Hobbits in Alaska?

While looking for another waterfall to photograph, I came across this and knew I had to set up my tripod. Used 3 exposures, Photomatix and Photoshop CS5.

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HDR Photo of the Day

Falls near Juneau, Alaska

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Waterfall HDR

I love waterfalls! I love the challenge of getting that smooth silky look of flowing water. When the weather is bad, I look for a waterfall. This is Salmon Creek Falls just outside of Juneau, Alaska. If you can make it outside of the tourist season, you might be the only one there. I have shot these falls several times and never ran across a single person.

I decided to play with Photomatix settings on this one and like the way it turned out.

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Salmon Creek Falls, Juneau, Alaska

Photo of the Day Bald Eagle

This was taken just outside of Juneau, Alaska. Found a bunch of eagles feeding and came across this one diving into the water. I don't know what he has in his mouth.

I have an eagle gallery on my main website www.akphotograph.com or as a blog post here www.akphotograph.com/Alaska%20Blog/?p=201

HDR Photo of the Day...Cruise Ship

Three exposures taken from Mt. Roberts (Juneau) created this photograph.

I have an HDR tutorial here.

HDR Photo of the Day...Juneau

HDR shot of Mendenhall Glacier this summer. Nothing says Alaska like fireweed, glaciers and mountains.

I have an HDR tutorial here.

HDR Photo of the Day

Taken just outside of Juneau, Auke Lake

HDR Photo of the Day

Mendenhall Glacier

This photo was taken last week near Juneau, Alaska. The field of fireweed was stunning. Adding a background of Mendenhall Glacier and the mountains made it even better. Three exposures taken with my Canon 5D on a tripod.

Juneau Waterfalls

I have been to Juneau twice this month. The first time was 5 days and it rained on us the entire time. Last week was much nicer...80 degrees and sunny...in Juneau. Nothing like Southeast Alaska on a clear day.

The last day of my first trip the rain slowed so I finally got my camera out. The light was poor so I headed to some waterfalls I knew about. These are Salmon Creek Falls just outside of Juneau. I was the only person there. I wish I would have had more time, but I had a plane to catch.

I used my ND8 filter which brings down the light 3 full stops. This allowed me to create long exposure photos without blowing out the highlights. This was my first try at long exposure HDR. All the photos in this blog are 3 long exposures combined and tonemapped in Photomatix.

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Ebner Falls is a little more work. Hiking up Preservation Trial with all my gear, including my heavy duty tripod, in 80 degree weather. We Alaskans are wimpy when it comes to heat.

Ebner Falls

Ebner Falls

Ebner Falls

I revisited Salmon Creek Falls on a nice day. The light was not that much different, it sits in a rain forest so not much light gets through.

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Salmon Creek Waterfall

Be sure to visit Juneau's waterfalls the next time you are there.

Photographing Eagles

I am organizing and cataloging my digital files using Lightroom. I had no idea how many photos I had or that I had so many of certain subjects.
One of my favorite subjects to photograph is the bald eagle. Living in Alaska gives me that opportunity, but it is not as easy as you think. A lot of things have to happen to get a "keeper" image. I have thousands of eagle images, but only a handful I would rate 5 stars.

This image taken in Juneau combines light, wind direction and background into a good eagle image. Once I found these conditions and the eagles, it was very hard to pull myself away. I came across a group of them feeding on something near the shore and scared them off when I got out of the car. After sitting quietly for 30 to 40 minutes they started to come back and I was able to take hundreds of photos.
I had positioned myself so the light and wind would give me the best chance of getting good shots. Even if I can't photograph eagles, I will watch them and try to learn their characteristics.
You need to take advantage of wind direction to help your photos. The light on the above image shows detail in the wing feathers. This is not always easy.
Catching eagles as they land can give you striking poses. This is a Juneau eagle landing on the rocks next to the shore.
This eagle put his head under water and pulled this out. Not sure what it was, but he was really serious about getting his food.

The above eagle photograph was taken in Valdez last year. It was a beautiful, cold day and the eagles around town were active. I have been to Valdez dozens of times and only once did I get some good eagle pictures. A lot of it has to do with weather and with it, lighting.
Another picture from Valdez. Nothing like a mountain and another eagle for a background!

Homer is my favorite places to photograph eagles. The image above was taken while walking the beach. This eagle was not bothered by humans at all and cruised up and down the beach for a couple hours feeding on minnows at low tide.
Another shot on the beach at Homer. If you have never been to Homer, you owe yourself a trip. It is a beautiful place.
A young eagle cruising the beach in Homer. This one was a little more shy around humans.

I have been very fortunate to have solitude in most of my endeavors to photograph eagles. There are times, however, where an eagle will pose just off a busy road in the middle of summer. This is what you get:
A lot of glass on this hillside in Homer. There was an eagle sitting on a piece of driftwood along the road.

Hope you enjoyed my eagle photography.

Mike