Tom and Cree just returned from their Bears of Katmai Workshop and are sharing the highlights with you. Our group was treated to exciting bear encounters and daily scenic flights. We photographed sparring bears and several sows with cubs
To see photos of the Bears of Katmai Workshop check out the trip report by clicking here
What’s Next: Tom and I will officially be on vacation for the first part of September. We plan to head into the field to work on our own images of musk ox and bull moose. We will be in Nome and Denali NP. In late September we head to South Africa in search of leopards and other big cats.
Tom and Cree celebrate the great images created by their community of photographers by selecting a Photograph of the Month. For August we selected a brown bear image created by Teri Manchen on our Brown Bear Safari . We hope you enjoy Teri’s images as much as we do!
Congratulations to August 2021 ‘s featured photographer – Teri Manchen
Teri Photographing Brown Bears in Katmai National Park
The Story โฆ
At first the mother bear was really far away. She started coming closer to us and I was excited to get the shot. I wished her cubs were in the image too. The were down at the end of a cove and then they walked right past us.
I was happy with the bear and the fish. The fish was on the ground and it was hard to tell if it was still alive. I liked how it lined up with the bear perfectly.
August 2021 Photo of the Month
I was not afraid of the bear. I had done the same trip two years ago and had the same experience of getting close to grizzly bears. I was pretty calm. I just wanted to get the shot.
The last time I went to Katmai, I used aperture priority as my preferred shooting mode. This time I shot in manual mode to make sure my shutter speeds were high enough. This was also the first time I used auto ISO on Tom’s recommendation. It was exciting and it really works. Now I will use it a lot.
EXIF Data:
Nikon D5 with 200-500 Nikon zoom lens at 480mm
Manual mode with auto ISO F11, 1/2000 sec
Sow with two cubs strolling along Moraine Creek
๏ปฟ
Teri’stips for photographing brown bears:
Don’t be scared. You will get closer to the bears than you imagine. The first time I photographed brown bears was at Silver Salmon Creek. I was a tad afraid. We were in a buggy and a blond bear started chasing the cart. I was in the very back of the buggy closest to the bear. That experience was a bit nerve wracking. Now I realize that I can be close to bears and not worry when I’m photographing.
Large brown bear looking for sockeyes in the river
๏ปฟ
About Katmai National Park
I loved every part of Katmai National Park. You can’t imagine that you can walk so closely alongside the bears. It’s unreal. I liked looking for bears and finding them around almost bend of a creek.
The day when we saw 22 bears in one 360 view was amazing. We also had wonderful weather. We never had to put on our raincoats.
On Teri’s Horizon
Botswana
Ouray, Colorado for fall color
Death Valley
Galapagos
New Zealand
Bucket list: Antarctica
Teri and the crew at Moraine Creek in Katmai National Park
There is one space left on a bear workshop for 2022 . Click here to read more . Our 2022 schedule is getting full, but we have openings for 2023. For our full schedule Click Here
We plan to post a new Ecuador Hummingbirds Workshop soon. Join the interest list
