Interview with Stephen Krasemann

When Stephen Krasemann became a photographer in 1973, he gave himself only a few years to establish a career or move on. After landing his first job making short films for Sesame Street, Krasemann has gone on to become one of Canada's top photographers, winning the Missouri School of Journalism's Picture of the Year award four times in the Natural History category and category awards in the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition as well as being published around the world in magazines ranging from Vogue to National Wildlife.

		PHOTOGRAPHER Stephen Krasemann Stephen Krasemann_s love of nature and the outdoors stems from his childhood outings into the wilderness of the Thunder Bay region. Krasemann has published five photography books, but recently focused his attention on oil painting of the natural world which, he says, is an interesting challenge. Read more on the grizzlies at Fishing Branch river, photographed by Stephen Krasemann in the December 2008 issue of Canadian Geographic. To view more of Stephen Krasemann's work, visit: http://www.krasemannart.com/
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Q How did you get into this industry?

A I just went hog wild into it. I went to a camera store and told them to sell me a professional camera, a Pentax Spotmatic, and a lens.

Very early in my career, I started making movies for a television show called Sesame Street. I did 16 mm nature short films for them. I also started photographing rock 'n' roll acts in bars, people like Steve Miller and Boz Scaggs. I went on to be the publicity photographer for the 1976 Rolling Stones tour that came to North America. After that, I went into fashion, working for publications like Cosmopolitan, Vogue and Time Life Magazine, and became the publicity photographer for the movie Never Cry Wolf. Then I started to think that I would like to get into nature a little more. So I started doing assignments for Audubon and National Wildlife Magazine.

Q Working as the publicity photographer for the '76 Rolling Stones tour must have been exciting. Do you have any anecdotes from your time with the band?

A I do. The whole band and I went to a restaurant in Louisville, Kentucky, one night. At that time, Mick Jagger was just starting to get interested in art and the finer things in life, like wine. We asked the maitre d' what they had and he came over and said they had a bottle (three of them actually) that cost US $1,500. The maitre d' didn't think anything would come of it since we were just a bunch of scruffy rock-'n'-roller-types. Well, he came back to the table and Mick Jagger ordered all three bottles. The wine bill was US $4,500.

QI hope it was good wine!

AI couldn't tell the difference at that time in my life. I don't think very many people at the table could either (laughs).

QAfter your extensive work in the entertainment and fashion industries, what drew you to wildlife photography?

AMy grandfather was an avid fly fisherman and, when I was young, he would take me along with him. While he fished, I would roam around the woods. I spent my summers with him and he fostered in me a real love for the outdoors. Ultimately, I just wanted to find a way where I could make a living while spending a lot of time outdoors.

QWhy did you choose to go on a bear viewing expedition?

AI've always had to wrestle with working for publications that get people interested in going to these places. Sometimes they go and sort of overwhelm and ruin the area. It's something I've had to deal with my whole career. The Fishing Branch is a place I found out about ten to 12 years ago from a friend who found this small area in the Yukon where many bears congregate in the early part of winter to feed on salmon. These bears then go up into the mountains near the stream to hibernate. I was reluctant to publish these pictures anywhere until this area received some sort of protection. Now, it has received both government and First Nations interim protection and no one can go hunting. So, I thought the time was right to do an article on it.

QThere are many opinions concurring what's ethical in wildlife photography. What are your views?

AIn this situation, some of the bears are going to be bothered by you and not come around that particular area. Mind you, the area to view the bears is only about 182 meters long, out of about a 25 km stretch of river, and there are really only two places people can go to photograph. So, the bears are able to go around us.

With photography, at least you can photograph the animal again. When somebody's just looking for a rug, that bear is gone and will never be back at the river.

With photography, at least you can photograph the animal again. When somebody's just looking for a rug, that bear is gone and will never be back at the river.

QWhat makes you feel so strongly?

