Taken August 2024
Brooks Falls, Katmai National Park. Katmai is only accessible via float plane and boat. My wife and I traveled via float plane and camped at Brooks Camp for three nights in early August. Going to Brooks for the salmon run has long been a dream and it did not disappoint. At one point, we counted 22 Alaska Peninsula Brown Bears (a physically large subspecies of brown bear) visible simultaneously.
This image was taken from the Brooks Falls viewing platform. I'd hoped to get a picture of a bear in the moment of catching a leaping salmon and this is it. I focused on the bears at the top of falls, used a monopod braced against the railing and my feet (tripods are not permitted), and (taking Thomas Mangelsen's advice, the living legend who made the bear catch image famous) watched the scene directly instead of through the viewfinder. With the wider perspective, I had a moment more time to hit the shutter anytime I saw fish start to jump. This, and a few other well-timed images, were the result.
Edits consist of a crop, global toning, contrast, denoising, sharpening, and minor local dodging and burning.
Nikon D850
ISO 400
175mm
f/7.1
1/2000