close iframe icon
Banner

Fierce



behind the lens badge

Views

5258

Likes

Awards

Chatter Award
Contest Finalist in Bears Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Big Mammals Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Walking This Way Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in The Beauty Of Yellowstone National Park Photo Contest
Featured
Contest Finalist in Large Mammals Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Experimental Overexposure Photo Contest
Outstanding Composition
  View more
Peer Award
Superb Composition
ClaritaBethCanlasMiller robiecagle smunited quincyfloyd gordylindgren LFConrad Adaospina16 +39
Top Choice
MontyRPennington estercastillo08 lulu2 mcampi MarcinHe Ricko76 debhall +30
Magnificent Capture
DELETED_paulbloch jdmarks64 krnaik daydreamsbymary0710 lhartney Rossco72 robyn44blue +22
Absolute Masterpiece
photosbyshelton Paul_Joslin larryollivier LeahMuellerPhotography sweetpea72 myriamverne-soury troyvelez +17
Outstanding Creativity
FrancebluebirdPhotography world4photo benanthony Bart_Sliwecki pramodnikam drgnprnc1 PetraLederer +1
All Star
jgalarza70 DerrickSteeves droptinecollections arnoldgum jimboz Frankbos tam4212
Superior Skill
Daveh FreddyDavis Capture-Life Lorise arookz
Jaw Dropping
kathleenweetman hayleycook TCM1964
Love it
bobhanson Normanthegr8 mle555
Genius
LondonMcCormick roblawrence
Top Class Lighting
gymmybob

Top Ranks

Anything Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Anything Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Big Mammals Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Big Mammals Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Everything Nature Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Animals In The Winter Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 rank
ViewBug Photography AwardsTop 10 rank week 1
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 2
World Photography Day Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 20 rank
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 20 rank week 2
Compositions 101 Photo Contest vol3Top 10 rank week 1
Spring Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank
Spring Photo Contest 2017Top 10 rank week 1
Wildlife In The Snow Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
All About Bears Photo ContestTop 30 rank
All About Bears Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
Isolating The Subject Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Animal Kingdom Photo ContestTop 20 rank
We Love Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank
I Love Photography Photo ContestTop 20 rank
I Love Photography Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
We Love Animals Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Unedited Photo Contest Vol3Top 10 rank
Rule Of Thirds Extravaganza Photo ContestTop 10 rank
Unedited Photo Contest Vol3Top 10 rank week 1
Walking This Way Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Walking This Way Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 2
Walking This Way Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
I Coexist Photo ContestTop 20 rank
I Coexist Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
The Beauty Of Yellowstone National Park Photo ContestTop 10 rank
The Beauty Of Yellowstone National Park Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1
Our Natural World Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Animals And Rule Of Thirds Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Animals And Rule Of Thirds Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 2
Animals And Rule Of Thirds Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Evocative Wildlife Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Evocative Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 3
Evocative Wildlife Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 2
Evocative Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
A World Of Brown Photo ContestTop 30 rank
On The Wild Side Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 2
On The Wild Side Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
Large Mammals Photo ContestTop 20 rank
Large Mammals Photo ContestTop 30 rank week 1
From Afar: Wildlife Photo ContestTop 30 rank
From Afar: Wildlife Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Come To Me Photo Contest Top 20 rank
Come To Me Photo Contest Top 30 rank week 1
Experimental Overexposure Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Alpha Male Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
Following The Subject Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Pushing Limits Photo ContestTop 30 rank
Adventure Bound Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 2
Following The Subject Photo ContestTop 20 rank week 1
A Force Of Nature Photo Contest by Focal PressTop 30 rank week 1
Adventure Bound Photo ContestTop 10 rank week 1

Categories


13 Comments |
barbarabrock Platinum
 
barbarabrock June 29, 2013
awesome
CG
 
CG July 08, 2013
Great Wildlife Shot
PhilipCarnevale
 
PhilipCarnevale July 21, 2013
Awesome shot!
AlanJakarta
 
AlanJakarta August 30, 2013
Superb capture. Congratulations.
jleiweke
 
jleiweke August 30, 2013
Congrats!
SteveFlint
 
SteveFlint September 01, 2013
nice capture!
karenfrench
 
karenfrench March 24, 2014
brilliant shot! Fantastic contrast here.
markcoleman
 
markcoleman August 04, 2014
Great find
kathleenweetman
 
kathleenweetman August 07, 2014
What a terrific capture....love it...Voted
kathleen
RobertPano
 
RobertPano September 18, 2015
Nice shot
karyntureckischiller
 
karyntureckischiller May 01, 2016
Was this taken in Grand Teton National Park? The scene looks familiar
davidparkhurst
 
davidparkhurst December 16, 2016
So so beautiful
estercastillo08
 
estercastillo08 January 15, 2019
Congrats !
HappyTree
HappyTree January 15, 2019
Thank you!
See all

Behind The Lens

Location

This photo was taken just inside the East Entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

Time

This photo was snapped right around noon as he was digging in the snow for goodies.

Lighting

The high noon light made for some deep shadows and bright, bright highlights. With the brown against the snow, I of course had to spot meter off of his fur.

Equipment

I shot this with a Canon 7D and EOS Canon 100-400mm f/4.5. I should have had a tripod for his shot but with the bright light told myself I wouldn't need it and left it in the car. A good place for it. For that reason, this photo was taken while laying on my belly in the snow.

Inspiration

I spend a lot of time outdoors chasing wildlife. Nature is a very calming place to be and i enjoy being in that calm and getting to see the wildlife. It helps that I live in a state like Wyoming with so much nature at my doorstep. This is the first bear I managed to capture on camera and I used the long lens to keep a healthy distance between us so I still felt safe taking this shot.

Editing

My post processing for my wildlife photography consists of very minimal work. Especially for my wildlife shots, where my goal is to spend as much time outside as possible, I limit edits to cropping/saturation/sharpening edit. My other shots I spend a little more time on processing if I feel it will add to the overall image message. Sometimes some subjects just command an audience better in black and white.

In my camera bag

I just received the new Canon EOS 1D-X Mark II as an early Christmas present and haven't put it down since I got it. My other bag items include a Canon EOS 5D Mark III, Canon EOS 7D, Canon 70-200mm f/2.8, Canon 50mm f/1.8, Canon 24-107mm f/4. I love my 7D and it is the body I learned to shoot and tinker with - so I will likely be carrying that one in my bag until I die. I just don't have it in me to get rid of it. I shoot rodeos and some weddings/portrait sessions so the High ISO capability is of paramount concern for a lot of what I do in the rodeo arena. I shoot indoors most of the time so natural light is not an option. It is a very challenging beast when you try to shoot high motion, indoors under florescent lighting. Until I got into this area of photography, I didn't realize how much I would rely on having good gear to combat the lighting situation.

Feedback

As far as nature photography is concerned, i think its important to know the animal your after and some basic knowledge of what makes them tick. That knowledge should help make good choices about where to look for them. Water sources are a good place to start if its a new thing for you. Every animal has to have water and early morning and late evening they will come to you, you just have to be patient. My time rule when I'm out looking for something in particular is to triple the time I think I need to find them, then wait that long. Many, many of my 'good' shots came from waiting longer then I wanted to and being patient.

See more amazing photos, follow HappyTree

It’s your time to shine! ☀️

Share photos. Enter contests to win great prizes.
Earn coins, get amazing rewards. Join for free.

Already a member? Log In

By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, and acknowledge you've read our Privacy Policy Notice.