An Australian born in Papua New Guinea to English and Indian parents, photographer Leila Jeffreys’ longstanding passion for animals crystallized after working alongside ornithologists in nature reserves when in 2008 she took studio portraits of birds. Through her lens, she captures parrots, cockatoos, birds of prey, doves, pigeons and seabirds. Her work both subvert and expand the traditions of portraiture. The profound link that she forms with her subjects underlines the attention she pays to shapes and colors. To create her images of birds, whose constant movement makes them a difficult subject to photograph, Leila has, through years of research and exploration, perfected the art of waiting. Her practice underlines how humans anthropomorphize animals and what we really do share. Leila Jeffreys lives and in Sydney, Australia. Her first solo exhibition, 2010’s Portrait of a Budgerigar revolved around intimate portraits of budgerigars. Since then, the artist has shown major bodies of work in the USA as well as London, Hong Kong, Singapore and Australia and she has released three books. She has a history of exploring, volunteering, lecturing and photographing birds in and from the Polar regions, Australasia, North America, Scandinavia and the British Isles.