So what’s that’s expression again? Hungry as a …
Whenever I bring up the subject of bears, the reactions are all over the map.
When I talked to tourists in Banff National Park last week they just wanted to know where to find them. A sighting immediately created a buzz. A helpful person who worked at a park information centre kept a personal bear count over the entire year. Apparently bears even attract the love of the locals.
Bears aren’t the only amazing sight in the Rockies. Who knew?
Around home I am often met with expressions of paralyzing fear and concern for my safety. I like the puzzled look when I tell them that if bears generally wanted to attack people there would be countless fatalities annually given all the opportunities. It never changes anyone’s mind but I am bemused.
Other wildlife photographers’ eyes tend to light up at the thought of shooting bears. A professional photographer I spoke to had thousands of amazing photos and was trying to take photos of other wild animals for his business. But the lure of the bears kept pulling him back. I don’t think they’ve invented a drug to counteract this addictive behaviour!
When I show someone a photo, it’s common for the first question to be how close I was to the bear. I have to admit it’s a little deflating to start with logistics rather than the beauty and power of these amazing animals. I have a long lens, I’m typically in a vehicle when I see them and I respect wild animals – so I’m safe. It also helps that during my lifetime, I have gone from commonly watching people feed bears roadside to never witnessing that harmful behaviour. Who knew people could change and make it safer for everyone?
Not only do reactions differ but people like their bears in a lot of different ways including:
- Wild
- In good light
- Rare
- Hungry
- In a different time zone
- Big
- With a slow runner between them and the bear
- Friendly
- Well fed
- Angry
- Only as cubs
- Behind bars
- Cute
And me? As long as they are wild and in my lens, I like them all. It’s entirely possible that’s a higher percentage than humans!
So how do you like your bears?
Some wildlife is a lot easier to respect than others. I have no problem respecting bears.
Krahnpix 
Great post…nothing lights up my mind more than the talk of bears and possible sightings. I have only seen a few in the wild, however ~ Banff in June sounds good!
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It is amazingly appealing and I really can’t quite explain it. Happy to hear someone else who sees it the same way.
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Visible!
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Yes!
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Great shots, Lyle.I have seen a couple of bears from horseback or car although there was the time a black bear walked into the kitchen from the back patio in Jasper. It worried me that the foghorn had little effect on him and he showed no fear.Of course I didn’t have my camera with me or I totally forgot to use it..It is not good for bears or people that they are getting used to us. I like to see bears but from a safe distance behind a long lens. So sad that 3 have died in the parks this past week, some from collisions with cars. Drive slow, people.
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Thanks. A bear in the kitchen is not the ideal scenario – especially one that is not afraid. The whole bear/human relationship can be complicated so it’s nice to see a healthy fear. I was pleased that one of the bears we were watching heard a train in the distance, got spooked and ran off into the forest. That should bode well for interaction with trains anyway.
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Behind a barrier 🙂
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Safety first.
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Awesome post and beautiful images as always, Lyle.
I get much of the same reactions that you so aptly described when I show my photographs of bears. I guess you get used to it in the end… There is a lot of misconception and misinformation about bears and other wildlife, it’s just a fact that we have to live with.
As to your question, while I love almost all wildlife (with a few exceptions, like most bugs and spiders) bears, all bears, are probably my ultimate favorite animals. I could observe them and photograph them for countless hours without ever getting bored. 🙂
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I think the quickest hour of our trip last week was photographing a bear so I’m with you all the way on that one. I suppose the reactions are universal when dealing with such a powerful animal – I’m still in the getting used to it phase or just a slow learner. Glad you enjoyed the post.
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We don’t have any bears in the desert! lol but I always love your bears. That cutie with a mouthful of dandelions looks so innocuous, like you could pet him, but I’m pleased to know you are safe in the car (most of the time?). Like that list!
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A desert bear – now that would be something! Since I was there and saw the size of that bear, cute was not a word that came to mind. But now that I look at just the photo I can see that. Happy to hear you love my bears. I have a few more photos that are itching to find a post.
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I’ll be watching from a safe distance!
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Just be careful what you click!
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I like to see the bears, but I think I would like to be further away than they can get to me in my car, like at the end of my binoculars. Your photos are gorgeous. I will let you do all that dangerous photographing. I know you are in a car, but have bears not attacked cars? Like you said, it is good people stopped feeding them.
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I am happy to do bear photography and happy to show you the results. I think we may have found roles we are comfortable with! I’m glad you the photos.
The short answer to your question is yes in rare cases. However, the question indicates it’s possible I may start with different assumptions about safety and risk. There are risks everywhere. For example, I might get struck by lightning, attacked and killed by a dog or shot by a crazy person. As long as I take reasonable precautions, I say I’m safe even though I don’t have a 100% guarantee those things won’t happen. I eagerly desire bear photos so I’m willing to be where the bears are but still take precautions to make it safe. For others that tiny increased risk is not worth it and that’s fine. Does that make sense?
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Wow that first photo of the bear stuffing his face with those dandelions is a real stunner! I’d be thrilled with that if it was the only shot I came away with.
Another thing I learned while reading this post is that you could substitute bear for alligator and you pretty much describe many of the reactions I get from people when I photograph those big reptiles. I’m also not generally afraid for my life, common sense (should) prevail.
I would always prefer my bears just like you do, out free in the wild living their bear lives.
