Coastal Brown Bears Dancing

We watched these two siblings wrestling in the rain for almost an hour during my Ultimate Brown Bears of Katmai Photo Tour. This frame makes it look like they are ballroom dancing (and rather good at it). This is another frame from 2010: I have been at this for a long time - smile!

Coastal Brown Bears SHALL WE DANCE? (Ursus arctos or Grizzly Bears) from June 2010. Geographic Harbor, Katmai National Park, Alaska, from my Ultimate Brown Bear Photo Tour. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. 500mm with 2X Teleconverter @1,000mm ISO 1,600, f/8 @ 1/800s. Manual exposure.

Unlikely Friends in Alaska: The Brown Bear and the Wolf

This is an image from my June 2010 Ultimate Brown Bear Photo Tour in Katmai National Park, Alaska. This wolf spent the day foraging the bear’s leftovers. As the tide rose over the open flats, the bear and wolf slowly moved away from the rising water towards each other. This image was made at 10:34 PM after the sun had set. I remember this like it happened yesterday!

In Katmai, the documented encounters between the species include wolves stealing fish from bears, wolves harassing courting bears, wolves displacing bears from a moose carcass, bears briefly chasing wolves, wolves travelling with bears, and wolves fishing alongside bears.

Join me in Alaska for the ULTIMATE Brown Bear Photo Tour

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Join me in Alaska for the ULTIMATE Brown Bear Photo Tour 🐻

Coastal Brown Bear and Wolf (Ursus arctos or Grizzly Bear and Canis lupus) from June 2010. Hallo Bay, Katmai National Park, Alaska, from my Ultimate Brown Bear Photo Tour. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. 500mm with 2X Telextender @1,000mm ISO 800, f/8 @ 1/125s. Manual exposure.

Join me for an eight-day Coastal Brown Bears Mothers & Cubs Adventure along the Katmai Coast of Alaska.

Coastal Brown Bear twin cubs (Ursus arctos) Hallo Bay, Katmai National Park, Alaska from my Ultimate Brown Bear Photo Tour. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. 70-200mm @ 70mm ISO 400, f/8` @ 1/200s. Manual exposure.

Every photographer dreams of getting close to bears safely, and that is precisely what we do during my 8-day Ultimate Coastal Brown Bear photo tour in Katmai National Park in Alaska. We live on board a privately chartered research vessel but spend most of our time in Katmai National Park in front of the highest concentration of Coastal Brown bears in the world while surrounded by some of the most spectacular scenery on Earth!

The ship is spacious with two lounges and a galley, and each stateroom has a private bathroom, complete with a walk-in shower, sink and toilet; there are no water restrictions, so grab a shower anytime you like! We spend most of our time on land with the bears and return to the ship to eat some incredible meals and sleep.

Wood Duck in a berry tree at first light

The last morning of my Better than Bosque workshop was cold, windy and cloudy. We drove to Albuquerque to broaden our portfolio and look for ducks. A few Wood Ducks flew up into this tree to eat the berries as the sun broke through the clouds. I was lucky to get a few frames of a beautiful drake clear from the branches and obstructions before it flew off in the wrong direction. Reminds me of an ornament in a Christmas Tree - smile.

Wood Duck in berry tree at first light (Aix sponsa, Canard branchu, WODU). Photographed on the last morning (Dec. 9, 2023) of my Better than Bosque workshop on Dec. 9, 2023, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. Image Copyright ©Christopher Dodds. Sony Alpha alpha 1 Mirrorless camera & Sony FE 600mm f/4 G Master OSS Lens with Sony FE 2X Teleconverter @1,200mm ISO 4,000, f/8 @ 1/5,000s. Full frame image. Manual exposure.

Join me in New Mexico Dec. 5-9, 2024 for my Better than Bosque workshop

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Join me in New Mexico Dec. 5-9, 2024 for my Better than Bosque workshop 🦆

Bald Eagle Silhouette

Here is another Bald Eagle from my Bald Eagles Galore Workshop near Homer, Alaska, in March. I usually work tighter for more visual impact online but I love the little horizon at the bottom of the frame. We had tons of fun with the silhouette opportunities that the fabulous weather offered - smile!

Bald Eagle pre sunrise pastels

We were out before the sun every day of both Eagles Galore workshops and saw some incredible pastel hues in the sky - smile.

Bald Eagle Portrait/Stare

Q: Hi Chris, I am interested in your Bald Eagle workshop in Alaska. My longest lens is the Sony 100-400, and I am worried that I won’t get close enough to the action/Eagles - especially for portraits.

A: Hey Marc, As this image demonstrates, we will get close to the Eagles. This portrait was made with the same Sony 100-400mm lens that you own - smile.

Bald Eagle wings in flight

Join me for an Alaskan Eagle Adventure like no other! Learn more HERE

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Join me for an Alaskan Eagle Adventure like no other! Learn more HERE 🦅

Bald Eagle sub-adult with fish

The first drops of morning light crested the mountains behind us in Kenai Fjords National Park at the bottom of the tide in Kachemak Bay as we lay on the wet rocks at the water's edge; then the tide turned, and a wave gently lapped up into my lens hood. I made this image just at that moment. The lens was fine after a careful cleaning - smile.

The darker markings amongst the white head and tail feathers, with the white markings on the dark wing feathers, indicate this is likely a 3.5-year-old Eagle.

