Photography and Photo Tours: Specializing in Alaska's Wild Lands & Wild Life
Denali "The Great One"
I have had many dreams over the past several years, since moving to Alaska. And, since moving to Alaska, many of those have come true. I have seen more amazing scenery and wildlife in the past 4 years, than most will see in a lifetime. For those of you who have been following along, I have photographed brown bear from not yards -- but feet & inches. Dall sheep ram, ewes & lamb from only a few yards. Moose just beyond my car window. Bald eagles so close that their wings grazed my shoulders as they came in for a landing or to leave again. Humpback whales splashing down after an amazing series of breaches. Orca circling our boat in growing numbers. Glaciers actively calving into milky blue waters, surrounded by snow capped mountains.
Hidden Peak - Denali, in Background (Middle Right) Appears Lower
Bare Cliff Walls - The Alaska Range
Drifted Walls - Alaska Range
But one thing eluded my travels. I have seen and photographed Denali from Wonder Lake (note to self: must go back), Talkeetna, and just south of Cantwell. But I’ve always wanted to get “up close & personal” -- to fly near the summit, between the rocky crags and over snow rimmed ridgelines. To watch a mountain rise up beneath me, only to watch it fall quickly away once past the ridge. Glaciers below, deeply crevassed -- their depths a cold blue whisper falling thousands of feet into darkness.
Resolute Rock - Alaska Range
Low Light on Ridge Line - Alaska Range
Sheer Drop - Alaska Range
I received a gift on Saturday, born of a new friendship. I was finally able to check the Denali flight off my list -- trouble is, like so many awe inspiring experiences, it only leaves you wanting more. We met in Wasilla for the ride to Talkeetna, I drove to allow my guests the opportunity to sit back and relax, not to mention take in the view. We were warmly greeted by the staff at Talkeetna Air Taxi, who got us checked in and introduced us to our pilot, Bill. I swear, the people in the guiding industry here in Alaska are some of the greastest people you’ll ever meet. They are passionate, knowledgeable, and safety conscious. Their example has set a high bar for my own business, one that I look forward to attempting to match.
Resolute Rock #2 - Alaska Range
Out of the Glacier - Alaska Range
We boarded the Dehavilland Beaver and taxied towards the runway. Before long we were airborne, the Alaska Range rising before us in all it’s glory. Not a cloud in the sky, and not a bit of turbulence the entire flight -- talk about ideal conditions! Bill, our pilot, kept reminding us of how lucky we were for our flight. So true. Denali, and the Alaska Range, is so massive that it creates it’s own weather system. “The Great One” (Denali) is a rare guest, usually hidden in the clouds along with Foraker and Hunter at its western flank. 20, 320 feet tall. Sure, that’s big -- but it’s hard to put into context. Try stacking the Eiffel Tower on top of itself, 20 times. Or, for you football fans out there -- that’s over 54 football fields (end zone to end zone) tall. It’s roughly 4 miles high. If you were to jump from an airplane at 20,320 feet over the ocean, you would free fall for nearly 2 minutes, before creating the worlds largest canon ball that is. Or if you’re really talented (and gutsy) you’d go for a belly flop. But I don’t recommend either, better to pack a ‘chute.
Bottomless Labyrynth - Alaska Range
I tried to write down something eloquent and moving about my experience circling Denali, gliding over ridge lines and landing on the Ruth Glacier. Truth is, words just aren’t cutting it. So, I’m going to shut up and hope that you’ll watch the video at the end of the post. I’d definitely recommend that you allow the video to load completely before letting it play all the way through, that way you won’t get any “stutter stops”. This is one of those videos that is enjoyed best if you click the “HQ” (High Quality) button while watching it. You can also click on the “Fullscreen” button to the right of the volume button on the player. Now, keep in mind -- I am NO cinematographer. The clips were all shot with a Canon G9 -- yep, that’s a digital point and shoot camera. Not exactly a RED ONE or a ultra HD professional camera. So please be gentle with me. I did shoot most of the aerial images with the same G9, set on aperture priority and RAW capture. It was great to be able to see an immediate effect of my shutter speed/aperture choices with a live histogram in the rear lcd. Next time, I’ll definitely shoot more with my main Canon camera. Oh you caught that? “Next time”. Oh yes, it will be mine…
Lessons learned:
The G9 does do a great job for such a compact camera. 12 megapixel RAW files with no noise at low iso’s. Great & fast setup for video clips. I shot about 15 minutes worth of video. That’s a lot of small clips.
