wyoming - Trent Sizemore

June 13, 2016June 13, 2016

How Should Photographers Portray Bears?

Photographers and filmmakers can be the only connection some people have with nature. The way we see and document wildlife, on social media or otherwise, has at least some effect on how potential viewers will portray them. Bears are often seen as cute and cuddly, but can this make them seem less dangerous than they really are? There is no denying bears are playful, just like any animal can be. There’s nothing wrong with seeing them as they are, but you’ve got to have the common sense to realize and respect their power.

Many people visiting Yellowstone seem to have zero fear of bears. Do they have any idea what would happen if a grizzly bear, or even a black bear, decided to charge them? That would be quite the shot to get on your iPad, but ultimately it would not end well. There has already been one instance this season of a man following a grizzly bear into the woods with his iPad. By some miracle, he wasn’t mauled, but he was ticketed by a ranger.

I watched several photographers scurry down a hill to get a closer shot of a mother grizzly bear with three cubs in May. If you’re nearing the retirement age, I don’t think you and your twenty pounds of camera gear are going to make it back up that hill when mama bear decides to charge. In fact, I watched someone slip and fall just trying to make it back up the hill, after the bears were gone.

It’s nearly impossible to make a bear cub look like anything but the cutest thing in the world. A one month old cub probably couldn’t maul anybody, but its mother certainly can.

I think common sense should ensure people have the ability to see something as cute, yet still know it can be dangerous as well. That’s a healthy appreciation and respect of the animal. Common sense is lacking in today’s world, so what can you do? These animals aren’t domesticated. They are wild, dangerous, and struggling to survive. If you get in their way, they can quickly render you no longer a threat.

Making a bear appear scary and threatening isn’t hard. They’re huge animals, and when they’re next to something you can relate to, you can see just how big they really are. The bear below is the same mother of the three cubs above, but it’s not so “cute” anymore huh?

What do you think? How would you prefer to see bears portrayed? Leave a comment below or on Facebook!

June 2, 2015March 12, 2016

A Year Out West

A little more than a year ago, I packed my stuff and headed out from Georgia to Wyoming and Grand Teton National Park. Since then, I’ve been to Big Sky, Montana, and now settled in West Yellowstone, Montana. To the surprise of most, I survived the seemingly overhyped winter of the west. Sure it snowed nearly every single day, and often 8-10″ over night, but it was nothing dreadful. Many mornings I would wake up to fresh snow and ski my way to work instead of driving. The winter cold of nearly 40 below some days took a little toll on my car, but nothing major.

Now it’s spring, and yesterday was 75 degrees. Even though it’s been raining daily (we need it), the fishing and weather has been great for the most part. In the first couple of weeks of the opening season of fishing in Yellowstone National Park, I’ve caught several fish on the world famous streams, including the Firehole and Madison Rivers, as well as Nez Perce Creek. The crowds are here, and are starting to pushing me in to exploring the more secluded locations for some backcountry fishing.

Madison River in Yellowstone National Park

Although the weather has been nice for the most part, we had a couple of snow storms earlier in May that brought cold temperatures and a few inches of snow for a day or so.

Lodging inside Yellowstone, and outside of the park in West Yellowstone is pretty much sold out for June, July, and much of August and September. People are planning their trips out here a year in advance in some cases. It’s been pretty busy where I work at The Faithful Street Inn.

Over a year, I’ve learned quite a few things about Montana and the west in general. I’ve compiled a list of several of these below.

McDonald’s and Chick-Fil-A are virtually the only places that offer real sweet tea. McDonald’s is decent, but Chick-Fil-A is better, even though it’s 2 hours away.
When you live an hour and a half away from the nearest Wal-Mart, you know you’re in the middle of nowhere.
The western states get their fair share of severe weather, minus the tornadoes. We get pea size hail with almost every big storm, and small hail even with a passing shower. The wind yesterday knocked out power in much of Grand Teton National Park, closed several roads, and caused wrecks here in Yellowstone.
It’s extremely dry out here. Even on a cloudy, rainy day, the humidity may be only 50%. It’s never muggy. During the summer, a lot of rain never even reaches the ground.
For the most part, people leave you alone here, and want to be left alone. They are still very friendly!
People vacationing seem to leave their common sense at home (if they had any in the first place). You may have seen a couple of these instances on the news lately.
If you live here, you better know how to drive. People like to get where they need to be as fast as possible. Another reason is the weather changes constantly. A quick hail storm can turn the road completely white in a minute. Snow can make the road very dangerous very quickly. I still have my snow tires on in June.

If you’re interested in visiting, feel free to contact me! I will be presenting my photography and giving a seminar on fly fishing photography at the Ennis on the Madison Fly Fishing Festival on September 4th and 5th, put on by the Madison River Foundation.

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March 18, 2015March 18, 2015

A Story of Traveling Bison

This past weekend was spent in the northern range of Yellowstone looking for wolves, among other wildlife. After getting up well before sunrise to get to the Lamar Valley, I came up empty. I just happened to see a few spotters along the road on the way out, and turned around to see what was there. Just a minute after talking to another photographer, a couple of coyotes came up to feed on a bison that had fallen through ice a couple of days ago.

We were up on a hill, not even 50 yards from the feeding animals. Throughout the day, several more coyotes came to share. The scavengers came and went as onlookers were spooking them. A couple of bald eagles also shared the area, feeding on a second carcass that was older.

Keep scrolling to see the photos of bison and coyotes moving through the Blacktail Pond area.

This reddish coyote stood out perfectly against the bluish ice.