AWell, we're losing it all piece by piece. I've seen areas, over my time, that have lost wildlife, whether it's from people moving into the area or pressure from tourism. We don't seem to give animals very much status. I hope that changes some day.

QWhat equipment did you use on this expedition in the Yukon?

AThis is my first assignment using only digital cameras. I used Nikon digital cameras and a variety of lenses. I started this assignment with D200 cameras and I finished it this year with D300 cameras. My favourite lens, the one I've sort of made a whole career on and was wonderful for that assignment, is a Nikkor 200 mm to 400 mm. It's a zoom lens and probably the best all around for photographing wildlife. I certainly had shorter lenses to photograph the hibernation caves and used a Nikkor 18mm to 200mm.

There are over 20 den sites on the mountain across from Fishing Branch River that are all off limits to the general public. The First Nations owns the land on the other side of the river and prohibit anyone from going in those caves. I was granted permission to take the first professional photographs up there and it looks like maybe the last one for a while.

QSince you used telephoto lenses for this assignment, you must have been photographing the grizzlies from quite a distance. Did you ever get close to the bears?

AThat whole situation, there was not one whole step taken toward a bear. We were pretty much in one or two viewing places and we just let the bears come to us. We just kind of hunkered down on our knees up against the trees and in the bushes and the bear certainly knew we were there. They have better senses than we do. They just chose whether or not they were going to walk by us at that time.

QHow long did this assignment take you to complete?

AThe first year I started out on this assignment was in 2006. On the third day I was in, it started to rain and rain and rain. The river rose over 40 cm in a couple of days and the bears couldn't catch the salmon because the waters got too deep. So, I had to abort that year. I came back and the bulk of this assignment, the stuff that you're publishing, was taken from two trips in 2007.

QCan you describe a typical day during the expedition?

AYou get up in a very cold cabin because the fire has gone out in the night and put on your long underwear and all your clothes as quick as you can. Then, you hop outside and light a fire in the cookhouse and sit down and have a cup of coffee It's dark at that point. Often there will be a bear walking around outside or you can see it in the dim down by the river. As the daylight approaches we get our photo gear ready and head down to the river. And then we wait and wait and wait and sometimes a bear comes (laughs). We're all bundled up and our camera batteries and stuff like that are inside of our shirt to keep them warm. We usually have enough notice to photograph a bear since it's usually a good 90 to 180 meters away coming down the river.

QWhat makes you go to such extents, like venturing into the Arctic Circle for weeks at a time to photograph wildlife?

AI love it! When I'm out there in the bush, things are happening all around me. It's something we're losing and I may becoming the last generation able to make a living photographing wildlife. There's not much of that type of photography being published anymore. Canadian Geographic is one of the last publications that really gives good coverage of wildlife. It's become a very urbanized world. When I was born, there were only a billion and a half people in the whole world and now we're up over six billion.

There's a lot of misperceptions about bears, both with their temper and their behaviour. Many people wouldn't venture into a place like this and there are only four people allowed in the area at one time. The guide was very savvy and there was never a time when I felt a bear was being aggressive toward me.

QWas there a particularly special moment?

AWell, there was something that happened on my last visit to the Fishing Branch. There was a female with three cubs, which were little things, less than one metre tall with tiny legs. She had crossed the river and left her cubs on the other side. The female got about 90 metres away and, all of a sudden, just whirled around, huffed and puffed and ran back down to the river roaring as she went. As the guide and I turned to look down the river, we noticed that two wolves had come out of the bush and another three were trying to close in on those three cubs sitting on the riverbank. At the last moment, before these two wolves were able to get to them, the cubs dove into the river. The wolves, there were five of them at that point, luckily stopped on the shore, while the cubs were swimming across the river to mom. It was particularly poignant that the lead cub, with its little head sticking out of the water, turned to look back at the wolves to see if they were following. The cub led its two siblings across the river to mom, and the wolves just lay down on the riverbank and watched.

Interview by Michela Rosano.