Twice I have traveled to Churchill, Manitoba,
Canada to photograph polar bears as they wait for the ice to freeze
so they can go and hunt seals. In addition to the artistic challenge
of composing shots of white bears against the white snow, I had
the physical challenge of operating my cameras and equipment in
an unrelentingly harsh environment where the daytime temperatures
were routinely ten to twenty degrees below zero.
As a beginning
photographer, I was first drawn to photographing wildlife because
of the deep respect I felt for the animals that came from a spiritual
connection I often experience with them. The challenge is always
to find fresh ways of seeing so I can create images that convey
this new perspective to the viewer.