The
temperature that early morning was just under -15 degrees Celsius – not
super cold, but cold enough for snow to have settled on the bison’s
primal face. This was very much my preconceived goal when I was
researching Yellowstone. He looks like a mythological creature from a
primal age, not a bison in 2017.

I
prefer not to use the magnification and distance compression of
telephoto lenses, but sometimes – like in this “head on” situation –
they serve a purpose as there is simply no safe or practical
alternative. The key issue for me is the validity of the chosen focal
point – as much of what is behind and much of what is in front of that
point will quickly lose detail – no matter the lens apeture. To lose it
behind is okay , but in front can create too big a tension point for the
image to work. I remember worrying about my focus at the time and
straight after – as these encounters happen all too quickly. But many
hours later, back in the warmth of my modest motel room, I looked at the
detail in the nose and around the eyes and I knew that I had a shot.
What a total beast of an animal.

Focus
is everything in photography – no more so than at 10,000 feet up, deep
in snow, with a bison in your face at -15 degrees celsius. This was not a
normal morning.