What started out as a desire to get a pet bird turned into an incredible art project and photobook dedicated entirely to the beauty of the humble chicken.

From a childhood love of birds to the humble chicken

Since he was a boy, photographer Matteo Tranchellini had always had a love of birds. Years later as an adult, he decided he wanted a Concincina hen as a pet for his studio garden in Milan.

In 2013, Matteo met farmer Giorgio who invited him to an aviary exhibition where he met a Concincina hen named Jessicah. It was love at first sight and their encounter prompted the next big project for Matteo who was joined by his photographer friend Moreno Monti.

Project Chicken - how Matteo and Moreno worked their magic

What happened next turned into an enormous photographic project that kept the two friends busy, capturing the true beauty of these avian creatures. The result? The Chicken series.

Working with a simple light set and some magnificent chickens and roosters, the Chicken series was photographed at the Milano aviary exhibition in Italy with the permission of the breeders.

Matteo and Moreno produced enough material to create a photobook, launching a Kickstarter campaign to fund its production.

The photo collection contains more than 200 photos of 100 diverse types of chickens with additional prints and accessories also available.

As Matteo and Moreno intended, the images of these magnificent birds are simply breathtaking and give a whole new perspective to the beauty of the humble chicken.

Take a look at the images below. We've certainly never seen photos like them!

For more information on the Chicken series, please click here.

(All images courtesy of Matteo Tranchellini and Moreno Monti.)

You need to have a Yummypets account in order to comment on this article.
Create your Yummypets account in less than a minute.