July 2014 – The 4b.io Nature

2014-07-242015-05-29

Katmai After Hours: The Story of 856 and 402

The “What”

I was in Katmai National Park July 17 – 21, and during that time I had the opportunity to observe the courting behaviors of the now famous couple: bear 856 and bear 402.

Before I left for Alaska last week, I had been aware that 402 had abandoned her yearling cub and may have gone into estrus while big and burly 856 was hot in pursuit (thanks to explore.org). Having this knowledge in the back of my head, I understood the motivations behind the playful teasing and flirting when I first witnessed it between these two bears at the falls. Given how low salmon counts were and, at times, driving rain, this courtship became a source of comic relief for those of us on the platform, and we projected our human emotions onto the couple. Several times 402 came inches from the platform, and when 402 was near, you knew 856 wasn’t far. At times their behavior was cute, but most of the time it was as you would expect from a bear: aggressive. 856 behaved like a jealous boyfriend. He would let his frustration be known to his fellow bears at the falls by frequently chasing them off. But who wouldn’t be frustrated after a fruitless week or two of female stalking?

The “Who”

July 20 was a beautiful day in Katmai, sunny, warm, and a cloudless blue sky, and a far cry from the washout on the previous day. Despite the nice weather, the salmon counts were low (at most 2 or 3 jumping the falls in a minute) and the bear activity at the falls reflected this. The sub-adults and cub-adults were doing their belly flops in the riffles and Otis was in the jacuzzi. Despite this lull, Meril and I maintained our position at the falls from 08:00-23:00. By mid afternoon, 402 (for the non-bear community’s sake lets call her what the bearcam watchers call her “Brooke“) came up the river with 856 shadowing close behind (lets just call him “Hank“) . They continued to play this mostly one-sided game of follow-the-leader. Hank’s aggression was clear to everyone- human, bear and seagull- he even drove Otis away from the whirlpool. As the shadows began to make their way across the river, and the quality of light increased, Brooke decided, while Hank observed, to tease another large and dominant bear…

Bear 747 had been fishing in the jaccuzi when he decided to climb the waterfall and stand in the sun. Brooke got up from the bank she was sitting on and went up to where 747 was standing. The angst was instantaneous for Hank. The agitated big bear jumped the falls to be by Brooke’s side, and a small standoff ensued. Hank and 747 settled their dispute like true bear gentlemen, requiring only jawing and light pawing. Once it was settled Hank took his prize and headed away from the falls into the woods…I thought it would be the last I saw of the pair that evening…

The “Deed”

Grazer walks in on something she doesn't want to see — Grazer walks in on something she doesn’t want to see

At 21:40 we decided to leave the falls and make our way back to camp along the walkway. We had an early morning boat ride to Margot and could use the rest. We passed through the heavy metal gate closest to the falls, and were stunned to observe what was in front of us. Brooke and Hank, right before us, getting it on, bear style. The coupling was hot and steamy. Literally. There was steam escaping between their wet bodies in the forest light. There was a lot of snarling, nuzzling, ear nibbling, and vicious growling and biting. As the steam picked up, they heard a noise and quickly scattered. It looked like the farmer’s daughter and the traveling salesman were busted. I could see Grazer (blondie with big ears) up on the hill, but Grazer could not see the couple, and the couple could not see her. Both sets of bears tried to sniff out who or what was there. When Grazer realized that Brooke had suddenly spotted her. Grazer didn’t need any further instructions, she took to her heels and sprinted up the hill away from them, but Brooke chased after her, and Hank chased Brooke. Brooke and Hank made a short, but speedy, loop on the hill and returned to the same spot they were before. Without skipping a beat, Brooke and Hank were at it again – the Grazer disruption lasted 54 seconds in total (according to the time stamps in my photos).

Small bear at 23:00 looking for salmon at the mouth of the Brooks River

In its entirety, the mating session lasted about an hour, and during that hour Brooke and Hank moved and changed positions. It seemed that several times Brooke tried to tell Hank that she wasn’t having much fun anymore, but Hank didn’t seem to care, and would growl or cuff her when she objected. At one point while pointing my 600mm lens at the bears, I whispered down to my friend Meril who also had his 600mm out: “This isn’t weird, right?”

