Music Monday: Steve Brown and the Bailers at the UAF Pub

Alaska, Black & White, Music, Photography, Portraits

Fairbanks-based rockabilly band Steve Brown and The Bailers will perform at the UAF Pub this Saturday, March 30, 2013. Here’s a great show poster created by Sue Sprinkle of 5th Avenue Design & Graphics.

Their most recent show was also at UAF’s Pub, February 24. After helping set up microphones and patch them into the snake I hung around to dance and photograph.

I’ll be the first to admit, this isn’t my finest edit. First off, none of my images are exceptionally sharp, rather they’re quite fuzzy. Second, either I misplaced, or didn’t even shoot RAW images, so my hack-job edit today was of small, unforgiving JPEGs.

For those who don’t know, a RAW image is 16-bits per color, uncompressed and the complete, unaltered file captured by the camera. In comparison, JPEGs are an 8-bit, compressed file. While a RAW file can be many-times bigger then a JPEG, the nature of the file allows for digital manipulation without altering the pixels. There are drawbacks other then large file sizes, but for all intensive purposes, shoot RAW.

Hope you enjoy!

Steve Brown and the Bailers at the UAF Pub, Feb. 24, 2013.

Steve Brown and Robin Fienman on guitar and vocals sing together February 24, 2013.

With their groovy melodies, expert playing and relatable lyrics, Steve Brown and the Bailers inspire a dance floor of all ages and abilities

Making sure everyone hits the last note of the night together.

Making sure everyone hits the night’s last note together.

Fine Art Friday: World Water Day

Photography, Uncategorized

It’s another inaugural themed post, “Fine Art Friday.” Today I’m combining it with World Water Day. Since 1993 World Water Day has advocated for the sustainable management of freshwater resources and brought attention to the importance of freshwater.

World Water Day was brought to my attention by fellow blogger FrizzText, who linked to a lovely collection of water-related photos assembled by boston.com. It even includes an night shot from the 2012 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race of a racer collecting snow to melt.

Musher Bill Pinkham collects hot water during his stop in Takotna, Alaska, during the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on March 7, 2012. (Marc Lester/Anchorage Daily News/Associated Press)

My World Water Day image is of unwanted water. It’s springtime, and more then a few structures at UAF have leaky roofs. At the Fine Arts Complex – hence the relation to Fine Art Friday – the rhythmic drip-drop of water leaching into the building did a good job distracting from class.

Ripples radiate on a window sill in UAF’s Fine Art Complex during a warm March afternoon. March 8, 2013.

Sporting Thursday: Snowshoe Hair tracks and a Geocache.

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Wildlife

Cross-country skiing, either skate or classic, is a great way to exercise and get outside during the long Alaskan winters. Sticking to a groomed trail or breaking your own through the woods both provide ample opportunities for fun sights.

A trip on March 13, traversing trails just north of Fairbanks from my house to a friend’s, had a few hidden surprises.

While stopped to discuss which direction to go I spotted some snowshoe hair tracks off the trail. My shadow provides a little perspective while some unidentified tracks disappear off frame.

Snowshoe hair tracks and shadow.

From there we followed what appeared to be a well-tracked snowmachine trail. While continuing to appear well traveled, it quickly delved into a walking only trail, then abruptly stopped in a clearing. Again, while debating our next move, I glanced around, noticing a cache in snow.

After a brief inspection it was discovered to be a geocache. Geocaching is a global game where people upload the longitude and latitude of a cache online for others to find. Inside was a variety of objects: a pipe cutter, crayons, paint, playing cards, a Pez dispenser and a mosquito net to name a few. The rules simply state if you take something you must leave something.

Glad our lives didn’t depend on the contents.

We fell under the “found by accident” category.

The ski was close to 10 miles, and that worked up an appetite. So to finish off “Sporting Thursday” is a picture of a fellow winter adventurer captured while waiting for pizza.

A winter biker casts a long shadow outside Corner Campus Mall, March 13, 2013.

Music Monday: Nor’easter, With Video.

