In the Field

The Great Bear Rainforest - An Animalscape. Great Bear Rainforest (central BC coast), BC, Canada. September 30, 2012.

Another of my favourite animalscapes* from 2012...and in this case I think little else needs to be said...

Here's a considerably larger version of this image for your perusal (and, hopefully, viewing pleasure):

• The Great Bear Rainforest - An Animalscape: Download 2400 pixel image (JPEG: 1.6 MB)

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

1. This image - in all resolutions - is protected by copyright. I'm fine with personal uses of it (including use as desktop backgrounds or screensavers on your own computer), but unauthorized commercial use of the image is prohibited by law. Thanks in advance for respecting my copyright!

2. Like all wildlife photographs on this website, this image was captured following the strict ethical guidelines described in The Wildlife FIRST! Principles of Photographer Conduct. I encourage all wildlife photographers to always put the welfare of their subjects above the value of their photographs.

3. This image was captured during one of my "Into the Great Bear Rainforest" photo tours during the autumn of 2013. Each year I offer trips into two different parts of the Great Bear Rainforest as well as one to photograph aquatic mammals and oceanscapes near the northern tip of Vancouver Island. And, in selected years, I also offer photo tours to locations to capture other highly sought-after subjects, such as various owl species of the boreal forest and wildlife of Canada's Arctic. Details about these trips can be found on the Photo Tours page of this website.

*4. For a more detailed discussion of the image types I call animalscapes and enviroscapes (and the subtle distinctions between them), just go here...

Behind the Camera

The Great Bear Rainforest - An Animalscape. Great Bear Rainforest (central BC coast), BC, Canada. September 30, 2012.

Digital Capture; Compressed RAW (NEF) 14-bit format; ISO 500

Nikon D4 paired with Nikkor 70-200mm f2.8 VRII lens (@ 135mm). Hand held. VR on and in normal mode.

1/160s @ f8; -0.33 stop compensation from matrix-metered exposure setting.

At the Computer

The Great Bear Rainforest - An Animalscape. Great Bear Rainforest (central BC coast), BC, Canada. September 30, 2012.

RAW Conversion to 16-bit TIFF, including first-pass/capture sharpening, using Capture One Pro Version 7.

Photoshop adjustments included selective minor tweaks to exposure, selective adjustment of midtone contrast (i.e., selective tone curve adjustment), and selective sharpening for web output. Final tone tweaking performed using tonemapper/re-light tool in Lightzone.

Conservation

The Great Bear Rainforest - An Animalscape. Great Bear Rainforest (central BC coast), BC, Canada. September 30, 2012.

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.

On December 18, 2017 the government of British Columbia banned grizzly hunting across the entire province. This major conservation victory came after decades of tireless work by many dedicated conservationists and ecologists and, most importantly, it reflects the opinion of the vast majority of British Columbians. And, it means that AT LEAST while the current government remains in power grizzlies are finally "safe" in British Columbia.

Now that we've at least temporarily won the battle to save grizzlies in BC, it's time to re-focus our efforts toward protecting ALL of BC's carnivores, including Gray Wolves, Black Bears, Cougars, Wolverines, and more! Simply put, there are no ecological, economic, or ethical arguments supporting the trophy hunting of carnivores.

In a great first step towards ending the hunting of carnivores throughout BC the Raincoast Conservation Foundation has developed a program designed to protect ALL carnivores within the Great Bear Rainforest. Details about this program can be found on this page on Raincoast's website. Check it out and, better yet, make a donation to help Raincoast purchase the remaining commercial hunting tenures in the Great Bear!

*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.

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