At the end, when both bears separated, and they began to vigorously pull tufts of grass and eat it. Then Brooke skipped off towards the river. Hank still followed, but with the deed done, he moved with less urgency and even found the time to stand up and get a good backscratch on a tree…

We were left with a 1.6 mile walk back to camp, and a lot to discuss along the way. And there were plenty of other bears still out as we reached the lower river in the gentle Alaskan summer twilight…

More Blog Posts to follow on the results of this trip.

Link to Meril’s Photos

Grizzly Mating www.mnmwow.com

Previous Katmai Posts

2014 Katmai: Pre-Spawn Preparation
2013 Katmai: Gear People Bears
2013 Katmai: Bear Behavior
2013 Katmai: Float Plane Lift
2013 Katmai: Cubs
2013 Katmai Packing List
2013 Otis Eats a Salmon

The gallery below is in chronological order, the events on July 20 unfolded in the order shown (the first photo is from the day before):

2014-07-162015-05-29

Back to Alaska: Pre-Salmon Spawn Preparation in Katmai

While sitting in my Mountain View office counting down the days/hours, it is difficult to contain the excitement I feel before my return to the Alaska Peninsula and the coastal brown bears that live there.

July is all about the falls. Brooks Falls. In the pre-salmon spawn days, this fall line acts like a speed bump, and delays the salmon’s arrival at its spawning ground. This bottleneck also happens to be the spot where the bears are at their highest concentration. In some years 70 bears have been recorded in the river at one time, jockeying for prime fishing spots. The falls typically feature the largest and most dominant males, but at times there are some bold (or starving) females+cubs. It is at the falls that I will spend the bulk of my time on this trip.

In preparation, I have been viewing the webcam, scouting the behavior trends of the bears. Based on the behavior of the last week, as the salmon run started to ramp up, most of the activity was early to late afternoon, and continued long into the evening and after midnight (sunset is after 23:30). Another good sign is the salmon have really started jumping today, with much higher frequency than in previous days. This is an important consideration because, like the bears on the falls, we humans may have to share time on the platform. So it will be good to know when the best times to be on the falls platform is.

As such, the photography may take a slightly different focus than other wildlife trips. First, the bears are going to be close. So close that my 600mm may not be the most practical focal length. Of course, I am still planning to bring that behemoth and will use that predominantly with the 1D-X, but lets see what my secondary lens on the 6D will be. Most likely will keep the 70-200mm at the ready, but am planning to bring my 300mm F/2.8 and give that a bit of a workout. At the moment, my plan is to be a “normal” person and only have two cameras strapped on, but this concept will be cancelled upon arrival and you will be able to see me with three massive body+lens combos (if I decide to re-activate the 1D-IV and use it with the 300.)

Only time will tell….

In the mean time, I finalize my trip preparations and read “The Beast that walks like Man: The Story of the Grizzly Bear” by Harold McCracken (1955)….see you in Alaska..

2014-07-102016-08-21

Churchill 2013: Auroras

Northern Lights

A first for me on this trip was seeing the aurora borealis. November is cloudy in Churchill and the up-to-minute solar forecasts for the Churchill area indicated minimal activity, so we knew the chances to see the aurora was quite low. Nevertheless, we prepared our gear each night that it was clear and went out looking for the lights. We fortunate to have ignored the solar wind forecasts, because at the hour (23:30) the activity was supposed lull, we noticed some faint flickering high above. Meril was driving, so I rolled my window down, leaned out, and trained my eyes straight-up and slightly to the north.

The first time seeing something that you’ve wanted to see for as long as you can remember is truly an incredible feeling.

There before my eyes was the solar wind, flickering and undulating in magnificent green waves. As my excitement increased, so did the intensity of the aurora. We were at the edge of town along the Hudson Bay near the Inuksuk, and thought this was as good spot as any to do photography. The show continued to intensify over the next 30 minutes, I was able to set up three cameras, two on tripods and one floater supported by a beanbag. During the most intense activity, Meril and I were the only two people in the area, and our experience (and photography) was not interfered with. As the display began to diminish, the crowds of people began to arrive. We weren’t in a remote location, just a short walk from the town center, but the previous night’s polar bear mauling served as a stark reminder of how very dangerous it is to walk the Churchill streets in Oct/Nov at night. But the people did come, and in numbers that would likely frightening away the most inquisitive polar bear. I could have found this irritating, and yes the guy who set up his tripod in front of everyone else was a bit clueless, but I found it to be enjoyable, witnessing the excitement It was the same excitement that I had felt 45 minutes prior. Plus I was in a good mood because I had already gotten my shot.

