One gutsy, cool photographer!

Came across this video on YouTube today. Amazing that he keeps on taking photos and and adjusting the lens throughout the encounter.

https://www.youtube.co​m/watch?v=Eyx75G3it18

If I were an insurance company, I wouldn't sell any to him! ; )

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I wonder if, in the still photos he took, he got the water as a background, or the sky, or both.

It was hard to tell from the video just what angle he had with the still camera set-up.

If it were me, I would have set up higher to get the beautiful grey-blue water as a background, then, after several sequences with that, I would have switched to a lower position for a more dramatic angle, although that would have put the grey sky behind the bear. . It's not a bad sky, but when blurred out I don't think it'd be as beautiful as that water, and it wouldn't provide as much contrast with the bear's coat, because it's so much lighter.

It'd be really interesting to see the stills that he got. . The bear didn't make it easy the way its head was constantly bobbing around. . He never really struck a good pose and held it for any significant length of time.

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This isn't gutsy, it's plain stupid. Charging a Polar Bear?

.....yea.....brilliant​.

saea501 wrote in post #18675672
This isn't gutsy, it's plain stupid. Charging a Polar Bear?

.....yea.....brilliant​.

My instinct would have been to run home and go shopping on online for a new camera /lens

But maybe he knows something i dont.
Maybe running would have put the bear in predator mode?
Maybe theres something about the bears body language that the photographer knows

This may sound really dumb. But I'll go out on a limb and say it...

The bear kept going up to the photographer, but not attacking. Just walking up to the photographer. If the bear wanted to harm/eat the photographer, he could have done it in a few seconds.

The photographer was wearing a white snow suite, covering almost all of his body. Maybe the bear thought the photographer was another bear.
Maybe the bear just wanted to be close to another bear. And that's why the bear didn't attack the photographer.

Ok, could I be correct, or am I out to lunch on this one?

Perfectly Frank wrote in post #18675693
This may sound really dumb. But I'll go out on a limb and say it...

The bear kept going up to the photographer, but not attacking. Just walking up to the photographer. If the bear wanted to harm/eat the photographer, he could have done it in a few seconds.

The photographer was wearing a white snow suite, covering almost all of his body. Maybe the bear thought the photographer was another bear.
Maybe the bear just wanted to be close to another bear. And that's why the bear didn't attack the photographer.

Ok, could I be correct, or am I out to lunch on this one?

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Animals aren't so stupid as to mistake a human for another bear.

The bear was curious, but cautious. . The reason that the photographer kept approaching/chasing off the bear was because the bear kept coming back, giving the photographer another round of "approaching" shots (which are what everyone wants). . If you can get a critter to keep walking toward you, over and over again, that makes for one incredible photo session!


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Looks like a curious adolescent not quite ready for prime time human mauling!

Looks to me that this guy had a specific shot in mind & wasn't going to give up getting it. A sort of "Target Fixation."
If I'd have been stupid enough to put myself in that situation, I'd like to think that I'd have either used my back-up camera or taken the one off the tripod & got some really dramatic close-ups, since that was what the bear was in the mood to do.

OTOH, maybe he already has hundreds if images like that.

Still, I can't help being reminded of the B. C. & Montana Grizzly Bear Notice: ; )

PhotosGuy wrote in post #18675720
Still, I can't help being reminded of the B. C. & Montana Grizzly Bear Notice: ; )

I love the last sentence in that notice!

I was a bit disappointed that the video didn't include the final still images.

On a TV show I saw, where they showed behind the scene of a photographer taking pictures of a polar bear, in Russia, the photographer had a pair of guys with high powered rifles flanking his camera setup, and keeping an eye on the bear, while the guy went about his shooting.
Maybe this photographer had a similar protection, not shown in the video.

s1a1om wrote in post #18675735
I was a bit disappointed that the video didn't include the final still images.

Yeah, I was hoping for the same thing.

Tom Reichner wrote in post #18675697
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Animals aren't so stupid as to mistake a human for another bear.

The bear was curious, but cautious. . The reason that the photographer kept approaching/chasing off the bear was because the bear kept coming back, giving the photographer another round of "approaching" shots (which are what everyone wants). . If you can get a critter to keep walking toward you, over and over again, that makes for one incredible photo session!

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Makes sense. Thanks for setting me straight.

rantercsr wrote in post #18675689
...But maybe he knows something i dont. Maybe running would have put the bear in predator mode? Maybe theres something about the bears body language that the photographer knows

I suggest the guy wasn't stupid but knew exactly what he was doing, whether he was covered by someone with a gun or not.

We have lot of bears here in Canada, and here's some good advice I saw recently on a local paper although it doesn't cover polar bears.

https://vancouversun.c​om …8d49d?video_aut​oplay=true




Here's a momma black bear at our house with a cub, "bluff-charging" to warn me off (I was safely above her).