Finding Time…

When do you find the time to write?

I know there are many helpful resources out there to do this (time mgt 101 HA) but I just find that life is too full.

I have time to take the photos, I have time to review them even, which as many of you know take a lot of effort to cull out those that are kind of on the bad side – blurry, no composition, no ‘story’ showing [you know that story that sits right there waiting to be photographed]

But where is the time to write…my dilemma, or is it that I don’t know What to write because I haven’t done my usual traveling? There was a pandemic after all…and in fact we are still in one, but is that really why I haven’t been writing? because I have still been taking photos…

So I’ve decided to jump back on the horse and get back to writing my travel blog with or without’travel’ ?In the meantime here are some photos of what I’ve been taking around during the pandemic…

Traveling in-State. Juneau, AK
Hiking Thompson Pass. Valdez, AK
Salmon season is Bear season. Allyson Point, Valdez, AK.
Hiking Root Glacier, MCCarthy, AK
Getting out on the ocean. Prince William Sound, AK

There’s something about black and white…

There is something stoic and passionate, raw yet peaceful about black and white photos.

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Valdez Boat Harbor, Alaska

Whether it is the layers of gray or the contrast between shapes and lines that appear so defined compared to color photos, or perhaps it’s that the lack of color, it is not there to distract the eye from other facets of the photo we may not perceive. Some think of it at an art form that takes away the distracting colors and lets the foundational portions of the photo (shape, form, lighting, texture) come to the forefront. Sometimes it’s the grainy image that brings my mind back to the beginnings of photography and its dense textures.

 

Traditional black and white photograpy was monochromatic, where there was different amount of light but not different hues. Where the photograph contains variations of one color. This was the only way there was back then before 1936 and the invention of color in photography. Exploration of the variety of black and white styles gives a different meaning of color, sepia (warm tones), cyan (cool tones)…just to name a few .

Today, black and white photography can be done the more traditional way and shoot in monochrome (most cameras, have this setting) or you can shoot in color and choose black and white in post-processing.

Black and white portaits let the focus be on the face and eyes instead of the colors that are there. It lets the smaller things, like freckles, show more than they may have in color format.

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While not every photo you take will look better in black and white, many themes can look stunning in black and white. No matter what theme, it comes down to composition, mood, and personal perference. Landscape and looking for active skies or capturing architectural texture of the buildings, or travel photography to seal that moment in time in grayscale or sports shots.. all can thrive in black and white styles as their shape, form, textures and tones emerge to show us their full potential.

 

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Liam, diving “The Pier”, Bonaire.

 

 

 

Winter Adventures

What a wonderful world we live in…Alaska and Valdez in particular has a variety to sports adventures that far out weigh the number of people that live in this small community. To get here you can take a 35 minute flight from Anchorage or drive one of the most beautiful road trips you ever could do. 

I had the opportunity this Winter to be able to capture some beautiful photos of this stunning landscape, as well as some of the amazing sports that this town offers. Valdez Ice Festival is a climbers dream, both rock and ice saw some action. With world class Canadian climbers Nathan Kutcher and Rebecca Lewis, and Ice and Rock Magazine Hayden Carpenter climbing, along with local Nick Weicht, photos were a fun adventure.

Nathan Kutcher, world class climber from Canada

Rebecca Lewis, Canadian world class dry tooling

 

Teal Rogers

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then and then you have some fun…aerial silk performance art.

 

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Valdez Ice Climbing Festival

Spanning the frozen waterfallThe Valdez Ice Climbing Festival was an amazing thing to observe…fit, healthy men and women of all ages and experience, whom to me appeared to thrive on the adrenalin it takes to do this…climbed the many frozen waterfalls in the Keystone Canyon, the leads into the Alaskan town of Valdez. These waterfalls during summer are impressive in and of themselves, but when frozen they take on a totally new dimension that allows for photographers to train their skills in white balance, white/ gray sky, glaring white/blue ice Climber's at Bridal Veil Falls, Keystone Canyon, Valdez, AKand snow – not an easy task for this newer photographer.

Check to the gallery for more photos.