Brooks Falls, Alaska is the stuff of dreams for wildlife photographers. First put on my radar by an image by Thomas Mangelsen from 1988 called “Catch of the Day” (you’ve probably seen it), this place was on my bucket list before I knew what a bucket list was. It was a place I simply had to see with my own eyes. I had heard stories of dozens of behemoth brown bears fishing for the abundant salmon, which jumped up the falls into their waiting mouths. It turned out the stories were true, and I finally had the opportunity to go see it for myself in the summer of 2022. This shot was an emotional one for me, as it surpassed my secret hopes for the kind of image I might be able to come home with.