In the Field

Taking a LONNNGGG Drink. Great Bear Rainforest (northern BC coast), Canada. September 12, 2005.

We were floating just offshore in a Zodiac boat when this adult female Brown (or Grizzly) Bear approached us, waded into the river, and gave us a good long look. I was supporting my favourite zoom lens on the air-filled chamber of our inflatable boat, but with the water being choppy I was struggling to find enough light to ensure image sharpness. Because I was shooting in RAW format, I knew I could "cheat" a little and gain a full stop (through intentional under-exposure) and later recover the light when converting the RAW file. I doubt I could have made this shot before the advent of image-stabilized lenses!

Behind the Camera

Taking a LONNNGGG Drink. Great Bear Rainforest (northern BC coast), Canada. September 12, 2005.

Digital Capture; Compressed RAW (NEF) format; ISO 200.

Nikon D2X with Nikon 200-400 mm f/4G ED-IF AF-S VR lens @ 400 mm (600 mm equivalent with digital conversion factor) supported on pontoon of Zodiac boat.

1/180s @ f4.5; -1 stop exposure compensation from matrix-metered exposure setting.

At the Computer

Taking a LONNNGGG Drink. Great Bear Rainforest (northern BC coast), Canada. September 12, 2005.

RAW Conversion to 16-bit TIFF, including first-pass sharpening, using Phase One's C1 Pro. Exposure correction (to compensate for deliberate shutter-speed-enhancing under-exposure while shooting) during RAW conversion.

All further digital correction on 16-bit TIFF file using Adobe's Photoshop CS2, including tone curve adjustment, selective saturation enhancement, and selective sharpening for web output.

Conservation

Taking a LONNNGGG Drink. Great Bear Rainforest (northern BC coast), Canada. September 12, 2005.

Ten percent of the revenue generated by this image will be donated to Raincoast.

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. The Raincoast Conservation Society (and Foundation) is an effective and efficient organization that has been fighting for protection of this unique habitat. If you are looking for a meaningful way to contribute to the conservation of this amazing ecosystem, Raincoast will provide maximal "bang" for your conservation dollars.

For more information on the status of Brown (Grizzly) Bears in Canada, go to: http://www.speciesatrisk.gc.ca and search under "Grizzly Bears".

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