August Legras was born on February 21, 1864 in Amsterdam. His father was French, his mother of German descent. When he was eleven years old, Legras was sadly taken out of school. He soon became employed as an assistant at court, in order to earn money to maintain his family. Later he worked as an office clerk at a distillery and when he felt like he was finished learning, he started his own distillery. Somehow he managed to provide for himself and his family.
When his mother obtained a small inheritance a few years later, Legras sold the family business. This is when he got the idea to use his drawing skills to earn money. He started working on a commission basis and he produced mainly portraits during this period. Although he still wasn't earning much, he never stopped drawing. He produced sketches and etchings of the animals in Artis Zoo, and he started to teach drawing lessons. The public slowly began to take interest in his work. After this reassurance, Legras started to travel the world. On November 1th, 1915, Legras passed away in the Dutch Laren.