Alaska’s long season
Along the Dalton Highway, there are many names given for features of the road itself, or geographic references along the way. One is called Gobbler’s Knob, which is just south of Coldfoot and it offers a spectacular view of the foothills of the Brooks Range mountains to the north. I took this frame from that…
This was the view from my office a few days ago. Some recent winds in the hills surrounding Fairbanks has shaken all the snow off the slender branches of the deciduous trees. The birch tree seeds and some errant dried leaves lay on the snowy surface and a fresh snowfall is needed to restore the…
I took this photo on Sunday afternoon at 3:16pm, and it reveals the very last hint of light falling on the mountains about 50 miles north of the Arctic Circle. The sun will be gone in a day or so and won’t appear again until sometime in later January. The colors in the sky at…
ATT 2011 Calendar For 25 years AT&T has had a tradition of publishing a calendar that is distributed freely (and download-able as a screen saver–I’ll share that link when it is available). I’ve had my work selected for some of those calendars, and this year, they took a slightly different angle by selecting a wildlife…
I just took this photo of a beautiful sunrise over the Alaska Range, from my house in Fairbanks. Actually, I was in my house when I took it. Another reason why I like winter so much. It was minus 7 degrees at my house and a little colder in downtown Fairbanks. Sunrises this time of…
One element of winter that I really enjoy in Fairbanks, Alaska is the frosted trees of the boreal forest that surrounds my home and office. Depending on temperatures and humidity, the frost can form in large clusters, and mix that with a little light and color and you have a very beautiful scene. This week…
Before leaving for another 10 day venture in the arctic, here is one photo taken during my previous trip last week, late one evening when the aurora spilled across the sky. It was taken about 2:00am, in the Brooks Range, on a nearly new moon evening. In retrospect I would have shortened the exposure a…
The arctic photo tour I’m guiding was off to a good start on the first evening as clear skies eventually revealed some aurora activity. What was particularly interesting about the display was not it’s brightness but rather the color reflection in the Koyukuk river. It’s been a busy few days and hopes are high for…
Every year in early October I co-guide a photo tour to Alaska’s arctic with friend and colleague Hugh Rose. We do two trips back to back actually, taking 8 photo and nature enthusiasts on a venture for the magic of the emerging arctic winter. While we are omnivorous regarding subject material, the aurora borealis, polar…
According to my GPS coordinates for Barter Island, Alaska on Oct 12, 2009, the maximum high angle of the sun is a mere 9 degrees. This is part of the magic of the arctic at this time of year, having a low angle of light for the entire day of shooting. However, photos can continue…