The next night was also clear on land (a massive cloud bank could be seen hanging over Hudson Bay and growing in size but not coming any closer. The weather system on land was doing a good job at keeping the clouds at “bay”. We expected the arctic air mass would eventually prevail and spread its clouds over Manitoba and the rest of north central Canada at any point. But it didn’t appear to be happening this night, so we went looking for the aurora again. Throughout the day, we were scouting possible locations to shoot from. We decided on the cemetery, which backs up right along the shore of Hudson Bay a mile or so out of town. This location has its pros and cons. It was a visually interesting spot for long exposure photography, far enough from the town center to avoid the crowds. But the narrow rocky beach separating the cemetery from the bay happens to be one of the more heavily traveled routes bears follow as they skirt past the town. And the only separation between the cemetery and that polar bear highway was a 4-ft chain link fence…we resolved to stay near the vehicle and not stray far.

As for auroral activity, the second night’s display was even more intense than the previous and lasted about two hours. I had a three camera set-up going again, and kept the exposures between 10-20s. At times, the sky was so bright with aurora, that if I used any longer of an exposure, the delicate waving curtains would be overexposed.

Method and Technique

Here are some things to consider when attempting to capture the northern lights. First, find a darkest spot/sky with interesting foreground early in the day, normally with northern exposure. If the moon is out, look away from it and use it to illuminate your foreground. Again, given your location, a full moon will typically follow a southerly path.

Start with the following Camera settings:
– Use your widest Lens. (READ not your fastest, this isn’t astrophotography, if you are doing Astrophotography you should use a combination of fast and wide!)
– Shoot in Manual mode, Shutter=15s, ISO 800, Aperture = Wide Open (F/2.8 or F/4…whatever is the widest open). Be ready to adjust these setting as needed.

Focus: At night and in the dark, your camera’s auto focus won’t work. You will need to use manual focus or focus the lens to infinity/hyperfocal before sunset. If you have trouble manually setting the focus, use the moon or any other bright object in the distance, such as far away city lights, a ship, radio antenna, or ever a bright star. TO focus on these faint objects, set your focus to the center point, wait for the focus confirmation, flip lens to MF and don’t touch the focus barrel. The focus is set to infinity/hyperfocal and should bring your entire frame into acceptable focus, especially the aurora.

Use a cable release! If you don’t have a cable release, use the 2-second self timer to minimize camera shake. This step is very important.

Set camera on a tripod (or beanbag or bag of clothes), compose your shot, and make sure it is as stable as you can make it.

…then click away!

Depending on how intense the activity is, you may have to make adjustments. If there is a lot of movement and big, bright aurora curtains, a 15s exposure may be too long and overexpose the image. Decrease shutter to 10s. If the lights are faint and resulting image is too dark, first bump the ISO to 1600, then 3200 (depending on the body there will be increased noise, but nothing that unmanageable). If the image is still too dark after doing that, increase the shutter speed to 20s. Again. the area of concern here is that you want to preserve the movement of the aurora in your exposure.

As the aurora likes to reveal itself near the Earth’s poles, when it is dark, frigid temperatures seem to go hand in hand. So here are few more tips to keep in mind:

Bring extra batteries to cycle in and out. Store unused batteries in inside pocket to rewarm with body heat.
Prevent your front element (lens) from getting frosted. Hold your breath while your face is near the lens to prevent moisture freezing on the front element. If it drops below dewpoint, use a rubberband and handwarmer to keep the front element from getting frosted.
And remember to dress warmly.
http://cleardarksky.com/c/FairbanksAKkey.html?1

2014-07-012015-05-29

Fourth of July Road Trip Notes

This year’s Fourth of July road trip to the Dismal Side of the Sierras will have a more southerly focus than the previous year. The emphasis, like last year, will be on the Milky Way and sunrise. I plan to work with at least 3 sunrises (maybe 4) and will have 3 sunset to utilize. Fortunately there are lots of neat things to see in the Eastern Sierra. The trip should be a productive one, without too much stress or sleep deprivation. The mornings will be early to catch sunrise, but the nights need not be too late because the Milky Way and the moon are both at their most useful positions before midnight. However, it will be important take advantage of the sunrises, as this is the most beautiful time of day in the Eastern Sierras.

