Canada Lynx Encounter By Kevin Pepper

RESEARCH CONDUCTED BEFORE WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER

Every year I offer a workshop called “Wildlife Bootcamp .” I hold these workshops at the Yukon Wildlife Preserve. Here, amateur photographers have the unparalleled opportunity to learn wildlife photography techniques under the supervision of an animal behaviorist, veterinarian, and professional photographer. We photograph indigenous Yukon wildlife living in large areas that mirror their habitat in the wild. This location has allowed me to take some stunning wildlife images, but even more valuable for me is the behavior traits I get to witness up close before I head out into the wild.

Before you embark on a wildlife trip, we suggest that you research the target species at home. There are endless video resources and articles where you can get behavior and habitat information. You can also talk to guides and workshop companies that lead trips for the Canada lynx. Given the elusive nature of lynx, you may want to hire an experienced guide to optimize your time and chance for success.

WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER

I was in the mountains outside of Whitehorse, where a local trapper told me to start looking. I noticed fresh tracks and followed them to see if I could learn how lynx used this environment. I decided it would be best to erect a blind in a tree line where the lynx appeared to spend significant time over the past 24 hours. Since we saw fresh tracks in the morning, I positioned the blind where the sun would be behind me. I then marked my location using GPS and returned to this blind hours before the sun came up to hopefully capture the lynx in its environment.

For days I would sit in the blind without clicking the shutter. I watched all kinds of wildlife and birds as I sat in silence. On day three, I finally had an opportunity to see a lynx wandering slowly through the birch trees with purpose. It was apparent that she was alert to a foreign presence (me). Her body positioning and cautious look were one of an animal on alert. Patience and concealment in the blind allowed me to take exactly the photos I had hoped for; a lynx cruising a tree line.

I then returned before the sun came up on day four. This time I wanted a lower point of view and to capture the lynx walking in its environment. I wanted to show those massive paws. Again she returned, this time meandering through the area with less noticeable stress. I received some new looks as the sun was brighter that morning. She walked in and out of the shadows and passed within meters of my location.

GLOBAL EDITS

• Remove chromatic aberration

• Enable lens profile correction

• Crop to create more focus on the lynx coming out of darkness

• Tone curve adjustment to darken shadows and brighten lynx and snow

• White balance adjustment for daylight

LOCAL ADJUSTMENTS

• Gradient filter from bottom to the top of the snow to increase exposure on snow

• Adjustment brush used on backgrounds to darken shadows

• Adjustment brush on lynx to lighten fur

• Sharpen only on the lynx

• Brighten eyes separately by increasing contrast, increasing vibrance and adding a touch more black

CRITICAL DECISIONS IN THE MOMENT

The following are critical decisions that I made in the moments before I photographed the Canada lynx.

1 – Focused on the eyes – It was important to me to ensure the eyes were in focus over anything else in the photograph. If she did get too close for my aperture, at least I had focus on her eyes. If other parts of the body were not sharp, all would be forgiven because I created a connection between the viewer and the eyes of the lynx.

2 – Instinctively checked out the backgrounds – A wildlife photograph that captures the subject in a beautiful natural setting can be even more effective than a simple close-up. This is my preferred way to take a wildlife photo. My inspiration comes from the paintings of Robert Bateman, a fellow Canadian. He has a painting of a lynx that first compelled me to track them in the wild.

3 – Addressed potential exposure issues for winter photography – Snow can introduce a challenging element in a photo. To set the proper exposure for snow in this scene, I filled the frame with snow before the lynx appeared and adjusted the manual mode settings until I saw the peak at the right end of the histogram. Exposure generally needs to increased +2 stops for overcast snow or +1 stop for brightly lit snow.

4 – Identified a unique point of view for a better photo – In this encounter, I did not want to photograph this scene as if I was photographing my neighbor’s poodle over the fence. I wanted impact! I positioned myself as low to the ground as I could inside my blind. I wanted to be at the eye level of the animal versus an elevated position. A lower point of view can have a very positive effect when photographing

wildlife. It gives the viewer a perspective that one does not usually see, especially those large paws.

5 – Used a blind – Photographing wild animals is sometimes only achieved by using a blind to hide your presence. My experience told me it was best to remain hidden versus moving around and looking for her . I positioned my blind on the clearing’s eastern side so that the lynx tracks were to my west. If the fresh tracks were an indication of where the lynx would walk again, I would have the sun at my back.

One last note about concealment in a blind. Being in a blind means exercising complete silence. If you are extremely close to the animal and risk startling it with your shutter’s sound, be selective in the photos that you take and wait for the ideal moment to click the shutter. Alternatively, some cameras offer quiet or silent shutter modes.

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