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. While the largest bears (some peaking near 1400 lbs.) went unchallenged in their favored spots, control of other areas was hotly contested. Such disputes were usually resolved through the sort of threat display seen here without coming to blows. That said fights of varying intensity were a regular occurrence and most of the resident bears bore scars.
Edits consist of a crop, global toning, contrast, denoising, and sharpening, and removal of a few distracting specks around their faces (probably some of voracious and innumerable biting black flies endemic to the area).
Nikon D850
ISO 7200
600 mm
f/7.1
1/2000