Fw: THE BEARS AND I.....A Great story and photo's....

THE BEARS AND I

Black bears typically have two cubs, rarely one or three.

In 2007, in northern New Hampshire, a black bear

sow gave birth to five healthy young. There were two or three

reports of sows with as many as four cubs but five was,

and is, extraordinary. I learned of them shortly after

they emerged from their den and set myself a goal of

photographing all five cubs with their mom, no matter how

much time and effort was involved. I knew the trail they

followed on a fairly regular basis, usually shortly before

dark. After spending nearly four hours a day, seven days

a week, for six weeks I had that once-in-a-lifetime

opportunity and photographed them in the shadows and dull

lighting of the evening. I used the equivalent of a very fast

film speed on my digital camera. The print is properly focused

and well exposed, with all six bears posing as if they were in

a studio for a family portrait.



(Read on….)

I stayed in touch with other people who saw the bears during the summer and into

the fall hunting season. All six bears continued to thrive As time for

hibernation approached, I found still more folks who had seen them, and

everything remained OK. I stayed away from the bears as I was concerned

that they might become habituated to me, or to people in general, as

approachable friends. This could be dangerous for bothman and animal.

After Halloween I received no further reports and could only hope the

bears survived until they hibernated.

This spring, before the snow disappeared, all six bears came out of their den

and wandered the same familiar territory they trekked in the spring of 2007.

I saw them before mid-April and dreamed nightly of taking another

family portrait, an improbable second once-in-a-lifetime photograph

On April 25, 2008 I achieved my dream. (Read on …

When something as magical as this happens between man and animal,

Native Americans say, “We have walked together in the shadow of a rainbow.”

And so it is with humility and great pleasure that I share these photos with you.

Sincerely, Tom Sears