"Fighting Dirty" | Brown Bear | Alaska Homestead Lodge | Alaska
During the Brown Bear workshop with Charles Glatzer, at no point did I feel unsafe while in the presence of the bears. When you are standing on the open tidal flats with a bear and it makes direct eye contact, it reinforces that your presence has been accepted. It a momentary reminder just how aware it is that you are there. As a society, there seems to be this lingering attitude that bears are hiding in the forest waiting to attack people. In reality, there have only been approx. 160 bear related deaths in all of North America since the 1830's; 27 of those deaths were incidents with bears in captivity. Bears can be extremely dangerous animals, but the risk of attack is extremely low and it is important to keep things in perspective. When in bear territory, carry bear spray. Stats suggest that when it comes to a successful defense, guns come in at 92% while bear spray has a success rate of 97%. If you really want to increase your risk of death, stand next to a tree during a lightning storm, or even worse, go for a drive! Use caution, use common sense and be safe! :-)
Canon 1D X, EF100-400mm IS II @263mm, ISO 1000, 1/800 Sec, F5, Spot Metering, Manual Exposure
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