By Ken Gosbell. This was made when sailing around Svalbard in the Arctic…
Meal of Seal
By Ken Gosbell
Olympus O-MD EM-1 Mark II; Olympus 300mm f/4 lens handheld; 1/500s; f/6.3; ISO 200. Processed in Lightroom and converted to mono.
This was made when sailing around Svalbard in the Arctic. The bear was engrossed in eating the recently killed seal and took little notice of the ship or photographers.
Don’s response
The preoccupied Polar Bear working on its prey might have been a more confronting image were it rendered in full colour. The monochromatic treatment dials down the drama by making the moment more about the tonalities and composition.
Without the distraction of colour, the viewer is invited to consider this as a portrait of an individual rather than a ‘red in tooth and claw’ visual cliché.