Approximate Timing Considerations for the weekend

Sunrise/Sunset
⇑ 05:39,
⇓ 20:13

Twilights:
⇑ C 05:08, N 04:30, A 03:48
⇓ C 20:44, N 21:22, A 22:04

MOON

Setting in approximately due WEST

Thurs
⇑ 11:32
⇓ 23:49
Waxing Crescent 38%

Fri:
⇑ 12:28
⇓ 00:20 (Sat)
First Quarter

Sat:
⇑ 13:25
⇓ 00:54 (Sun)
Waxing Gibbous 58%

Photographic Goals:

1 – Milky Way Landscapes
Near object landscapes with arches, lightpainting
Panoramics with Sierra range possible in twilight
2 – Evening Twilight by moonlight, tree and mountain range
3 – Petroglyphs and Paiute cultural sites
4 – Star Trails – foreground illuminated by twilight, moon
5 – Summer storms building on Eastern front at sunset
6 – Quarter Moon setting

1-Alabama Hills

The best sunrise location in all of California.
Exploring the Hills and looking for Arches and granite formations
Lightpainting the arches.
The sunset potential here is also nice, but Mt. Whitney and the Sierra cut off the light early due to their height.
Twilight is interesting, especially when planning to combine it with astro landscapes.
There is possibility for capturing quarter moon setting in the west with a bit of twilight left.
Should plan to use the moon for milkyway landscapes, as moon shouldn’t interfere much with star visibility.

Comfort Level

Highest. Tent not car. It is legal and free to camp here. Lone Pine is 15 min away. Cell reception is 10 min away.

2 – Death Valley

Highlights: sunrise, wildlife, daytime mostly, daytrips
Heat may limit options here. Although one weekend forecast has highs barely above 90F. But weather.com has a high of 120F at Furnace Creek. I don’t know what these weatherman are thinking. Lets see who wins out….it is July in Death Valley. The real deal.
Wildrose may be downright chilly if Furnace Creek is only 90F.
Look for Chuckwalla and other wildlife at Wildrose.
Possibility to see cultural sights, but need to hunt for them (Ghost Towns, petroglyphs).
Weak Offroad capability of 3er Wagon limits full access to best sights

Comfort Level

Medium. Must sleep in car. Hot night time temps. Food available in few locations with very limited hours.

3 – Volcanic Tablelands

High cultural value. Harsh light makes area worthless photographically, but must still be in Golden Hour, blue hour is too late, and nothing after dark.
Interesting for to see for scouting purposes, even during daytime.
Go beyond the already visited Fish Slough at Red Mountain.
Visit the BLM and Paiute visitor center in Bishop to learn more about the locations.

Comfort Level

Medium. It is a bit of a grey area in terms of legal camping here. The city of Bishop, and its food and hotels, is reasonably close.

4 – Bristlecone Pines

Oldest living organisms in the world, fascinating living drift wood. Stunning in twilight, moonlight, and sunrise/sunset.
May be the best location in the United States for astrophotography. Very dark skies. Light painting is also possible.
Time-lapse, and star trails. The quarter moon will provide a gentle light at twilight for interesting images.

Comfort Level

Minimal. Extremely isolated and extremely high elevation (almost 12,000 feet).
Must sleep in car, or doze under the stars. The closest human building is 100+miles, on the very rough, dirt road on White Mountain.
Expect the temperatures to go below freezing.

Detailed Astronomical Timetable

Thursday (7/3)

SUN:
⇑ 05:39, C 05:08, N 04:30, A 03:48
⇓ 20:14, C 20:45, N 21:22, A 22:04

MOON:
⇑ 11:32
⇓ 23:49
Waxing Crescent 38%

Friday (7/4) – Happy Fourth!

