Originally posted by northcoastgreg There are a suprising number of places in both Yellowstone and Grand Tetons where you can get by without anything wider than 28mm. Last time I was there in 2012 the lens that got the most use was my FA 24-90 on the K-5. Places like Schwabacher Landing, Oxbow Bend, Mormon Row, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, Old Faithful, don't necessarily require lenses wider than 28mm.
The only problem with bear bells is some bears regard them as dinner bells and think dinner's coming.
Agree 100%. I’ve not yet been to these parks, but Alaska has similar terrain. The landscape is just too big and too far away to try to get it all in one shot with an ultra-wide. Multiple shot stitching yields far better results in my experience; it’s helpful for good results to set exposure manually or lock it and set the camera to manual focus.
As far as bears, the Park service was recently on a local radio program on NPR talking about the best ways to protect yourself from bears in the backcountry. After studying years of recorded incidents, what they found:
1 - don’t go alone. There were almost no recorded bear attacks against groups of 3 or more, and many of the attacks on groups involved hunters field dressing an animal. Two is enough of a group to cut down the odds significantly as well.
2 - don’t scare bears. Make a reasonable amount of noise as your walk. A conversation should be enough, or bells and other “human” sounding things to let bears know your coming. Try to avoid walking in to tall grass, brush, and dense thickets where visibility is limited as that’s where bears will likely be sleeping or resting. *Most* bears want to be left alone...
3 - If a bear doesn’t want to be left alone, that’s when you need bear spray and/or a firearm. Keep in mind your target is roughly the size of a dinner plate, and is going to be running at you not in a straight line but bouncing around with teeth and claws at 40mph...
The park service up here says to try to keep at least 100 yards between you and bears, which is plenty close enough for me if I’m not in a vehicle.
If you follow 1 and 2, you’ll probably never have to deal with 3. As a photographer it would be nice to have a second person to act as a spotter. Two sets of eyes sees more animals, and can watch your back while you’re shooting too.