Bald Eagle Call of The Wild in a blizzard

After the morning shoot was cancelled because the waves were too high during my Eagles Galore Workshop, we doubled down on the afternoon shoot with twice as much boat time and lucked out when it started to snow. This is an Immature or sub-adult Bald Eagle calling as it was chasing an adult with fish - Although I am happy to have this frame, I had too much glass to capture the chase, including the adult with the fish - it happens :)

Bald Eagle top of the dive

A Bald Eagle at the top of the dive from my Bald Eagles Galore workshop last March. Always fun to try to fill the frame with the camera turned to vertical orientation for birds in flight.

Glaucous-winged Gulls

Glaucous-winged Gulls seem to be everywhere during my Eagles Galore Workshop near Homer, Alaska. Life as a seabird can be tough; once you find food, you have to eat it before another bird steals it. Not to worry, the bird with the fish ate it within the next two frames.

Winter Owls Workshop update

Winter Owl Workshop update

I just had a second person cancel for medical reasons. Please click below to learn more or sign-up:

Snowy Owl Fire Flight

Chris Dodds knows how to do a workshop!

I had the pleasure of attending Chris' Snowy Owl Workshop this past January. To be honest, I did not know much about Chris before the trip. All I knew was the quality of his images on his website and that I wanted Snowy owl pictures. Needless to say, Chris met and exceeded my expectations. He goes over and above to get you in the right place at the right time to capture the best images possible. Having been on numerous workshops around the world with various leaders, I can say Chris worked harder than most..... He also made sure that we were in position to get a variety of images and not just 1000 photos of the same animal behavior. Chris knows his birds and what they are going to do next (as much as humanly possible). He teaches in a way that things make sense. I was getting frustrated with my photography before this trip. I was able to get great shots before the workshop but felt that the percentage of great shots to missed shots needed to be better. Chris explained ways to change a few of my bad habits in a way that no one else ever did. I have tried manual exposure in the past but never got comfortable with it but after a day or two with Chris it clicked in my mind and my images improved and percentage of keepers went up.
If you get a chance to go on a workshop with Chris I would highly recommend it. I know I will again.

Rick Susi  Orlando, FL, USA

Amazingly, there is still one spot left due to last minute cancellation:

Snowy Owl Workshop last minute opening

“Thank you again for an amazing week of owls. I came home with some of my favourite images of all time. I was very impressed with many things throughout the week. Most notably, your concern for our groups’ comfort, your knowledge of the owls we were there to photograph, your technical ability, your advice/instruction, and your ability to always make things fun. Spending some time with you and seeing the amount of effort, time and processing that goes in to capturing your images was an eye-opening moment for me. It was an awesome experience and I am already looking forward to next year’s workshop. Thank you again for everything.”

— Andrew Feiler Las Vegas | Nevada | USA

Only one spot left for my Owl Workshops due to cancellation.

Click HERE to learn more or sign-up.

Northern Harrier

I was in love with the backgrounds over the Maximilian sunflowers during my Best of Bosque workshop: So much more artistic that the contrasty, ugly and distracting bush-honed corn fields of years past.

Short-eared Owl

There are currently only two openings for my winter owl workshops due to last-minute cancellations:

January 9 to 13, 2023 SOLD OUT!

January 16 to 20, 2023 SOLD OUT!

January 23 to 27, 2023 ONLY 1 SPOT LEFT!

January 30 to February 3, 2023 SOLD OUT!

February 6 to 10, 2023 SOLD OUT!

February 13 to 17, 2023 SOLD OUT!

Short-eared Owl Stare

Here is another Short-eared Owl from my scouting trip for my Owls Galore workshops. There was a burst of flight activity when we got there and we had overcast conditions with a window of blue sky. These owls forage mainly on the wing: flying low over the ground, sometimes hovering briefly at heights of 6–100 feet. They are incredibly maneuverable in the air, dropping suddenly to capture prey or climbing to avoid pursuers. They also soar hawklike on their long, broad wings, a flight mode they probably use for migratory travel.

There are currently only two openings due to last-minute cancellations:

January 9 to 13, 2023 SOLD OUT!

January 16 to 20, 2023 SOLD OUT!

January 23 to 27, 2023 ONLY 1 SPOT LEFT!

January 30 to February 3, 2023 SOLD OUT!

February 6 to 10, 2023 SOLD OUT!

February 13 to 17, 2023 ONLY 1 SPOT LEFT!

Short-eared Owl in flight

I had a great afternoon in great company yesterday while scouting for my Winter Owls Galore workshops. While the sky was dramatic and spectacular with storm clouds and golden light at times, my favourite poses and closest encounters happened against a bright white part of the sky with the slightest hint of pink - happens :)

American Kestrel in flight

On my way out of Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge for the last time this year, I had an epic encounter with this American Kestrel. So many images and so many poses! WOW, I think my heart stopped a couple of times!

The smallest member of the falcon family in North America is also called a Sparrow Hawk. Studies have shown that kestrels can see ultraviolet light. Researchers believe that this ability to see UV light enables them to vividly see the urine markings and trails that small mammals, such as voles, leave as they run along the ground. These trails and urine markings would likely look bright yellow to a kestrel, therefore alerting them to the presence of a meal.