Coastal Brown Bears – Alaska (triptych)
Alaska had been on my bucket list for quite a while and I was particularly interested in experiencing the wilderness and wildlife. I wanted to see and photograph bears in the wild and to ensure that I realised this desire I booked a place at a Bear Camp. The camp I visited is situated in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, a stunning area of southwest Alaska. I absolutely loved seeing the coastal brown bears in their natural habitat and saw a number of them (usually around 12) each time we headed out to the various viewpoints. The bears were eating sedge grass, mating, sleeping and just wandering around the landscape, some of the female bears had yearlings with them.
There were a few occasions when the bears came quite close to our group, our group leaders were very experienced and knew how to read the behaviour of the bears. Whilst I felt exhilarated, I never felt scared when with the group. When the bears came close, it afforded me opportunities to photograph them at close range, which I very much appreciated. Coastal brown bears are big, second in size to polar bears. Seeing and photographing bears at bear camp was the highlight of my 2024 Alaskan adventure.
I have many bear images that I love. I decided to put a triptych together and chose these three images, the first bear was sitting for a moment with its eyes closed, it appeared to me that he was contemplating. The second bear was eating sedge grass and the third was looking at something (possibly another bear) in the distance.
Printed on Ilford Galerie Smooth Cotton Rag with a double matt and framed with a Medium Flat Matt Black Bevelled Frame. Glass – Tru Vue Classic AR High Clarity Glass that filters up to 78% of UV rays.
Image Measurements:
Unframed: 755mm x 305mm
Framed: 805mm x 355mm (Black Frame)
About the photographer
Helena has loved photographing since receiving her first camera as a young child. She has entered a number of competitions and been part of several photographic exhibitions over the years. Food for her soul, is how Helena describes what photography means to her. She is happiest when she has a camera in her hand and photographing.
Helena’s other passion is travel. She thrives on combining her love of travel and photography to capture nature, people, cultures, landscapes and architecture in a variety of locations. Helena spent seven weeks in East and South Africa in 2016 and said it was the most exhilarating and amazing experience of her life. Post Covid Helena visited parts of Europe (including Iceland) in 2023 and in July 2024 returned from a trip to Alaska.
