AWARDS

2017 NATURE'S BEST - CONSERVATION STORY AWARD WINNER
2015 NATURE'S BEST - HIGHLY COMMENDED
2015 BBC WILDLIFE MAGAZINE FULL-FEATURE – to read the article

BEHIND THE SCENE

I have been photographing this particular Kermode bear, called Ma’ah by first Nation guides, since 2012. She’s very sweet, calm and easygoing. On the day I captured this close-up, we had hunkered down by the river during the annual September salmon run. The mother bear was fishing as usual but without her cubs. Cubs will often sleep while waiting for the mother to catch the fish for them, usually in a nearby tree. We set up our tripods in the river, low in the water for a better angle, and started taking pictures with our long lenses. Suddenly, one of the cubs started crying from the top of a tree on the other side of the river. A large male bear was approaching from the far side. Suddenly anxious, the mother went to check on her crying cub. Just as quickly, the second cub appeared from the tree directly behind us. It can be tricky at the best of times to be caught between a bear and her cubs, all the more so with a male approaching. I turned to our guide, Marven Robinson. He motioned to stay calm and stay put. As the bear started to cross the river towards us, I reached for my wide-angle and kneeled. She suddenly stopped, and in that fraction of a second, I snapped this shot. She resumed her trot and walked right past us, no more than a meter away. Not once did she show any sign of anxiety or aggression toward us. She was more concerned about the mystery male than an unkempt bunch of photographers. She fetched her cub and walked back to reunite her family...