Ashleigh went to Alaska intent on photographing brown bears as families. This was the moment she had been waiting for, a mother leading two cubs across the beach. One of them wanted to stay and play. ‘I fell in love with brown bears on this trip,’ says Ashleigh. ‘They are so similar to humans.’
Brown bears are usually solitary, but there is a strong bond between mother and cubs. The young bears stay with their mother for two to three years, learning what to eat, and how to look after themselves. Large numbers of bears follow the plentiful food supplies available here in summer, feasting like this family, on clams, salmon and berries.
USA
Ashleigh has been photographing wildlife since she was eight years old. She particularly likes to photograph predators, including red foxes, coyotes, bears and large wild cats such as mountain lions, lions and cheetahs. Her wildlife photography focus has been on images that tell a story and give the viewer a sense of an animal's unique behaviour and family unit dynamics.
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