Portrait of an American black bear (Ursus americanus)

[Bo Zarts]

Last edited Mon Sep 23, 2024, 08:46 AM - Edit history (1)

Idaho Panhandle National Forest - August 24, 2024
Sony A7-R4 camera w/Sony 70-200mm f/2.8 GM OSS II lens - shot @200mm ISO500 f/7.1 1/200 sec
Hand-held, manual mode, RAW file format
©2024 Bo Zarts Studio

[Katcat]

1. Wow!

If not a game cam HOW?

[Bo Zarts]

6. Safe distance with a 70-200mm telephoto lens ..

The same lens that I use for rattlesnakes.

[hlthe2b]

2. Amazingly beautiful. How far away were you?

I'd say, "do a mountain lion, next!" But, lightning striking twice is very unlikely to occur (or be survived)... and I like you too much.

[Bo Zarts]

7. I was about 75 feet away .. slant range.

But I was safe in a 30-foot fire lookout tower. There I go, giving away trade secrets!

[hlthe2b]

9. Good to hear... trade secrets or not.

Hmmm, they are good climbers. Might make me take care before throwing open the door to the lookout tower at night or in the morning.

[Beartracks]

30. Glad you had the high ground. How is he so well lit that far away?

[sinkingfeeling]

3. Great portrait.

[rogerballard]

4. OK ... Big Bear!

what a fantastic capture! Stunning and scary.

[Sneederbunk]

5. He's ok but his brother killed a guy.

[Bo Zarts]

10. Actually, this is probably the same bear that charged a bow hunter a couple of days later.

The bow hunter was after elk, and a big black bear came out of a thicket in full charge mode. The hunter fired a .44 side arm that he had for protection, turning the bear around. He was coy as to whether he shot at the bear or over the bear, probably thinking that I had some fish & wildlife enforcement authority (I do not). All that played out less than a mile from my lookout tower.

[Skittles]

19. ugh, bow hunters

disgusting

[CaliforniaPeggy]

8. He looks deadly serious, my dear Bo! It's a great photo.

I'm glad you were far away!

[2naSalit]

11. Excellent shot!

Looks a little close for comfort, though.

[Tarzanrock]

12. Rattlesnake photos, please ...

... I have the Pentax equivalent of that Sony 70-200 mm lens which is one of the best lenses which Pentax has ever produced (and that alone says a lot). That bear is getting ready for Winter hibernation. When you enlarge the photo 800x (which is all I can do from the picture) you can readily see just how "thick" the bear's winter coat has become. What a magnificent animal. Thanks for posting this wonderful photograph, Bo. It is very much appreciated.

[Bo Zarts]

17. Crotalus Horridus: Timber Rattlesnake

Upstate South Carolina - July 2017
©2024 Bo Zarts Studio

[Tarzanrock]

23. Thanks.

Nice colors; and, blue eyes! Western Diamondbacks don't look at all like this guy but I'd wager a lot of money that the "rattles" are quite similar. I do not like to have "close encounters" with these guys. Not one bit.

[KS Toronado]

13. Appears he's looking right at you

was he thinking lunch?

[Hekate]

14. Amazing

[Tom Dyer]

15. Stunning

Just an amazing portrait.

[orleans]

16. what an absolutely beautiful photo. can you tell me about the background and why it is black? was it night? nt

[George McGovern]

20. Magnificient shot, Bo.

[Figarosmom]

18. You're saying that besr difnt smell you

Or sense you at 75 feet? You didn't stay there long did you? Really nice picture though. I can't tell the emotion on that bears face though.

[Bo Zarts]

22. No .. the bear most assuredly knew exactly where I was.

I had just turned the bear around with several blasts from a police whistle, as it got too close to the steps of the lookout for my comfort. The bear was not real happy, to wax anthropomorphically. When the bear turned towards the lookout, and after I quickly took some photos, I gave a few blasts on my air horn. The bear then departed very quickly.

I know all too well that a bear can and will climb a fire tower for food. A rental lookout in the Idaho panhandle was significantly damaged when renters left food in the tower and a bear went up the stairs after what it smelled. And a fire lookout friend of mine awoke one night to the sounds of a bear on the catwalk outside his door.

[Figarosmom]

24. You live dangerously

But I guess it's also to t he fullest.

[Bo Zarts]

31. Flying 250+ air combat mission 54 years ago was living dangerously .. this is not.

Again, the bear was 75 feet away from me, slant range. I was on a 30-foot high fire lookout tower, with the heavy trap door locked, using a 70-200mm (at 200mm) telephoto lens on a Sony A7-R4 camera body. The Sony's 61MP full-frame CMOS sensor allows for some heavy-handed cropping in post processing, which is what I did with this image. Additionally, the Topaz plug-in for Photoshop gets incredible results enlarging images.

I have a new version of this bear portrait that I am working up to print for a gallery that takes a tightly cropped 10"x10" image to 30"x30". Posted below is the raw image directly out of the camera .. and this is with a 200mm telephoto! The bear is looking at me because I had just chased him from directly below the lookout tower with blasts from a police whistle. As soon as I snapped a couple of photos in this pose, I gave him a few blasts of a marine air horn that I always have handy.

Also, on a technical note, notice the extremely distracting background .. lots of dead and down subalpine fir .. and exposures slightly on the right side of the histogram. That's why I corrected the exposure and lighting, and blackened the background.

That said, if the gallery patron with a platinum American Expre$$ card thinks that I braved a face-to-face, breath-to-breath, extremely dangerous close encounter with Brother Bear of the Bitterroot Range, then so be it.


The "bear portrait" image of my original post is cropped from this RAW file, directly from the camera.
©2024 Bo Zarts Studio

[Figarosmom]

32. The cropping does give it drama. Nt

[Beartracks]

29. Wow, you just answered a question I'm not sure I wanted the answer to!

[orangecrush]

21. If a bear attacks you

Rub poop in his face.

Where will I find poop, you might wonder?

Just reach behind you.

It will be there.

[Orrex]

25. Pretty sure this is the bear's senior class photo

Or, if not that, it's the head shot they use on their CV.

[markodochartaigh]

26. I've run into black bears three times in my garden.

Each time was around dusk. They are incredibly difficult to see at dusk, they almost seem to have that camouflage ability of the Alien in the movie "Predator".

[marble falls]

27. Been missing your posts, this is a good one. Just to be safe, hand him the picanic basket!

[Grumpy Old Guy]

28. Holy crap!

Great shot!