Below you'll find a list of all posts from January, 2011
Along the wharf, San Francisco, California.
We are working hard to keyword / edit / adjust our photos from our fall trip, so I thought I would share a few new ones.
Here is another one from San Francisco. Thanks to 80 degree plus temperatures, this area was packed with visitors and locals most of the day. But, as busy as this place was during the day, I was surprised at just how quite and peaceful it was at sunrise.
Our tour at our first night anchorage in front of Aialik Glacier, Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska.
I have had a number of inquires, and can now finally say I have my dates for next summers overnight photo tour into Kenai Fjords National Park!
This was our boat at anchor the first night of last years tour. The boat will look a little different next year thanks to the addition of a second sleeping cabin to the back half – although I’m not increasing the number of participants, so this should give everyone a bit more room and privacy.
Let me tell you a bit about last years tour to give you an idea as to how amazing this trip is. On the first day, we spent some time with a group of sea otters and then we explored along the coast getting up-close to waterfalls and amazing pinnacle rock and arch formations before finally running into a group of humpbacks We spent a fair amount of time with the humpbacks, then broke away for some harbor seals and finally a nice pod of dolphin – the dolphins played in our bow wave for a pretty long time. Later that day we checked out the action at Holgate Glacier, an active tide water glacier, before deciding to anchor for the evening in front of Aialik Glacier – this evening we spotted a black bear on shore and saw some huge calving events on the face of the glacier including one of the biggest ones I have ever seen! That is the beauty of spending time in such an amazing place! No one wanted to go to bed in case they might miss something.
The next morning we went to shore and explored a number of lagoons and open fields where we not only saw a number of eagles, but were able to photograph a nice black bear. After going back to the boat for a warm lunch, we motored over to the Northwestern Fjords where our captain placed the bow of the boat at the bottom of a waterfall – an amazing waterfall that tumbled in multiple places down a 1,000 shear granite wall! We spent the night well in the Northwestern Fjord in direct site of a couple dramatic glaciers.
For the third day we went out to the Chiswell Islands and photographed puffin and other sea birds. We took a detour thanks to a report of orcas, but weren’t able to find them. But we did see a number of sea lion rookeries and haul outs, more eagles and sea otters, as we cut across and worked our way along the dramatic coastline of the East shore of Resurrection Bay.
Every trip will be a bit different thanks in part to our Captain and his many many years of boating /leading tours and working with wildlife researchers in the area. He will be in touch with the other day tour boats so we will have a good feel for where the wildlife is at any given time – but, we can enjoy it in the nice evening and morning light when all the people are gone!
You can learn much more about this trip on our Kenai Fjords National Park Photo Tour page. Last year this tour didn’t fill until spring, but given how much faster the bear photo tours filled this year (they filled in about a month despite more then doubling the number), I wouldn’t wait. If you have more questions, feel free to send us an email or give us a call.
Outdoor Photographer feature pages 1 and 2
Outdoor Photographer feature pages 3 and 4.
Outdoor Photographer feature pages 5 and 6.
This is some exciting news I have been really eager to share – I have been featured in the February 2011 issue of the foremost magazine for outdoor photographers – Outdoor Photographer! I started subscribing to the magazine about 15 years ago when I decided to get back into photography and started shopping for a new auto-focus camera. So to now be featured is really coming full circle! It is a wonderful honor that I am very proud of.
The article isn’t just about me, but my recommendations on a visit to Alaska, and even a bit on the above / below water photos I have shared here on the photo blog. If you don’t subscribe, you can read a version of the article here. But better yet purchase a copy at a local book store! Judging from the really nice congratulation comments I have been receiving via email, Facebook and Twitter, I would say it has been available in the Lower 48 for a week or two. I haven’t received my copy yet in Alaska, nor have I been able to find it in any stores, but it should be arriving soon.
All of the credit for this article goes to Jeff Wignall. He approached me with the idea and then did all the work, I am really grateful to Jeff for doing such a great job. If you are not familiar with Jeff Wignall, he has to be the most prolific and successful photography writer of all time. He has a huge number of book titles, and I believe at least one of his Kodak books on photography sold well over a million copies. In addition to books, he has his own radio show, is a monthly contributor to Popular Photography and regularly featured in other magazines and blogs. To learn more about Jeff, take a look at his website: Jeff Wignall, also check out Jeff Wignall’s blog. Thanks Jeff!
Last Spring, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California.
I was somewhat encouraged this fall when I saw just how green much of the desert southwest was including the Anza-Borrego region. On my favorite running trail in Coyote Canyon I noticed that there were already some nice patches of wildflowers and that was in mid November! But, I didn’t want to get too excited – I know, that along with October rain, you need December / January rains along with a bunch of other factors, some understood, and some not, in order to have a great wildflower year.
Well, Anza-Borrego has received a ton of rain recently – over 2 inches in one storm before Christmas, a tad more after Christmas and even a little bit more in January. Last year was also wet, but unusually cold weather stunted and delayed the annual wildflower show. With a La Nina condition this year, unseasonably warm weather might also be a risk, but I am guarded optimistic. That said, we have the making of what could potentially be a really good year in Anza-Borrego!
I mention this in part to say, hey, you might want to consider my Anza-Borrego photography workshop. I will be arriving in the area in early February, and will have the best locations well scouted out by the time the workshops roll around, and we already have people signed up for both weekends. Considering last year both sold out – so you might want to consider a weekend workshop.
