Photographing Spirit Bears in the Great Bear Rainforest of B.C.

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 1D mk IV & EF 500mm f/4 IS II

When John Marriott called and asked if I could fill in for him to lead a Spirit Bear photo tour in British Columbia during September, it was an easy decision.  I mean, how can you turn down a chance to photograph bears at close range, especially Spirit Bears!

If you're wondering what a Spirit Bear is, they're a Black Bear that is white (actually cream-coloured) as a result of a double recessive gene. A small percentage of the black bear population is white in a concentrated region of the central British Columbia coast, now called the Great Bear Rainforest.

Our week was based from a live-aboard 71 ft sailboat called the Ocean Light II, which specializes in coastal adventures and wildlife tours. There were 6 photographers, plus myself and the crew of 3. We sailed out of Kitimat ready for an adventure!

There were two primary benefits about being based on a sailboat (aside from the fact that's it's just a cool experience: 1) we saw/photographed all kinds of marine life and great scenery right from the boat and 2) we were able to stay very close to the areas where the Spirit Bears were, which greatly minimized our travel each morning. 

During autumn, the bears spend most of their time feeding on salmon which are spawning on small creeks. The bears walk up and down the creeks looking for fish, or will stake out a productive set of rapids. Our guides worked cooperatively with bear guides from the Git'gat First Nation (stewards of the bears) to find out where the bears were most reliable. Each day we'd boat to shore, walk to the best locations and spend the day waiting along the creek - with cameras ready - to capture the moments when the bears would come by.

And come by they did! We had many opportunities to photograph Spirit Bears and black bears, sometimes at very close range as the bears fed on salmon and paid little attention to us. Absolutely amazing photo opportunities!

As if the bear photography wasn't incredible enough, we also had extraordinary experiences with Humpback Whales. Between them spy-hopping near our boat, or breaching, we all captured some incredible images.

To say it was an epic trip seems to barely do it justice. Being surrounded by coastal rainforest was awe-inspiring. Each of us left with great memories, new friendships and superb photos. 

Please scroll down to see some of my photos from the trip. Thanks for looking!

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 1D mk IV & EF 24-105mm

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 500mm f/4 IS II

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 1D mk IV & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Spirit Bear, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Black Bear in old growth forest, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Black Bear charging salmon, Great Bear Rainforest.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 500mm f/4 IS II

Humpback Whale breaching, central coast of British Columbia
Canon 5D mk III & EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II

Ocean Light II sailboat, our base for the Spirit Bear photo tour.
Canon 5D mk III & EF 16-35mm f/2.8L IS II

 

Black Bears and the Barron Canyon - a great day in Algonquin Provincial Park

Black Bear cub, Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario.
Canon EOS 1D mk IV, 500/4 IS + 1.4x 

My plan was simple: go to bed early, wake up at 2:30am, have a shower, fill a travel mug with coffee and drive to Algonquin Park in time for sunrise. The plan fell apart at the going to bed early stage. I finally dozed off after midnight and the 2:30am alarm rang far too soon. I debated skipping the photo shoot and staying in bed, but my conscious wouldn't allow it.... so I battled with the snooze button for an hour before mustering the willpower to get moving. And I am sure glad that I did!  

Miraculously (ok, it was a lack of traffic and some speeding) I made it to the park in time for dawn. Sunrise was a bust due to a heavy morning mist, but no worries... that wasn't what I was after. My morning target was a blueberry patch that I'd heard was attracting bears. Sure enough, the bears were there and very cooperative. Photographing the sows and cubs was a great way to start the day. I hardly noticed how tired I was!

Black Bear sow (ear tagged), Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario.
Canon EOS 1D mk IV, 500/4 IS + 1.4x 

Once the light started to get harsh (bear fur does not photograph well in bright light), I left the bears, had breakfast with a friend and then started driving east. I'd always wanted to explore the Barron Canyon on the east side of the park, so I fought through my lack of sleep and made it into Pembroke by mid afternoon, checked into a hotel and immediately fell into a coma-like nap for a few hours.  

I woke up refreshed and ready to explore, but not before a nutritious dinner (a hot dog and a cookie) from the gas station. The drive from Pembroke to the Barron Canyon hiking trail lot was only 45 minutes, and the hike up to the canyon overlooks was surprisingly short. I spent the next couple of hours in awe of the striking scenery of the Barron Canyon, shooting photos until the sun went down behind the hills, and then hiked down at dusk, elated after a great evening. 

Happy shooting!

Selfie at the Barron Canyon, Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario.
Canon EOS 5D III, Sigma 24-70/2.8, Singh-Ray LB warming polarizer and 3 stop hard edge ND grad

Barron Canyon, Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario.
Canon EOS 5D III, 16-35mm, Singh-Ray LB warming polarizer and 2 stop hard edge ND grad