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The funny thing is that I was thinking of you and gators when I was writing this. And I seem to recall some comments I have made about your safety (note to self – quit that). Some knowledge, common sense and familiarity can give a person an entirely different perspective.
Glad you liked that dandelion chewer! I still think it’s funny that such a powerful creature eats dandelions of all things. Where’s the meat???
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I was up in the Calgary/Jasper/Lake Louise/Banff area back in 1981. I remember seeing wildlife calmly grazing beside the main road, and people pulled over photographing them. Glad you do respect those bears, though, and want to keep them wild. In areas of the country where the human population is high and they have habituated to people, there are always bear-human conflicts. Back in east, people in our town one year were warned not to put out bird feeders. Bears had learned to upend them, funneling down the seed like popcorn. Bird feeders became known as “bear feeders”. Bird feeder filching became garbage can rummaging, and so on. If you saw a bear with a yellow ear tag, it had usually “done something” at some point to warrant being captured and marked. The State of New Jersey, unfortunately, has resorted to having an annual bear hunt, and not with a camera.
http://www.state.nj.us/dep/fgw/bearseason_info.htm
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Last week someone from North Carolina was also telling me how his bird feeder had become a bear feeder. I am fascinated by the ingenuity of animals to overcome obstacles and get at the food. Humans have to be quite vigilant to those areas to keep those bear-human conflicts to a minimum. Too bad about the bear hunt.
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I’ll take the bears any way you wish to present them.
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That’s a standard I can achieve!
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Being responsible for the welfare of chickens, ducks, plums and apples, I appreciate bears beyond the fence and in the bushes. With high regard for their place in the circle of life, at times I need to emphasize my presence and send them packing, but am careful not to poke, prod or perturb them.
Shaken, not stirred.
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Perfectly understandable and well said – especially with the alliteration.
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I love bears dearly, they are ‘medicine’ animal.
I wish (and I did try) to capture with camera the image of a bears head perfectly silhouetted from behind by a full moon upon the bivvy tent door. Dang things are so confining. The only thing missing the next morning was the pair of blue jeans drying on a tree, so we figured it was just Smokey needing a new pair.
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Great story. That sounds like it would have been an incredible photo.
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The image exists as a secured file in the hard drive of my skull and as backup I have bruin drool on the bivvy tent.
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Funny!
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Through a long telephoto lens. We have encountered black bears several times while canoeing in the boundary waters, so yes! I have a healthy respect for them!
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Respect is good. I have found it even works well with humans.
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Chilled with a slice of lime…no wait, that’s beers. I like bears in their natural habitat, on TV, and of course here at Krahnpix.
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I suppose it’s always best to confirm what exactly we are talking about! Hard to argue with any of your bear likes.
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Love my bears alive and wild. We only have Koala Bears in Australia and they tell us they are not bears! Love your blog, just don’t get a chance to comment very often.
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Those are definitely two things I admire in bears. It’s funny that something called a bear wouldn’t be a bear. I’m glad you enjoy the blog. I do have fun playing in this sandbox.
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I can admire the beauty and the power of bears as reflected in your images, but have never seen one in the wild. Perhaps some day…(though I probably need to get a longer lens first–I like your approach of keeping a healthy distance).
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I’m guessing you would thoroughly enjoy the experience but then you would have already guessed that!
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I’ve only seen a few bears around here in the fur, but more by sign. However, the other day I saw a very athletic one…ran up an incline, cleared the guard rail with little effort, flew across the road in front of me and then over the other rail like it wasn’t there. All this was done in the blink of one of my eyes. Not at all a lumbering animal but graceful and lithe. And a challenge to my driving reflexes.
To answer your question…since I don’t get to see many and we don’t have any griz here I like them any way I can get them as long as I am not between Mama and junior. 🙂
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It is fascinating that they can appear to be slow and lumbering and yet be fast when the impulse strikes. I saw a young grizzly seemingly flying up an incline once and it gave me a whole new respect for their capability. I like the way you like them!
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Almost every year I meet an adult bear or a mother bear with cubs here, in the forest or on golf course of Pocono Manor.
Once I was on the road from the inn to the Carriage House slowly drinking my cup of coffee and thinking something very profound when I saw a large (very large?) bear sitting on the road 2-3 metres from me. Apparently, he already had his coffee. In a minute (or an hour?) he went in the forest. From that time my wife always has a whistle for bears safety. However, everybody in the Carriage House prefer a beautiful black wooden bear. It is chained between trees (to prevent stealing) and it is on every photo of Carriage House’s guests.
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I suppose bears like their golf and coffee too! I hope you managed to retrieve that profound thot before the bear interrupted. It is sometimes a challenge to have bears and humans in the same area particularly on golf courses. Though the bears must have some popularity if the wooden bear has to be chained.
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You got it all right. 😉
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We don’t have them here except in zoos, where they always look particularly pitiful.
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There is something quite special about seeing them in the wild, being able to move freely. A zoo can never be the same.
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We are short of big animals here – but it does mean that thee is less need to consider potential dangerous encounters with any animals.
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I’d love to see a bear (much less shoot one). Local loggers have said that they’re up there in our woods, but have yet to encounter one. There’s also been cougar sightings. Why am I never in the right place at the right time, with camera, of course?
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It’s a lot of fun. Maybe you’ll have to head up to Banff in June then all you need is a camera!
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