I have been quietly working away for the past year at learning what I believe could be a new business opportunity – 3D Video. With the likes of ESPN and Discovery coming out with 3D channels this year, I think there could be a fair amount of demand for such material. The new methods for viewing 3D video have come a long ways since the days of the red / cyan glasses.
Well, I was able to go about it quietly in Alaska last spring and summer, but not so much on this trip last fall. I like to blend in while I do travel photography, but my elaborate setup of multiple cameras seemed to draw a lot of attention. People would ask questions and even take photos of me at work, it was not how I like to work.
Now you need red / cyan glasses to view the attached video, and even at that, it isn’t all that good. You see the red / cyan does not allow for as much 3D effect as the new methods, and works terrible on red colored subjects or contrasty night scenes, like many in this video. But for many people this might be the only way to see it – and I’m guessing most people don’t even have those types of glasses.
Fortunately, as of yesterday Nvidia has decided to include my video on their 3D Video Live website! So, if you have a 3D monitor or TV that uses the Nvidia active 3D glasses, you can view the video in full color and 3D! Right now my video is at the top of page two here: 3D Vision Live The thumbnail for that video is of the Golden Gate Bridge and is labeled Wild Nature Images.
To read a bit more you can check out our page for 3D HD Video.
As far as the process goes, I can say it has involved a lot of time and some expensive software and hardware and a bit of a proprietary process that I won’t get into now, but maybe in the future.
Well for the third year in a row I thought I would post my 10 favorite photos of the year. I rarely spend much time looking back, so it is kind of fun to take pause and look back on the past year. I’m always surprised as to how many amazing places and wonderful sights we are blessed to see each year!
I actually owe photographer Jim Goldstein for this idea. As a side note, Jim is a former Alaskan who I have known through telephone conversations and on-line interactions for many years – I finally had the pleasure to meet him in person this past fall in San Francisco.
So, without further a due, here are my favorites from the year and why:
Kayaking in Bear Lagoon, Kenai Fjords National Park, near Seward, Alaska.
To appreciate the size of this iceberg and to get a feel for what an amazing place this is, click on the thumbnail and check out the kayaker. This was probably the most exciting experience of the year, and to think, this amazing place is less the 20 miles from our house. I will definitely be returning to this area in 2011, but this year we will be spending the night – and maybe a couple.
Two large bull moose in front of Mt. Mc Kinley, Denali National Park, Alaska.
Just seeing “The Mountain” (Mt. McKinley) is a treat, as is seeing a huge bull moose. To get both at the same time was a dream come true!
Wave formation, Valley of Fire State Park, Nevada.
This was an exciting discovery in one of my favorite State Parks. Valley of the Fire is another place I would like to spend a lot more time exploring.
Wild lynx, Denali National Park, Alaska.
Hey, any time I get a photo of such a rare and elusive animal, it is going to make my list. This year I was lucky enough to get a few! With the snowshoe hare population crashing last year, if history is any indicator, the lynx population should be following suit and it may be years before such rare animals are spotted much again. It has been such a treat to catch an occasional glimpse and photo of these guys – even in peak years, they are very hard to find.
Spring bear cub, Lake Clark National Park, Alaska.
I posted a variation to this cute little guy here on the photo blog last summer. On that one, his paw covered both eyes and it looked like he was fighting a headache, or trying to deal with the stresses of life. This version is a little “cuter” as it looks like he is kind of peaking out from behind his hand. I’m really excited about spending a week with these bears next summer!
Tram at the City Center, Las Vegas, Nevada.
Well I do a fair amount of travel photography, so I had to have photos of the 11 billion dollar (that is right, billion with a b!) City Center once it was completed. Since we did seem to spend a fair amount of time in that area, I had to pick one of those photos – this one is my favorite – it looks kinda futuristic.
Wildflowers, Tonto National Forest, not far from Phoenix, Arizona.
Last year was a wonderful year for desert wildflowers, especially in Arizona. We spent 6 weeks chasing them, so I definitely wanted to include one on this list, but had a very tough time choosing just one.
Snowy trees, Chugach National Forest, Alaska.
I captured this one just last week on Christmas day. I’m glad I did because we now have had a few days of temperatures in the 40’s and rain which has pretty much put a dent in all our beautiful snow.
A homeless man sleeps in front of a photo of a glamorous model, San Francisco, California.
I was able to capture a fair number of nice image of the San Francisco area that are likely fairly marketable. This one probably has little value as a stock photo, but it is my favorite from San Francisco.
Lightning, Las Vegas, Nevada.
This lightning storm was some sight to see, and a real treat for me as we rarely see lightning on the coast here in Alaska. I kind of wished I had been in a more interesting place then a RV Park, but it was still cool.
Some honorable mentions. These is no reason I shouldn’t be able to narrow this list down to 10 – but, photographers are usually poor editors, and I know I am. So here are a few others that I just couldn’t keep out!
A few other Seward, Alaska photos I considered:
Moon over Resurrection River, Seward, Alaska.
This was going to be my winter photo for the top 10 list – that was until my winter images from last week.
Horseback riding, Seward, Alaska.
A few more Arizona wildflowers that almost made the list:
Sabino Canyon, Tucson, Arizona.
Tonto National Forest, Arizona.
Bartlett Lake, Arizona.
Black Hills, Arizona.
I had a lot of success with wild wolves in Denali this summer including a multi day stretch with cool wolf encounters every day – that is an amazing treat!
OK, that is it! Sorry to my other wolf, whale, landscape and San Francisco photos, I’m drawing the line. 🙂
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