In the Field

Man...What a Day! Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 2, 2010.

When viewing wildlife images, it's sometimes hard NOT to be anthropomorphic. For me, this is one of those times...it's hard to imagine that this bear is having anything BUT a bad day (and is hoping that tomorrow is better). This is a female bear (around 4 years old) that had been, for the week or so before I shot this image, romantically pursued by a number of adult male bears (and, to be honest, seemed confused by their intentions). The situation left me wondering if she was thinking about what the heck she had to do to get rid of those pesky males. I wasn't about to tell her...

I'm of the view that digital wildlife photography is a near perfect marriage of creativity and technical knowledge. Kind of a "right brain/left brain" thing. Even a "cute" image like this - where it seems like the image is totally dominated by what the bear is doing - illustrates the interplay between creativity and technical thinking...

With most wildlife images (including this one), one of the key things in making them work is to keep the image simple (and making it very clear where you want the viewer to look). One way to do this is to isolate (or separate) the subject from the background. And one way to do this is to soften up (i.e., throw out of focus) the background and ensure it isn't a distraction. But...you have to ensure that the critical portions of the subject - and in many cases all or most of the foreground - are in sharp focus. Many novice, and virtually all, intermediate level photographers know this principle, but when they get into a field situation they don't know what aperture to select (at a given distance) to produce the effect they know they want. What to do? Well, many "how-to" manuals and books talk about using your camera's depth of field preview button to force your camera to stop down (close the aperture to that which you've chosen) to "see" your depth of field. In theory, they're right. But in practice, when you do this the viewfinder darkens to the point where you really can't see exactly what is in focus and what isn't. An alternate approach available to those who have cameras with Live View (where you can view your image on your camera's LCD prior to exposure) is to check the depth of field using that function (as your LCD shows the effect of aperture choice on depth of field in real time). But...between the slow autofocus and lack of other critical info available on your LCD (of most implementations of Live View), it's rare that using Live View really works well when shooting wildlife images.

So what do you do to get the depth of field "right"? Well, I do something decidedly old-fashioned - I consult depth of field tables (which give the width of your depth of field, and how it is distributed in front of and behind your focal point). Mind you, I do it in a high tech way (on my iPhone or iPad)! And, because I can't do it fast enough in the field, I MEMORIZE (oooh, yuk!) the depth of field values for each of my telephoto lens for a few key distances. Yep, geek stuff. BUT, having this info in my head gives me an advantage - and removes the guesswork - when I'm choosing an aperture to produce an image with a specific creative look and feel to it.

Right brain - meet left brain! You're going to have to work together a LOT if you want to do some seriously interesting wildlife photography...

This image was captured during my annual "Grizzlies of the Khutzeymateen" Instructional Photo Tour in the spring of 2010. If you're interested in joining me on one of my photo tours into the Great Bear Rainforest or other coastal destinations, check out the details on my "Photo Tours" page of this website. My Instructional Photo Tours into the Great Bear Rainforest are run in conjunction with Ocean Light II Adventures - they offer a number of amazing adventure tours (including top-notch bear-viewing tours as well as tours of exploration of the Queen Charlotte Islands) and I highly recommend them!

Behind the Camera

Man...What a Day! Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 2, 2010.

Digital Capture; RAW 14-bit format; ISO 250.

Nikon D3s with Nikkor 400mm f2.8 VR lens - handheld. VR on and set to "Normal" mode.

1/400s @ f6.3; -0.33 stop compensation from matrix-metered exposure setting of camera.

At the Computer

Man...What a Day! Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 2, 2010.

RAW Conversion to 16-bit TIFF, including first-pass/capture sharpening using Phase One's Capture One Pro 5. Four RAW conversions at different exposure settings. Exposure settings varying from 0 stops compensation (to retain highlight detail and for background) through to +1.7 stops for darker portions of the bear's face (to draw out shadow detail).

Further digital corrections on 16-bit TIFF file using Adobe's Photoshop CS5 and Light Craft's LightZone. Photoshop adjustments included compositing and masking of 4 exposure versions, selective saturation of colours and selective sharpening for web output. Final tonemapping and tweaking performed with LightZone use the (tonemapper/re-light tool).

Conservation

Man...What a Day! Khutzeymateen Inlet, BC, Canada. June 2, 2010.

Ten percent of the revenue generated by this image will be donated to Pacific Wild*

Species Status in Canada**: Special Concern (May 2002).

While Grizzly Bears (Ursus arctos) are not technically listed as "Endangered" in Canada, they have been extirpated from most of their historical range. Grizzly Bears are far more sensitive to intrusion/disturbance in their habitat than are Black Bears and are being increasingly forced into marginal habitat by human encroachment. The Great Bear Rainforest along the central and northern coast of British Columbia is one of the last strongholds of the Grizzly Bear in Canada, and even this population is coming under increasing pressure.

*Pacific Wild is a non-profit conservation organization that is committed to:

1. Defending wildlife and their habitat on CanadaÕs Pacific coast by developing and implementing solution-based conservation strategies. Pacific Wild supports innovative research, public education, community outreach and awareness to achieve the goal of lasting environmental protection in the lands and waters of the Great Bear Rainforest.

2. Working with a diverse array of communities, First Nations, groups and individuals to ensure that biodiversity protection is at the forefront of land and marine use decisions.

3. Mobilizing a concerned global citizenry to achieve large-scale wildlife protection.

Natural Art Images supports the efforts of Pacific Wild and encourages you to do the same.

**as determined by COSEWIC: The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada