# Vivid Snake Photos Come at a Cost — A Bite From a Black Mamba



## Precarious (Feb 27, 2013)

Mark Laita is not a snake owner or enthusiast but his admiration of snakes’ textures and formal qualities rivals that of any herpetologist. It’s an admiration that is on display in his new book, _Serpentine_, out next week. The book is a collection of gorgeously lit snakes against a black backdrop.

“My intention was to explore color, shape and movement, using snakes as a subject, but of course herpetologists will probably enjoy these photographs as well,” says Laita, a Los Angeles photographer known for his stunning studio compositions.

During the making of _Serpentine_, Laita visited dozens of locations in the U.S. and Central America essentially exporting his studio to zoos, venom labs and to the home and workplaces of breeders and collectors.

“I shot everything from the most venomous — an Inland Taipan — to a harmless garter snake,” says Laita. “As for the most dangerous, though, I would think a king cobra is the most capable of doing serious harm to a human. Very big, fast and angry.”

The king cobra is the world’s longest venomous snake and chiefly feeds on other snakes. Despite relying on the help of trained snake handlers, Laita didn’t complete _Serpentine_ unscathed.

“I was bitten a few times by non-venomous species,” chirps Laita. “I had one venomous bite, but I’m still around.”

The book _Serpentine_ goes on sale Feb. 26.







Ophiophagus hannah_, commonly called the king cobra_

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Calliophis bivirgatus_, commonly called the Blue Malaysian coral snake_

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Crotalus atrox _(albino), commonly called the western diamondback rattlesnake_

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Trimeresurus vogeli_, commonly called Vogel's pit viper, playing dead_

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Crotalus scutulatus_, commonly called the Mojave rattlesnake, with babies_

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Trimeresurus trigonocephalus_, commonly called the Sri Lankan palm viper_

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Pseudonaja textilis_, commonly called the eastern brown snake_

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Lampropeltis getula nigrita_, commonly called the Mexican black king snake_

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Bothrops alternatus_, commonly called Urutu_

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Cielia Cielia_, commonly called Mussarana_


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## Precarious (Feb 27, 2013)

Trimeresurus venustus_, commonly called the beautiful pit viper_

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Boa constrictor constrictor_, commonly called the red-tailed boa_

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Bitis nasicornis_, commonly called the rhinoceros viper_

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_Cover to the book_ Serpentine


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## agent A (Feb 27, 2013)

Just gorgeous


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## Paradoxica (Feb 27, 2013)

Amazing


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## brancsikia339 (Feb 27, 2013)

my favorite snake species of all time is calliophis birvigatus! Amazing pictures


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## Mvalenz (Feb 27, 2013)

Are you kidding me? These look amazing. My favorites are Trimeresurus trigonocephalus, Trimeresurus venustus and the one on the cover.


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## OctoberRainne (Feb 27, 2013)

These are crazy cool,shame some snakes are that venomous though


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## AxolotlsAreCoolToo (Feb 27, 2013)

do you think there are crazy people that captive breed the venomous snakes


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## Bug Trader (Feb 27, 2013)

hahaha, I had a pretty nice venomous collection in GA, albino rattlers, bush vipers, eyelash vipers, gabboons, rhinos, death adders and others. There is a pretty big venomous hobby and captive breeding market.


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## BugLover (Feb 28, 2013)

Amazing Pictures


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