SUN:
⇑ 05:39, C 05:08, N 04:30, A 03:48
⇓ 20:13, C 20:44, N 21:22, A 22:04

MOON:
⇑ 12:28
⇓ 00:20 (Sat)
First Quarter

Saturday(7/5)

SUN:
⇑ 05:40, C 05:09, N 04:31, A 03:49
⇓ 20:13, C 20:44, N 21:22, A 22:04

MOON:

⇑ 13:25
⇓ 00:54 (Sun)
Waxing Gibbous 58%

2014-07-012015-05-29

Memorial Day Road Trip: Alabama Hills

2014 Memorial Day Road Trip: Alabama Hills
May 26, 2014

As far as the meteor shower went, it was a bit of a bust. Not as great as some astronomers predicted. But also there were some clouds in Death Valley on the days the shower was scheduled to peak. The presence of these clouds, however, improved the sunrise lighting conditions. Hence, the reason I switched my focus. I did have an opportunity to do some astro landscape photography in the Alabama Hills on Monday morning. And while waiting for the first glimpse of morning twilight over Mount Whitney, I did happen to capture some fairly bright Camelopardalis meteors. This was also my first time using my new 24mm F/1.4, boy is it light sucking monster of a lens. That lens is so fast it turns night into day. I had to adjust my entire approach to night photography with that thing…eager to use it again on the night sky.

Despite this new ‘astro’ lens, the sunrise was king at the Alabama Hills. I spent almost all of my energy preparing for my sunrise spot. And it didn’t come easy. For sunrise, I had the objectives I hoped to accomplish in mind. A higher vantage point facing Mount Whitney and Lone Pine Peak with two or three “layers” of Alabama Hills in the foreground. I wanted to shoot across the morning light from a vantage point contrasty with canyons and ridgelines on the Sierra eastern front. I access the geodetic situation at the day before at sunset, knowing that the position of the sun would be mirrored in the morning. In the dark, I hiked up to the top of the hill and began shooting at 04:00 (halfway through Astronomical twilight) with a two camera setup using a 24mm and 70-200mm as the glass. By around 05:15 the light went from blue to red, as it inched its way down the eastern face. By 05:35, the best part of the sunrise was finished and I sat there, quietly taking in the landscape before me.

The important message here is that the best part of the sunrise, happens before the sun actually rises. You need to hike in the dark.

Final note: the pano shot of the Sierra Nevadas from Alabama Hills was taken with my phone after the morning light was finished. I took it so I could study how the shadows lay on the mountains relative to the sun. I will use this information for the next trip, so I am able to better position myself for more dramatic contrasts. But I ended up really liking the shot…especially the two cameras up there.

By 06:30 I was back to my car, gear an all, and heading out of the Alabama Hills by 06:45. On my way back home to Mountain View, via a little park called Yosemite National Park.

2014-07-012015-05-29

Memorial Day Roadtrip Death Valley

2014 Memorial Day Road Trip: Death Valley
May 23-26, 2014

Memorial Day weekend: Desert Road trips was a nice way to kick off the summer shooting season, despite being a bit hotter than anticipated. This trip originally began as an astro centric one, with high speculative hopes that that Camelopardalis Meteor shower was going to produce. After a hazy first night, and reports that the shower was a dud, I quickly changed gears to focus on rich quality of morning light in this part of the country. It also had the secondary role to serve as a scouting trip for future visits. This road trip took me from Mountain View all the way back to Death Valley National Park for the first time since visiting in 2002 with my family.

Death Valley is spectacular in more ways than most people realize. Especially surprising was the abundance of interesting wildlife within the park’s border to go along with the landscapes and night photography. I had packed my 600mm for the trip, but didn’t really expect I would have much opportunity to use it. I saw coyote, hummingbirds, kangaroo rats, and lizards. I also found a herd of feral burros wandering around. Which was cool to see. They are wild donkeys that escaped the miner’s camps from the Gold Rush era in the 1849-1900s. I tried my best to find Sidewinders moving across the sand dunes at dusk/dawn, but they seem to be mostly nocturnal at this point in the year, as the temperatures begin to rise. At one point, my car thermometer read 121F (49.5 C). It wasn’t the official temperature because I was driving out in the sun, but it was definitely hot. There is something about the extremes of this planet that I, and many others, are drawn too. However, what is fascinating about Death Valley is that while floor is the hottest place in the world, it is possible to escape the heat (and photographically useless mid-day light) by driving up some of the canyons to higher elevations. The high canyon walls on the road to Wildrose would hold their shadows long into the days and higher elevation had cooler temperatures that animals didn’t mind. These conditions gave interesting glowing backlights to the flowers and whatever animal subjects came out. So I was able to keep shooting all night, all morning and all day. I am already planning to go back there around the Fourth of July for my next “big weekend” trip.