarrow: Travel broadens the mind; it gives you contextuality

Born in Glasgow, David Yarrow is one of the bestselling fine-art photographers in the world. He took up photography at an early age and at 20, found himself covering the World Cup Final in Mexico City. He was responsible for taking the now-famous picture of Diego Maradona holding the World Cup.

Years later, he shifted his focus to documenting the natural world and his limited-edition prints now regularly sell for more than Dh257,000 a piece. He has just released his first photographic monograph in three years, featuring many of his most famous works, with a foreword written by NFL star Tom Brady and an afterword by Cindy Crawford. We caught up with the intrepid photographer.

To heighten awareness of the threat to biodiversity on our planet. I also felt that perhaps some of the imagery of the natural world wasn’t quite as immersive or as emotional as it could be. And like many other people, I am interested in the natural world and viewed it as an opportunity to see more of it.

You have travelled far and wide, but is there a place that is particularly special to you?

Montana, because of the uniqueness of the scenery, matched with the uniqueness of the people. There, you have the potential for a double-layered narrative. I’ve been going to Montana for the past four years and I still feel there are endless possibilities there. The other place is Amboseli [in Kenya]; this has been a bedrock of my career. Almost all of my elephant shots were taken here; it is a clean canvas on which to tell stories.