This female moose is beautifully positioned for photography. The early morning light was coming from the side, abstracting her body, yet rimming it with light, and causing the water pouring out her mouth to seem translucent. The sun also catches the autumn colors of the reeds and grasses, making them brilliant reddish orange. We spent about fifteen minutes with this moose while she drank her fill. Of all the images I made of her (and I made about 50) this one seizes the most expressive moment in time. Her body is turned slightly away from me, yet I can see all of her. She steps forward into the water, making a small splash with her left front foot. A steady flow of drops pour from her mouth – moose don’t swallow all they take. Her ears are up and alert. On the underside of her rear leg, we can see the glow of reflected reddish light from the sun bouncing off the reddish grasses. Her head leads us directly in to the mass of golden plants just across the water, as well as their reflection. If I had had asked her to pose for this shot, she could not have done better for me. A moment in time such as this one comes along once every few years for any given photographer. To receive two such moments in time (this and the rutting elk image) within just two days was very unusual and much appreciated.