Snow is falling in Fairbanks right now, and autumn drifted by a few strong weeks ago. The change of seasons brought this photo to mind. Some argue that Alaska has two seasons, some argue three, few argue four. Spring happens very fast, as does autumn, and the leaves can burst forth in spring faster than…
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Finding the all-round vehicle that suits multiple purposes, including photographic adventures, is not only difficult, but ultimately a compromise somewhere. I decided to own just one vehicle due to a proclivity towards minimalism (I’ll save breaking that rule for camera gear). In my search for a car there were a few important aspects I looked…
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At the turn of the last century, a very forward thinking man made some prophetic comments regarding Alaska’s beauty and economic future in these compelling remarks: “The Alaska coast is to become the show-place of the earth, and pilgrims, not only from the United States, but from far beyond the seas will throng in endless…
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The day the cell phone became more than a phone, is the day I started to desire one. The phone itself, is my least favorite part of the device. In a nutshell, the IPhone is a movement toward a micro computer, and as such, is host to an abundance of software applications spawned in our…
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What are the best night sky conditions in which to photograph the northern lights? It is a question that can be answered in variations, but I’ve resorted to the simplest answer…whenever the northern lights are visible! Brushing that comment aside, I really don’t think there are “best conditions”, it really depends on your interest. I’ve…
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A few comments about photographing white subjects in white environments; in particular the issue of exposure and post production adjustments in Lightroom 2.5. Let me first state that I’ve always utilized an expose-to-the-right shooting style (you can explore that concept on luminous-landscape if you are unfamiliar with it). To summarize that briefly, it is a…
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This is another frame taken on a recent Arctic photo tour that I co-guide with Hugh Rose. We expanded to two trips this year, due to increased interest. This female polar bear was looking pretty healthy, and had been feeding on carcasses left over from the Autumn Bowhead whale hunt in the native village of…
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In my observations and photography in nature, I consider the polar bear to be one of the most amazing animals, exhibiting tremendous adaptation which has made them fit for survival in a harsh climate. They are generally a solitary animal, with a tremendous range of up to 1000 miles. Much of their life on the…
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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…
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I’ve been posting a few photos and comments from a recent photo tour in Alaska’s arctic. Here is a link to a gallery of a few shots I quickly processed before heading back in the field for the second photo tour. http://alaskaphotographics.com/galleries/2009-photo-tour1/
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One of the beauties of photographing in Alaska in October is that the quality of light stays relatively warm and angle-appropriate for shooting most of the day. However, there is nothing quite as dynamic as the first and last light of any day. This shot was taken about 1 hour before actual sunset, but the…
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People have a keen interest in the Aurora borealis images, so I’m posting another one from my recent Arctic photo tour. We had unusually warm temperatures, and in some parts of Western Alaska, all time record high temps were set. This is usually not favorable, since the snow melts and things look pretty brown. However,…
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On the Arctic photo tour that I guide each year, our departure from Kaktovik, Alaska was delayed a few hours due to mechanical problems with the airplane. This resulted in a different plane showing up about three hours later. It was a Caravan, and the first time I’ve flown in one. It is a fantastic…
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Each October, my friend, colleague and fellow guide Hugh Rose and I lead a trip of intrepid photo enthusiasts into Alaska’s arctic to chase its magical light. The aurora borealis, polar bears, arctic wildlife and other grand landscapes prompt many shutter clicks. The sights vary every year, in an amazing diversity of subject material. However,…
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Polar bears congregate along Alaska’s north coast when the scent of the bowhead whale carcasses show up from the autumn indigenous whale hunts. Barter Island, located just off the Alaska mainland, is bordered by the Beaufort Sea to the north. It is growing in popularity as a destination to view polar bears, an amazing experience…
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Nellie Juan Glacier in western Prince William Sound is a magical place, and remains one of my favorite destinations in all my years of travel to the Sound. The Glacier is fed by the Sargent Ice Field above, and often harbors chilly winds that blown down over the ice and into the Lagoon. This day…
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Late September and early October bring the first snow to Fairbanks, generally. A light dusting on the trees which still retain a few of the autumn leaves offers a beautiful contrast of soft white and colorful autumn colors. This frame was taken in the undulating hills on the north west side of Fairbanks, just a…
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After waiting out a few days of rain in southcentral Alaska, I worked my way to the Harding Ice Field and Exit Glacier in Kenai Fjords National Park, on the Kenai Peninsula. The Exit Glacier flows out of the Harding Icefield, and terminates at a popular walk up viewing point accessible by road near Seward,…
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Turnagain Arm in south central Alaska is a shallow inlet which drains at low tide to reveal an ever changing landscape of channels in the mud and silt. Surrounded by the Chugach mountains, there are many picturesque views along the rather busy Seward Highway, which borders the Arm. At sunrise one morning in September, I…
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On a short excursion in Prince William Sound (courtesy of Discovery Voyages), a group of us basked in the sunshine on a tremendous hike through the lush and verdant hillsides of Western Prince William Sound and the Chugach National Forest. It was an area I longed to trek in given a clear day. The granite…
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Winter is pressing in quickly on the Alaska landscape. I’ve been chasing the autumn remnants to the south, as snow falls on the high country across the state. Along this journey, I did a small day hike at the X-Y lake trail near Talkeetna about a week ago. The colors there were still rich, as…
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There are two summits on Denali, or Mt. McKinley, the north and the south. The South Summit is the higher one (20,320 ft), while the North Summit has an elevation of 19,470 feet. You can see the South Summit clearly in the view, taken from the McKinley overlook along the Parks highway (note the north summit…
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This is shot is mostly luck mixed with a little bit of perseverance. First of all the mountain often clouds over as the day progresses and if it does not, it tends to be very hazy by this time of day. It was noon when I shot the frame, and thanks to the amazing clarity…
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On my late August trip to Denali Park, I decided to focus primarily on landscapes, since I was getting around on a bike and on foot. However, I did spend one cloudy afternoon in the pursuit of caribou. I spotted this bull some distance away and started trekking up the tundra hillside with my new…
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The monolithic mass of Denali, North America’s tallest mountain seems to have a million faces. I’ve photographed it hundreds of times, from many different locations, on the ground and from the air. It looks different from every view and the weather it generates surrounds it with an array of ever changing clouds. In early September…
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