Photography

Black Angus in Alaska and Canon G1X vs. Lumix GF1.

Alaska, Black & White, Photography, Portraits

Last semester I started following a local farmer who raises Black Angus cattle here in Fairbanks. The following is Stacy Hansen of Midstate Meats, cleaning one of the cattle just after it is drained of blood.

Please click on the image to view full size.

I’m debating a new small digital camera, and so far the two contenders are a Canon G1X or a Lumix GF1. The G1x is $799, the Lumix is discontinued, new units can still be found, but for a price.

The G1X is a sealed point-and-shoot with full manual controls and manual focus through live view. The lens has a 4x zoom, and operable aperture from 2.8-5.6. The biggest advantage of the  G1X is the large, almost APS-C sized sensor, allowing noise-free pictures at ever higher ISO. The sealed body also means you will never get dust on the sensor.

The Lumix uses a slightly smaller Micro Four-Thirds sensor which will mean more noise (the digital equivalent of grain) at a higher ISO. On the flip side it has an interchangeable lens with an aperture opening to 1.7 allowing more light in. Both cameras cater to the higher end user, with near-digital SLR capabilities. When it comes down to it I find myself debating what I want in a lens.

A first, first Friday. “Raindrops and Spirits.”

Alaska, Arts, Black & White, Film, Landscapes, Photography, Travel

After a few years of persuasion from local photographers, April 6, 2012 I will be holding my first solo show at Frank’s Menswear, downtown Fairbanks, on 2nd Ave. The show, titled “Raindrops and Spirits” will be around 15, 8×10 in. silver-gelatin darkroom prints, taken at various locations around Alaska including Fairbanks, Homer and Kennicott. It’s very exciting to know my work will hang on the walls of a business for a month, and hopefully it will lead many more shows at many venues, as well as a few print sales.

People play an important role in the theme of my show, the absence of people equally important as the inclusion. The title is derived from the following image, which features a blur in the lower left-hand corner. People often ask me what caused it, and I reply with “A raindrop on the lens.” But having a vivid imagination I often like to think it’s something more, in this case the apparition of a forgotten worker from the mine, wandering the grounds he calls home.

Please click on image to view full size.

Rain Apparition

Valdez Harbor and Trans-Alaska Pipeline Storage Tanks

Alaska, Black & White, Film, Landscapes, Photography, Travel

While doing some back editing I realized I have a fair amount of work from a few trips to Valdez last summer. Valdez is the northern-most ice free harbor in the U.S. and is home to the terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline.

Seen here from across the bay, on a rare sunny day in Valdez, are the storage tanks for the oil that continues to flow through the pipeline 35 years after it was first pumped. According to valdezalaska.org there are 18 crude-oil tanks, each capable of holding 510,000 barrels of crude, for a total of 9.18 million barrels. While not nearly at peak production the pipeline still proves to be a vital portion of Alaska’s economy. Watch where you’re boating, if you enter the restricted area around the storage tanks you can be fined up to $32,500 and lose your boat.

This next image is simply Valdez harbor with mountains in the background.

Drosselmeyer and his clock.

Alaska, Arts, Black & White, Film, Photography, Portraits

Drosselmeyer is the magical character who gives Clara the nutcracker doll which allows her to visit the Land of the Sweets in Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. Jim Baird currently inherits the role of Drosselmeyer in North Star Ballet’s production. Here he is on set, next to the clock which he uses to magically enter and leave scenes.

JIm Beard as Drosselmeyer, Dec. 2010.

Ron Paul in Fairbanks, Alaska

Alaska, Black & White, Film, Photography, Portraits

Ron Paul became the only presidential candidate to visit Alaska today with trips to Fairbanks and Anchorage. He spoke to a full house at the Westmark Gold Room for near an hour. My first opportunity to shoot such a large profile figure, what I expected to be slow, possibly even mundane turned out to be a bit of a scramble. In retrospect it was silly to think it would be slow. Moments are unexpected, crowds are alive and energy bounces off the walls. As always keeping the shutter clicking and working the scene were the most important things. There’s no way I would have passed up the opportunity without shooting some film, and shot two rolls of 120 on my Hassleblad. It was dark and hard to focus and obviously limited opportunities, though I feel some of my best shots were on film. Here’s one of those. Check back often this week as I have lots of posts lined up covering many subjects.

Lake Washington, panoramic and a spider.

Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Wildlife

My parents are currently visiting my grandma on the shores of Lake Washington. Since I wasn’t able to make it down on this trip I figured I should post some pictures from last time I was in the area. Maybe they will find their way to my relatives.

Lake Washington and spider

I was only in town for a few days, but caught gorgeous fall weather, allowing me to take this picture of a large orb weaver silhouetted by the setting suns reflection.

Lake Washington panorama

I also took the opportunity to take a panorama. These are very easy to create, simply shoot multiple images, select them all in a viewing application such as Bridge, and choose photo merge. It’s amazing how good the program is at combining images. Unfortunately I didn’t overlap a few images enough and lost a few frames, so overlap significantly.

Fishy Inspiration

Alaska, Arts, Photography, Portraits

Artists find inspiration from many venues. Other art, personal visions, but most often from the world around them. Henry David Thoreau wrote about the trails he frequented, Warhol made designs from unavoidable pop culture and Bradford Washburn photographed the mountains he loved so much. It’s easy to tell where my cousin Iris Sutton gets her inspiration. Her large scale paintings with vivid colors of Alaska landscapes, animals and mushing culture hark to the raw beauty and grandeur of Alaska. A finisher of the Yukon Quest, she was chosen in 2012 to make the poster artwork.

Fish, long a common theme for Alaska art, surfaced in one of her recent paintings. A subject I also look to for inspiration, as well as sustenance. Here is Iris with her painting of salmon hanging, and a picture of salmon hanging before the smoking process.

Everyone dances

Alaska, Arts, Black & White, Photography, Portraits, Wildlife

While down in Anchorage photographing a character study of Sue Perry, a seamstress making costumes for Alaska Dance Theater’s production of Othello, I took some time off to photograph rehearsals. The fluid movements and long extensions often seen in ballet were there, but wonderfully contrasted with sharp, edgy lines and tense, jerky motions showing both internal and external character struggle. I was lucky enough to have my telephoto on when through the window I caught raven making his own graceful movements. I couldn’t find the mythological view of ravens as tricksters, shape shifters and on rare occasions sinister, more fitting while looking at the dancers practice this dark play penned by Shakespeare. Sometimes life shows true serendipity.

Denali at dusk

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography

After one of the coldest winters I can remember, including the 5th coldest January on record, February has started off with temperatures hovering around the freezing mark. Needless to say a wonderful change. Not only is it warmer but the light is coming back, making it all around a much more enjoyable place to call home. One can not forget that it is still winter, and temperatures could easily plunge far below zero. Here is a picture I took November 18, 2011, a day we set a record at 41 below zero.  The foreground of Fairbanks city lights are back-dropped by Denali, the tallest peak in North America. Cheers to summer.

Denali background and city lights, November 18, 2011.