They’ve put on crazy amounts of fat, their coats are thick and luscious, I’m ready for winter and so are the Bison! Snow and cold has been promised here in the west, we were to wake up to 1-3″ of fresh white but the rain gauge says less than 0.01 fell overnight. The game camera at our water feature captures a parade of critters coming in for the free water. The cycle so many take for granted is a fragile one and our wildlife can’t run to the store and by a bottle of water (whose plastic bottle goes into a landfill). Some regions are flooding which typically don’t receive much moisture, other locals that are normally wringing wet, can barely scrape up a drop. Winter is an important part of our world, its moisture a key to life. And so we wait.

First its mate hopped up on the rock, next it did, both taking a turn at the puddle in the bowl of the rock. The second Coyote kept an eye on me as it took a long, long drink. It’s winter and some water is locked up in ice already. Other water long ways from a creek or river is, well, rather bad. I know I wouldn’t want a long drink from a puddle Bison have been at. Animals need water just like us and clean water (by their standards) is a treat. From my vantage point, when they jumped up on the rock, I was wondering what they were doing. Once their head went down, it was obvious. Free water!

Great Gray Owls had a good year with lots being seen in Montana and by most folks in Yellowstone. With that said, when one has the opportunity to photograph a Great Gray, we try to make the most of that opportunity. We want to come back with that prize photo of this spectacular member of our wild heritage. That can be easier said than done at times. When they are hunting as this individual was, they are on the move, it takes very little if any, “push” for them to move to the next perch. Since they are hunting open meadows from the trees on the ecotone, they tend to perch in photographically busy locations. Nothing is more frustrating than having a Great Gray surrounded by branches. What to do?

In the perfect world, you can zoom with your feet. Getting closer is a great way crop out those busy elements. That wasn’t an option in this case. That obnoxious branch in the lower right corner (bottom photo) was driving me nuts! Then there were the dead pine needle clump and finally the interesting trunk on the left. I couldn’t get closer physically but I could optically. Without hesitation I added the Z2x to the Z600f4TC, which was already at 840mm. Shooting now at 1680mm, I moved a tad to my right to grab as much darkness as I could (exposure range is a great tool for isolating a subject) and went vertical. With that, I made the most of this very special moment with an incredible critter. It all came together in the camera with the magic of isolation.

This female Kodiak Brown Bear is on a mission, get fat! It’s late September and most likely, she’s pregnant, to give birth to cubs in the den over winter. She’s eating for more than one driving her to consume as many calories as possible while using as few as possible. So then, why during the Pink Salmon run is she spending time eating grass? How are beef cattle fattened up for the market? They eat lots of grass. The Kodiak Brown bear is doing the exact same thing with the same results. This female, coming up on nine hundred pounds, seems to know how to put on the weight.

Bringing this story back only truly requires ignoring urban myths. I’m standing out in the open. No hiding the gear on the tripod, myself or any scent I might have. I’m on the same side of the river as her, nothing between us if she chooses to run the thirty yards between us. My only concern is heat shimmer and telling her story. She strolled from where she was picking through the spent salmon to eat, past me to where she wanted to graze. She gave me no never mind in the process. Standing at the river’s edge, I’m eyelevel with her when she’s munching salmon, shooting up when she’s up eating grass.

It’s a fascinating world where you might have hours of hours without making a single click. Then in a matter of seconds, you make thousands. A Kodiak Brown’s pace is, well, whatever they so desire, with little changing their mind. They work off the lessons mom taught them their first three to four years and when it comes to getting fat, one stands out. Mom said to eat your vegetables.

Those eyes! The Great Gray Owl is a gorgeous critter with the most engaging, piercing eyes. The first goal is to find them, then get them in the viewfinder and then, then, select the best background. Wait, you don’t set up for the eyes? You want to see them big yellow peepers if you have a suckie background, so it has to be a priority. One must take a deep breath and not let the moment take hold of common sense. It’s a moment you want to forever cherish in your images and tell the story that engages the viewer. This is when a fast firing rate comes in handy as the owl scans left and right, up and down, using that huge facial disk to find its prey. In that process, you watch and fire as those eyes come down the lens barrel. Sometimes they do and sometimes they don’t. Its the fun and challenge of the stare of the Great Gray.