Alaska, Black & White, Music, Photography, Portraits

Boston-based band Nor’easter, founded by Max Newman of Fairbanks, spent some time sharing music in the KUAC studios Feb. 1, 2013. This contra-dance band features Max Newman on guitar and mandolin, Cedar Stanistreet on fiddle and Julie Vallimont on piano and accordion.

Being a band with Alaska roots, Nor’easter got the filming treatment during their Alaska Live session, which I will embed at the end of this post. Want more? Check out their full Alaska Live podcast.

It’s evident they have fun sharing their music, which indeed induces foot tapping.

2013 GCI Open North American Championships.

Alaska, Landscapes, Photography, Sports

The GCI Open North American Championship is a three-day dog-sled race, that starts and finishes in downtown Fairbanks. The course takes leads them to the Chena River and Noyes Slough before depositing racers into the extensive trail network north of Fairbanks. Weather couldn’t have been better.

I met up with the mushers at Creamers Field, one of my go-to places for photography. Today, like most days at Creamers, I focused with film. With luck it may get develop in a timely manner.

Trucking through Creamers Field. Sat. March 16, 2013

Perhaps tomorrow I will focus on the downtown spectacle while shooting a little more digital.

Sporting Thursday: Nanook Hockey Playoffs

Alaska, Photography, Sports

It’s time for another inauguration of another theme, Sporting Thursday. Having an active lifestyle has always been important to me, it’s only natural I should continue that through my photography. For todays first post of Sporting Thursday, we travel to the Carlson Center, Fairbanks, Alaska, for the first round of the soon-to-be defunct Central Collegiate Hockey Association, where the Michigan State Spartans traveled to play the University of Alaska Fairbanks Nanooks.

Friday, March 8, was a intense, low scoring game. Despite the Nanooks 35-15 shot on goal advantage, 3 minutes into overtime, MSU’s Matt DeBlouw slipped the puck past Nanook goaltender John Keeney.

The image I have of DeBlouw’s game-winning goal is an interesting thought experiment. Occasionally the discussion of sport-journalists acting as cheerleaders arises. In this particular instance I had positioned myself in hopes UAF scored the overtime goal, a better angle then if MSU did. As we know MSU scored first, had I kept a neutral position it’s likely I would have a cleaner image with the puck easier to see. Of course, sports are unpredictable, and would-be images frequently happen out of range or obstructed.

This cheerleading mentality can also manifest in war reporters. Stories get edited, or completely untold, to protect the reputation of the military. That is not something I have experienced, and a discussion for another post.

UAF goalie John Keeney realizes the game is over after MSU scores in overtime.

A good chance goes without a goal for UAF’s Trevor Campbell

The Nanooks won Saturday, I game I did not attend, 4-1, forcing a deciding game three on Sunday.

I showed up sometime in the second period, the score tied 1-1. Within five minutes MSU went up 3-1, both goals I may have got a good shot of, if I had been ready. Also within that five minutes two players broke some glass, causing over 20 minutes in delay. MSU then went up 4-1, and the game ended 4-3, with UAF being done for the season.

UAF goalie John Keeney hangs his head after MSU scores their 4th, and ultimately game-winning goal.

Broken glass created a lengthy game delay in the second period.

Music Monday: Fairbanks Winter Folk Festival

Alaska, Music, Photography, Portraits

Welcome back to the second installment of Music Monday, on Far North Light.

Twice a year, in summer and winter, The Fairbanks Folk Festival offers a chance for some of the many Interior Alaska bands a place to conjoin and perform. February 9th, at Pioneer Park’s Civic Center, over 30 acts took turns filling 15- and 20-minute sets. Performances ran the gamut from solo singer-songwriters and a comedian to picking sessions with dozens of stringed instruments.

I was there finalizing recordings for my internship at KUAC, which allowed me some time to photograph as well.

Check out “The Best of the Fest” podcast on KUAC’s website, where you will also see a slideshow with more pictures that I took. I recommend the recordings that start with Ester Jelly Jam and New Cut Road.

