If you’ve ever seen a moose up close, you know just how big these creatures really are. Their antlers can be more than six feet wide and weigh a hundred pounds. Yet somehow, they seem to effortlessly drift into and out of thick forested areas. This bull had an impressive rack, indicating he was a bit older. All that green gave me a nice opportunity to frame a headshot. Like the moose I posted last week, this guy was in Chugach State Park in Alaska, looking for a willing female.
Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 220mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/320th of a second

Just going to keep rolling with a heavy dose of bears for the time being. Lemurs and hippos will return soon. This is what the brown bears in Lake Clark were fishing for — the coho salmon, also known as the silver salmon. Coho are a fairly large salmon and provided a nice alternative to the grass that these bears were feasting upon seemingly twenty four hours a day.
Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 330mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/1600th of a second

I saw quite a few trumpeter swans while in Alaska. These two were hanging out on Tern Lake down on the Kenai Peninsula, south of Anchorage. Trumpeter Swans are the largest birds in North America and can measure up to five feet long and weigh 30 pounds. They were considered nearly extinct, until a population of several thousand were found near Cooper River in south central Alaska.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 32mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/1250th of a second

I was in a great position down on the ground to get this shot of a brown bear shaking the water off her fur after a morning of fishing. It was still quite early, but the tide was getting too high to fish so she and her two cubs were on their way to the open fields where grass was on the menu.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 340mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/2500th of a second

Other than bears, there were also a few red fox making the rounds near our lodge in Lake Clark National Park. I ran into this guy once or twice. He was usually a bit timid, but on this occasion he let me snap some shots at close range. Perhaps he thought that fern was keeping him more concealed than it actually was.
Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/200th of a second

We only had one morning with this kind of light — made possible by that narrow seam that opened up in the clouds. This lone bear cooperated by taking a sunrise stroll across the wet sand at low tide.
Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 240mm) ISO 2500, f/4 at 1/80th of a second

I also saw quite a few moose on this recent trip to Alaska. It was the beginning of the rut, so bulls were plentiful and in search of willing cows. This bull was one of three that were after a single cow in Chugach State Park just outside of Anchorage. It actually got a bit scary as I didn’t know where the bulls were hiding in the bushes and when they would suddenly appear. They can be quite aggressive if anything or anyone gets between them and what they’re after. Amazing how such a large animal can seem to vanish in an instant and then emerge again.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 98mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/800th of a second

Yesterday I posted mama bear catching a fish. Here’s what her cubs do while she’s hunting. Well, not all the time, but on this occasion, I did catch this young cub doing a bit of a dance back on shore, no doubt excited for a delicious meal to come.
Nikon D810 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/5 at 1/2000th of a second

Just back from a week in Alaska. Despite the fact that it rained almost the entire time, it was still a great trip and it was awesome to get out there and photograph the coastal brown bears in Lake Clark National Park, as well as a few other creatures like moose, fox and dall sheep. I have many photos to go through. I took quite a few of the bears racing through the water at low tide, pouncing (or at least trying to pounce) on silver salmon. This is just one of those shots. More to come, some with the great mountain scenery in the background — for this shot I was shooting almost directly out to the open waters of Cook Inlet. There are some mountains back there, but the overcast conditions were keeping them from being visible.
Nikon D500 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/1250th of a second