A polarizer is definitely not needed -- didn’t even put it on. The light changes too quickly, flying at 150+ mph over quickly varying terrain, dealing with a variable polarizer would be too much hassle.
A large rubber lens hood would be nice to rest get close to the window with. The further from the window your lens is, the more likely you’ll get reflections in your shots.
I’ll also try a UV/Haze filter for the altitude, but too be honest, we were so close to the mountains that it may not have much haze to cut through.
Remember to keep high shutter speeds to lessen the effects of vibration. As I knew ahead of time, don’t allow your camera, hands, or lens to touch the plexiglass of the aircraft windows -- the vibrations will ruin your shots, as they are directly translated to your camera equipment.
Plans? Well, I’m going to get on the list for access to the Mountain House. The Mountain House was built in 1966 and has an amazing view of the Great Gorge and the Ruth Glacier, along with the surrounding ridges and summits. I’m hoping to get a week up there, and as crazy as it sounds -- preferably this time of year, or earlier. With any luck I’ll get some clear skies and nights… mmm… northern lights over the Alaska Range.
Don Sheldon Outhouse in the Great Gorge - Alaska Range
In short, an amazing experience. One I’ll never forget. As you have no doubt noticed, all but one of these photos is displayed in black & white. As I’ve discussed before, I am a late entry into the b&w specialty. As much as I loved the deep blues of the sky, I thought that b&w really lent itself well to the sheer impressiveness and textures everywhere you turn when flying through the mountains. The images were all captured in color in RAW format, then converted in Adobe Lightroom to a specific range of b&w tonalities that I believe are appropriate for the grandness of the landscape.
Talkeetna Air Taxi and I are working on a discount for my clients (logistics and group tours). As soon as we iron out the details, I’ll post the specifics here. For now, if you schedule a flight with them, please let them know of my referral. And remember, if you are looking for any logistics help for your photographic trip to Alaska, be sure to check out my “Trusted Businesses” page.
Please leave your comments, I’d love to hear from you!
For now, take care & good shooting. Stay tuned!
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Hey those turned out great Dave! That had to be a blast. I like the black and white treatment. I’ll have to download the video.
Will Talkeetna Air fly with the door or window off?
Ron
Thanks Ron – much appreciated! It truly was a blast to get up there & I can’t wait to do it again. We flew in a Beaver, and the windows were sealed. But they do have the option to take people up in a smaller plane and remove doors or windows. But they don’t recommend doing that this time of year – it was around -30 to -45 at altitude. Wouldn’t last long with the windchill through the cabin. But the winter (as far as I’m concerned) is the best time, the glaciers are all white and clean, great fluffy powder and deep blue skies. If you are ever interested in going with the doors/windows off, let me know – I’d be happy to split the flight with you.
Take care Ron.
The video turned out great Dave.
Thanks Angie, I’m surprised at how much I enjoy making them. It’s always fun combining video with still frames and music.
Stunning images and video, Dave!
Guy
Thanks Guy, much appreciated!
I would be up for that – sounds good Dave!
Awesome images and loved the video. The video reminds me of Super 8 film but more specifically of that old Travel Channel show Lonely Planet–rerunned on PBS and renamed Globe Trekker. I’m a G10 owner and was wondering what software you used to put it together. I’m having difficulties with the provided Canon software and my older version of Imovie. Also, another question, I want to get on the waiting list for the Mountain House. Saw a piece on it from The Joy of Telemarking dvd and have wanted to go since but can’t find any info on the web. Thanks, Chuck
Thanks Charles!
I used iMovie & iMovie HD. It was really easy to put together. Funny part was, as I was laying down the music track, the “dramatic parts” just happened to fall almost exactly where the images/video needed that musical peak. All I had to do was adjust the timing slightly so it fit. I have a longer version of the video, but Google has limits on video length. Too bad too, because the longer version is better (in my opinion).
Here is a link to reserving the Mountain House. I NEED to get back up there!
http://www.climbalaska.org/mountain-house.html
Take care & thanks for the comment.