RUNNER-UP HUMAN AND NATURE
David Hup | Unusual visitor

Name: David Hup
Picture title: Unusual Visitor
Category: Man and nature
Nationality: The Netherlands
Occupation: Part-time. I love doing photography projects and i spend a lot of time searching, and telling stories. Besides my job as photographer i also work as entrepreneur in CPR education.

Technical information
Camera: Nikon D4 
Lens: 70-200mm f/2.8
EXIF: 1/200 sec at f/3.2 iso 6400
Accessories: The ambiance of the photo is very studio-like, but i used only the environmental light of the cars and flashlights. That makes the picture special for me.

David Hup says:

A small town located in the Carpathian Mountains, Romania, has an unusual visitor. When the night falls and the streets become silent, brown bears take over the streets to find food. In Transylvania, Romania, there is a large population of brown bears and while their habitat shrinks, they are forced to search elsewhere. This ultimately results in conflicts between man and bear.

The first time visiting Romania I instantly became obsessed with bears. Back home I started doing more research, I contacted the locals and planned my next visit. This is when I began to hear more and more absurd stories about bears. I found out about a campsite where bears come out of the forests to find food, tilt bins and are fed by locals for entertainment. When I arrived all my expectations about this place were surpassed: it was a complete madhouse!

Dozens of locals drinking beer, waiting for the sun to set and the bears to come out. Surveillance in their cars to find the bears, screaming, shouting and lighting fireworks. I was overwhelmed by everything that happened. Over the years I went back to the same campsite and one night everything came together. The cars in the background, the people next to me who shine their flashlights and a beautiful bear who model-like tilts an overloaded bin. It created the perfect studio setting for me.

By now I have visited Romania five times and I will continue to come back. The relationship between Romanians and these large carnivores has a rich history and this tradition is unique to the country. This single photograph is part of a huge collection I’ve built over the last years, trying to tell and document this amazing story. Every time the story evolves and grows, I discover new aspects I want to share with the world!