Brown Bear expectations

The meeting yesterday went well and I feel that we all will arrive in Finland a bit more prepared.

I like having these discussions before the trip to pick up things that I might have missed in my own preparations. I have my own list of things to bring and I need to add bean bag to it. I have thought about buying one for a long time because it is handy when you take photos from a car but I might even do one myself.

So what expectations do I have? I am certain that I will get good opportunities to photo the Brown Bear. There are plenty of hides around the small lake but there are also some hides in the woods. All of the hides around the lake are on the western side so the light during twilight will be really good for getting sharp and crispy pictures. At dawn the Bears will be in back light and that might also produce some stunning pictures. I have actually work on my skill for shooting back light during this week and I hope to get the opportunity to test those skills in Finland.

I feel so sure of the Bears so my hopes are now really on Wolverines. These quirky animals are hard to find and hard to photo but they have regular visits from them at this time of year. Will I see them? Not sure but I know that I will be in an area where I have good potential of getting a picture or two. I keep my fingers crossed that luck still is on my side.

We might even have Wolves and the White-tailed Eagle if we are lucky at site. Reindeer, Elk, Beaver, Capercaillie, Owls and the Black Grouse can also be found in the woods and I have asked for the possibility to use their Black Grouse hide the first morning. I had to change flights and will arrive the night before the rest of the group so to get the opportunity to shoot from this hide would be the icing on the cake.

The plan for the hide is that we will be 2 photographers in each hide during the nights taking turns sleeping. I am not sure I will sleep that much myself and I know that 4-5 hours will be sufficient to get me going during a couple of days. A couple of hours during night and a quick nap at daytime will hopefully keep me alert when I need to be. Still I will bring some fructose and maybe protein drinks/bars to make sure I get the nutrition’s that I need to stay awake.

I also spotted a potential issue yesterday and that is that the hides hasn´t been built for grown up men like me. I won’t be able to stand straight in the hides so I must exercise my back regularly so I don´t get any back issues. It is good to know this now so I will work with this for the next 10 days.

So now the countdown has started and I have 10 days to sort things out before I fly towards Finland and this year’s first photo adventure. My biggest issue is the lack of an extra camera. I would have liked to get my hands on a Nikon D800 but they are still not on the market.

I keep my fingers crossed that my small issues will be solved the next couple of days…