Last week’s episode of Picture Perfect gave us an eye-opening look at the illegal trade of exotic animals. (You may have also seen the story on CNN.com, which posted the video.) We are pleased to be able to feature a selection of photographer Patrick Brown’s striking images, which help to illustrate and shed light on this global contraband industry.

Brown’s decade-long project will culminate with the publication of Trading to Extinction later this year. The book is being crowd-funded through Emphas.is, a platform for photo journalists to connect with their audiences. There are just 10 days left to fund to this important project, so we encourage you to learn more about how you can contribute.

In this episode of Picture Perfect, we visit Patrick Brown in Bangkok, Thailand to discuss photography and his forthcoming book Trading to Extinction, which documents the illegal trade of endangered animals in Asia. We then travel with Brown to Guangzhou, China, where he photographs restaurants that buy and serve exotic animals.

We are proud to premiere the latest installment of Picture Perfect featuring Patrick Brown. In this episode, VICE visits the Australian-born photographer at his residence in Bangkok, Thailand to discuss his approach to photography and his forthcoming book Trading to Extinction, which documents the illegal trade of endangered animals in Asia. We then accompany Brown to China to photograph a variety of markets, restaurants and locations that participate in the buying, selling and exhibiting of exotic animals.

Patrick Brown grew up in Perth, Australia, and taught himself to take pictures while working as a theater set builder. He was increasingly drawn to documentary photography and eventually sold his car and surfboard to pay for a trip to Malawi, where he spent six weeks documenting the work of a renowned Australian surgeon who had once saved his life. The resulting photographs became a major exhibition in Australia. In 1999, Brown moved to Southeast Asia to cover Vietnamese coal-mining strikes and the skyrocketing methamphetamine trade. He has spent most of the past decade and a quarter of his life documenting the illegal trade of endangered species, exposing its devastating effects and giving a voice to the people, places, and animals that he photographs.

Brown’s work in Trading to Extinction will be published with funding obtained through Emphas.is, a platform for photojournalists to connect with their audience.

Be sure to check our our exclusive bonus footage in which Brown describes the nuances of working with the translators/”fixers” who accompany him in difficult situations and come to his aid beyond the mere duty of translating.

In this episode of Picture Perfect, VICE visits Australian-born photographer Patrick Brown in Bangkok to talk about the craft of photography and his decade-long work of documenting the illegal trade of endangered species as presented in his forthcoming book Trading to Extinction.

The full Picture Perfect episode featuring Patrick Brown premieres on April 4th April 11th.