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The Polar Bears of Churchill
November 11 -
17, 2008
You wake up from five months of hibernation and
what's the one thing you want to do? Eat. To do that you have to
search for it and the polar bears of Churchill did exactly that. I
was privileged enough to get a chance to photograph the bears as
they went about their lives waiting for the Hudson Bay to freeze
over and move north. Here's a few images of polar bears from my
weeks stay with them...
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You're looking out over the Hudson Bay and the sign
ain't kidding. |
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This is one of the first polar bears we encountered and
one of the lightest shades of fur. |
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Their nose is their radar. They supposedly can smell
food from a mile away. |
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Most polar bears were an off-white color to be sure. It
made them easier to spot (not easy, just easier). Look at those huge
paws! |
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Most would sleep while the winds were blowing only to
shake it off when it was time to get up. |
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There was no doubt, it was their world and we were just
visiting. In both near and far a mother and cub stay together |
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Looking for grub. |
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This guy poked his head up over a snow bank to get a
whiff of our lunch. |
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I like it when they pose for you. |
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A mother and cub staying on the move. Mom has to find
food for both of them. |
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Two teenage bears that put on quite a show for us. They
were silly, playful and provided a lot of good action. |
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This would be the silly. |
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They're playfulness progressed from laying down, to
slapping, to sitting up, to standing up. |
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Once up on two feet they would push and shove each other with great
force. Looks vicious but they really are playing. |
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Mom and cub during a white-out (think sand-storm but
with snow). Mother's were protective and affectionate toward they're
kids. |
Photographer Notes...
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Best just to check out my notes on the Churchill entry... |
To Consider:
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When shooting polar bears watch your exposure
compensation. You'll want to shoot an EC of +1 to +2 to
separate the bears from the background. This was during a
cloudy, overcast situation.
- The animals are
fairly docile and not quick movers. I shot the first day
in Continuous focus but switched to Single shot mode from
then on and found it to work better. There's just not
enough contrast between the bears and tundra to get a
solid lock using Continuous focus.
- I always shoot
RAW. |
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Further Information...
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Recent entries
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