Nature photography and outdoor destination marketing
– Jo Walton
Good advice.
Thanks to Ann-Christine of the Leya blog for this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, Illustrate a Favorite Quote or Poem.
When Patti announced “Last Chance”, our unpublished favorites from 2022 as last week’s Lens- Artist’s Photo Challenge, I knew I had an embarrassment of riches. Since I took a long hiatus from my blog this year, I had way too many favorites for one post. Since I spend about half the year down south housesitting and the other half home in Alaska, it seemed like an easy way to solve my dilemma would be to split my images into two installments. Last week’s post was “Below the 49th Parallel,” and I’m happy to share my Northland favorites this week.
Any roundup of the Rambling Ranger’s favorites would have to include a flower pic or two. My favorites this year were all taken in ponds along the McCarthy Road. My very favorite flower pic of the year I shared a couple of weeks ago in my “Patterns” post, Bog Beans and their shadows. I mentioned in that post that the flowers were exquisite when viewed up close, so here’s a closer view. My other flower pic is a combination lily shot, both Pond Lilies and Water Lilies growing together. Technically it’s a little messy and maybe not one of my best, but this post is about favorites, not bestest, right? Although sometimes they’re one and the same…
I took a one-day photo workshop through the Wrangell Mountains Center with Paul Scannell and Anna Mikuskova. One of our exercises was to each pick a piece of paper out of a hat, with an intangible concept written on it, then go out and shoot that concept. We were given 15 or 20 minutes to complete the assignment. My concept was “rebirth.” I shared a different image with the group that better illustrated rebirth, but this image was my favorite from that exercise.
Since I spend most of my spare time at home working on the homestead, that’s where a lot of my favorites come from. I thought I’d try a square format on this image.
This B&W image is my very favorite part of the view from my front porch. I don’t know of anyone who has the view of this ridgeline that I do, and in my opinion, it’s one of the most amazing views in the Wrangells. And get this – none of those white mountains even has a name, not even the real high one lost in the clouds. That’s how wild this place is! The dark mountain in front is Mt. Donaho, which blocks this ridgeline from most of my neighbors’ properties.
The last shot I’m including from the homestead is my favorite aspen tree, the one right outside my front door. The fall colors were fabulous this year.
I spent a little time this fall at the toe of the Kennicott Glacier, less than a mile from McCarthy. It’s an interesting place to be. With global climate change and the glacier melting, the lake at the toe gets bigger all the time. The Kennicott Glacier has a surface moraine and is covered with debris. That ice is moving a lot of rock! Any image you take here is ephemeral. It will definitely look different a year or two from now. Here’s the face of the glacier with some of the surrounding mountains.
I try to make a fall road trip on the Denali Highway every year if I can. This year I went for it, even though the weather was dismal when I left McCarthy. On my first night out, it poured buckets. The forecast called for more rain, but surprisingly, the morning dawned bluebird. I got the best views I have ever seen of Mt. Deborah and Mt. Hayes. Meanwhile, back in McCarthy, it dumped inches. It rained so hard it washed everyone in Kennecott’s water systems out of National Creek, including the Park Service’s! So glad I made the road trip! The feature shot is of the Susitna River with Deborah and Hayes dominating the view.
One of my Northland favorites from that trip became a favorite during post-processing, when I noticed a grizzly bear in the photo. I didn’t see it when I took the picture! It’s over a quarter mile away, in the center of the photo, before the line of trees. Look for the light spot. Fall can be a scary time for a bear encounter in Alaska. They match the fall colors and can be hard to spot.
My last Northland favorite is from Canada’s Cassiar Highway. I camped at a remote lake, where I witnessed possibly the most colorful sunset/sunrise cycle I’ve ever seen. Both sunrise and sunset morphed through every color imaginable, from gold to orange to red to purple to pink. And it was completely still. Incredible reflections and color combos. I couldn’t pick a favorite shot, but this is one of them.
What fabulous images will the New Year bring? I can’t wait to find out!
Light. Sight. Painting with light. The art of seeing. Hallelujah, I have seen the light! That’s what photography is all about, right? The art of using light, especially natural light, to share your vision with others so that they may see the light, too.
Come take a journey with me, up and down the California coast chasing that beautiful natural light. Some times of day are better than others, but we’ll be out at all hours of the day, as every kind of light can capture some mood or be best for a certain subject.
We’ll start at dawn. I’m not much of one for getting up early, so it’s an effort, but it’s worth it. No, don’t roll over and go back to sleep because you peeked out and it was foggy. The soft light captured in those early morning mists can transform the mundane into the sublime.
Stormy days are no reason to stay inside, either. Before long, you may find that many of your most dramatic images were taken on bad weather days. Check out my opening wave for another example.
Besides, you’ll never catch a rainbow without a little rain!
Calm, cloudy days are wonderful for flowers, animals, forest and beachcombing shots. Colors are richer and harsh shadows are eliminated.
Partly cloudy days are good times to learn patience and watch the light change with each passing cloud. You can capture the same scene in many different moods by just staying put and seeing how the constantly changing light transforms your subject.
Bright sun is not my favorite lighting. It works well for some scenes with bright colors and bold contrasts. If you have to pick a time of day to catch some lunch, recharge batteries and catch up on the internet, chose the middle of the day. Sometimes, though, you have to just use what you got and make the best of it as I tried to do with this image of elephant seals at Piedras Blancas Wildlife Reserve.
Bright sun is also good for backlighting, especially during the golden hour.
That’s the golden hour of late afternoon light, followed closely by sunset. My favorite time of day, since I’m a lazy slacker who doesn’t like getting up early in the morning.
It’s not over ’til it’s over. Even if it’s cloudy and you don’t think a sunset is going to happen, the sun may break through at the last minute and reward you with something special. Follow that sunset from the first warm colors to the last.
To the last minute and then some, capturing the last glimmers of natural light deep into the dusk.
Thank you, Amy of The World Is A Book, for bringing us this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, Natural Light.
Opening shot: Solitude at Sunset by the Seaside
For this week’s Lens-Artists Photo Challenge, Patti @ Pilotfishblog asks, “What images can you find that feature a subject that begins with the letter S? For an added challenge, capture an image that illustrates a concept with the letter S, such as serene, sharp, spooky, or silent.” So, see if I have succeeded!
Sayonara!