Bruno Grunau, of the band Ice Jam, plays mandolin with his 6-week-old daughter Annabelle.

Warming up in the green room at Fairbanks Winter Folk Festival.

A very full stage.

Emcee Lori Neufeld chats with members of Zingaro before they take the stage.

Ukulele Russ: One man, one ukulele, lots of hair.

‘Tis the season to ski: Nat’ Geo’ Extreme Photo of the Week and more.

Alaska, Black & White, Photography, Portraits, Sports

First things first: A huge shout out to my friend and fellow (former) Fairbanks resident, Luke Smith, who is the skier in this weeks National Geographic Extreme Photo of the Week. Photographer Ryan Kruger captured Luke skiing Frazier Basin, Bridger Range, Montana.

Here’s the image, click the link above to see the full story. I especially like the delay between the initial viewing and noticing the skier, and of course, the monochromatic image.

photo by Ryan Krueger

Photographing skiing and snowboarding is a very delicate balance for me. Often my love for snowboarding overpowers my desire to take photos on the hill. It’s easy to worry about my camera, ducking under and squeezing through trees at Skiland, where I ride, and the fartherst north chairlift in North America.

I am becomming more comfortable with it though. The hardest part is forcing myself to be less agressive while riding.

While neither of my photos offer the extreme enviornment of Krueger’s, they have their own qualities. Both with a strong sense of light, the Sun peeking out behind my friends Nils and Nick in the first, illuminated hoar frost on the lift in the second. The first image is also a pan shot, my movement, parallel with the subjects, keeps them in focus while blurring the background.

Nick and Nils gather speed for the traverse at Mt. Aurora Skidland.

Nick and Nils gather speed for the traverse at Mt. Aurora Skiland.

Hoar frost on an early morning chairlift ride.

Hoar frost and an Alyeska sticker on a chilly, early morning chairlift ride.

Music Monday: The Young Dubliners on Alaska Live

Alaska, Black & White, Music, Photography, Portraits

In an effort to increase the regularity of posting I will be creating a few themes for Far North Light. Today is the inaugural day of Music Monday, where I feature photos of the various venues and concerts I’m involved with around Fairbanks.

Capturing the essence of music in a photograph is no easy task. Obviously the biggest hurdle is lack of auditory signals. What is possible is trying to capture the symbiotic relationship band members share with one another, as well as audience members. Much like a sound wave reflecting off ceilings and walls, energy fills the studio or dance floor, it’s that energy that is possible to photograph.

Often to capture the intensity a plethora of obstacles must be navigated. Studio settings don’t offer audience members, or the added energy they bring, to incorporate into the photo. Bright spotlights accompanied with dark surroundings can easily lead to blown out highlights or indiscernible shadows. My technique is expose so no highlights have lost information, then bring back detail in the shadows. Rarely is ISO set below 1600. Another common impediment is a cramped enviornment: instruments, bodies and microphones can easily decapitate an important figure in the background. Thanks to the near unlimited picture taking ability of digital, shoot enough and there’s bound to be good frames.

As I mentioned in a previous post I’m doing a professional media internship for KUAC, Public Radio of Alaska. I assist Lori Neufeld in the production room for her show, Alaska Live, a live-music radio program feature Alaskan and visiting artists. The most recent band to play in the studio was The Young Dubliners. This Celtic-Rock band played a mellow version of their stage show. Check out the podcast here.

The Young Dubliners perform on Alaska Live in KUAC’s studio at University Alaska Fairbanks.

First Friday, Klara Maisch’s “Broad Pass”

Alaska, Arts, Photography, Portraits

My friend and artist Klara Maisch is having a First Friday tonight at Gulliver’s Books, in Fairbanks, Alaska. Her Alaskan Inspired prints and paintings beautifully capture the abstract nuances of everything that inspires her: mountains, trees, pillow lines, animals and nature of all kinds. Her work ranges from monochromatic medleys to impressionistic landscapes with vivid colors.

Check out her show, tonight March 1, from 6-8 p.m. on the corner of College and University. And check out the link to her artwork here.