Coastal Brown Bear, Stan Price Wildlife Sanctuary, Admiralty Island, Alaska – Image 2784

Many people who know me, know that I do not usually photograph in the rain. Since I live in one of the more rainy places in Alaska, every once in a while I have to brave the wet and shoot. For this image, I was at the Stan Price Wildlife Sanctuary on Admiralty Island waiting for a bear to show up on the stream in the downpour. My system for shooting in the rain is to wear full rubber rain gear (both pants and jacket) and shoot under a big golf umbrella. For wildlife shoots the camera is usually on a tripod, and I jury-rig clamps and straps to hold my umbrella to the tripod over the camera leaving my hands free. I also place a towel on top my camera and lens to soak up any stray spray. The towel also gives me a place to dry my hands before grabbing the camera. Nothing works perfect, but this system works better for me than the camera and lens rain coats. The image illustrates the month of September in my Southeast Alaska 2013 Calendar. Enjoy and the photo and thanks for visiting. Camera body: D300, Lens: Nikkor 70-200mm f/4/ ISO 800/ Digital Capture/ 1.4 Nikkor tele-extender© Mark Kelley