I’ve been meaning to share this news for the last few weeks, but have been so busy that I am only now getting around to it. One of my underwater humpback whale images from Tonga was published on the cover of China’s Digital Camera May 2013 issue! This was the first time that I have worked with this magazine, but I hope to continue building upon this new relationship in the year ahead.
My image Humpback Whales Bubble Feeding 110 is featured in Outdoor Photographer’s June 2013 article “Pro Tips For Summer Hotspots”. In the article, I describe what it is like to observe humpback whales as they cooperatively feed in Alaska, as well as how to photograph this incredible behavior. Also featured in the article, is one of my personal favorite images Tonquin Valley Sunrise 3 along with a description of how to photograph this dramatic scene located in Jasper National Park.
One of my sea otter images is on the cover of the February 2013 issue of Ranger Rick Jr! I created this image while visiting Moss Landing in California in 2008 with my friend Phil Colla. We had a great time together photographing the sea otters at sunset several days in a row. Unlike Alaska sea otters, the Moss Landing otters are used to seeing people and are easily photographed from a boat with a local guide. If you’ve never been, I encourage you to go. Bring your kids since the otters are so cute, unless of course a male gets ahold of a female and tries to mate with her. Ouch! Let’s just say that I would not want to be a female sea otter. I created this image with my Canon 50D and 400mm f4 DO IS lens and processed the image using whatever version of Aperture and Photoshop was available at that time.
While visiting Seward, Alaska last month, I was pleasantly surprised to see my brown bear in lupine image on the cover of the 2012 Animals of Alaska calendar. The calendar was put together by Accent Alaska, which is one of the stock agencies that represents my photography. This image has never been one of my favorites, however, I have licensed it several times for many thousands of dollars. One of the things that clients tell me that they like about this image is that the bear does not look scary surrounded by the beautiful lupine. I took this image while visiting Lituya Bay on the outer coast of Glacier Bay National Park in 2009. You can read my original blog post here.
This past winter I was contacted by Pacific Life Insurance Company to submit images for their annual report. Guess what? One of my images was selected for the cover! This image is the only breaching humpback whale photo that I have from Hawaii and has never been one of my favorites, however, it just sold for a reasonable amount of money. The lesson here is that no matter how I might feel about a particular image, it can have more value than any of my favorite images. When I was in Alaska last month, I saw an amazing full body breach by an adult humpback whale, but of course I was still too far away to photograph it. After a lot of excited screaming of many expletives, I had a very interesting discussion with my crew. They asked me how many breaches I have seen? I guessed somewhere between 300 and 500 breaches in the last 10 years, but only 20-30 of them were photographable. That is a ratio of at best of 1 photographable breach for every 30 breaches I observe. It also means that I have spent a lot of time on the water around whales, which happen to be my favorite subject to photograph. I created this image with my Canon 5D and 70-200mm f2.8 IS lens. This image is a single-exposure which required a minimal amount of processing using Aperture 2 and Photoshop CS4. You can enjoy more photos of whales in multiple galleries on the rest of my site.
Check out my latest feature in the June issue of Popular Photography! My article is about photographing cetaceans, otherwise known as whales. They are my favorite photographic subject and I’ve routinely stated over the years that if I could only photograph one thing that it would be whales. My article gives advice on how to photograph them, what lenses to use, and where some of the best places are to find whales. I also share how much patience is required for whale photography. In case it’s not obvious, they spend their lives underwater, so not only is it difficult to catch a glimpse of them, it is even harder to photograph them. I have been very fortunate to accumulate many months of time with them in the last decade. You can read more about the image in the double page opener in my blog post from 2010. Also, If you’ve ever wanted to photograph whales, I am co-leading a tour with Tony Wu to photograph humpback whales in Southeast Alaska and Tonga in 2012.
It seems that years of hard-work and dedication are paying off. My 10 year anniversary of being a full-time photographer is coming up this June, and I have experienced a lot of editorial success lately, including my new hiking and backpacking photography article in the May 2011 issue of Popular Photography. In the article, I share my secrets for creating dramatic images away from parking lot viewpoints. Most readers are never going to travel to the ends of the Earth and spend weeks camped out like I do, but hopefully my article will motivate more photographers to get more exercise, enjoy nature, and find their own unique images rather than settle for the same-old viewpoints. I created the double-page opening image of Forbidden Peak at sunset while backpacking in North Cascades National Park. It was a long hike up to Sahale Arm where I camped for several nights with some friends. If you are motivated, I highly recommend this backpacking trip high into the North Cascades. The views are some of the best that can be found in Washington. I created this image with my Pentax 67II medium format camera, Pentax 90mm f2.8 lens, Singh-Ray Warming Polarizer, tripod, and Fuji Velvia 50 film. I scanned it on my Imacon Photo scanner and adjusted the masterfile in whatever version of Photoshop I was using at the time. Readers will also note that I included a photo of my Fstopgear Tilopa BC packed with all my equipment spilled out that I currently use to create landscape photos.
My image “Delicate Arch Sunset 2” is featured on the cover on the 2012 Audubon National Parks calendar! I just checked the image’s meta-data and saw that I created this image almost 5 years ago this March. I remember flying down to Salt Lake City and then driving to Arches National Park to catch a clearing storm that afternoon. I created this image using my Pentax 67II medium format film camera, Pentax 105mm f2.8 lens, and Singh-Ray Warming Polarizer using Fuji Velvia film. I also set up my Fotoman 612 panoramic film camera to create a panoramic version of this same scene. I do not miss carrying all of that weight around. I scanned the original slide with my Imacon Photo desktop scanner and processed it using Photoshop.
My latest article “Desert Song” is featured in the March 2011 issue of Popular Photography! The article gives suggestions for photographing California desert locations including Anza Borrego Desert State Park, Death Valley National Park, the Alabama Hills Recreation Area, the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve, and San Elijo State Beach, all of which are best photographed this time of year. The article is 6 pages long and showcases 6 of my images, including the double page opener of wildflowers in bloom from Anza Borrego. I created this image almost exactly 2 years ago. This was first trip using a digital camera to photograph landscapes rather than with my beloved Pentax 67II medium format film camera. I used my Canon 5DmkII body, Canon 17-40mm f4 lens, and Singh-Ray LB Warming Polarizer. It required minimal processing using Aperture 2. I also clearly remember signing up for Twitter during that trip at the urging of my client-friend, Mark Teskey. Wow! That seems like a lifetime ago back in the social media dark ages.
Since I won’t be visiting the desert this spring, I won’t be able to offer my own wildflower reports, however, you can read about the latest conditions by visiting the Desert USA Wildlflower Report.
A few months ago, Gray Line of Alaska contacted me about licensing my image of a brown bear surrounded by lupine for the cover of their 2010 brochure. Here is what the cover looks like. You can also download the brochure here. I photographed this brown bear during my week-long visit to Lituya Bay on the remote outer coast of Glacier Bay National Park in June 2009. You can read how I created this image in my original blog post.
