Tag Archives: Nikon D810

An Early Christmas

Now that we are past Thanksgiving I am definitely in the Christmas Spirit. I took my festive passion into the Alaskan wilderness last night to fuse together a little Christmas Cheer and the aurora borealis. I sat in the waist deep snow and tossed Christmas ornaments into the powder as I belted Christmas carols and watched a crescendo of pink and green aurora dance over my head like the twinkling lights of a monstrous, celestial Christmas tree. Of course, there is no reason to put a star on top of this metaphorical tree, it is a tree that is covered in them, not crowned with one. There were no presents under this tree, because it was already a gift. I had a lot of fun doing this shoot last night, I hope you enjoy!

If you are interested in a one-of-a-kinda Alaskan Christmas card and before you send your greeting cards this year, consider a purchase from my Fine Art America website. To browse a selection of these images as a greeting card, framed print, phone cover, or many other products please visit my page : Ian’s Fine Art America.

Merry Christmas!

Leaning Tree Aurora
A full sky of aurora. I stood nearly waist deep in the snow and framed up this wonderful leaning tree.
Brilliant Pinks
Brillant pinks are a sign of strong aurora! Lots of energy last night.
Moon in the Loop
Crouching low to the snow I watched the aurora flow through and over the moon.
Swirling Aurora
A beautiful full sky of swirling aurora, like oil in water.

Back in a Winter Wonderland

It has been awhile since you’ve heard from me, but all of that is about to change as I get my blog’n legs back under me. Until now I have been prioritizing my thesis which has now been defended. There will be several upcoming articles on the results of my work. I see no use in writing it if noone is reading it! I deem the upcoming articles as science communication”, and I hope you will find them informative.

I want to give you an update on the calendars too. Thanks SO MUCH to those who have purchased one. The response and feedback to them has been tremendous. I am now on my second and last printing. If you have been considering ordering one, now is the time! Visit: https://ianajohnson.com/customproducts/index.php/product/2016-alaskan-calendar/

Now onto the meat of this entry. Yesterday was my first day back in Fairbanks after being away for over 10 days. When I left, the remnants of a huge September snowstorm (17″) still lingered on the ground in low, shaded areas, but for the most part the ground was barren. It is amazing how only 10 days can change that. We now have 16″ of pure powder on the ground which is maintained by cold nights. Yesterday morning when I awoke it was -15F with a promise from forecasters that those temperatures will continue through at least this week. A seasonally late sunrise began at 9:15, and by noon the low light illuminated the tree tops and extenuated the shadows. I nearly skipped with joy into the  spruce bog behind my house where snow hung on the trees. I passed under trees that with a touch would have doused me in snow, and found pure joy in the beauty of this winter wonderland.

Later that night the landscape of refracting light and black spruce shadows transitioned to twinkling stars shining through a moonless night. I retraced my steps from only a few hours earlier and watched as the aurora built to the north. I watched for awhile and smiled outwardly at my knowledge of the stark contrast in light from just hours earlier.

Refracted Highlight
The sun highlights the top of a snow-pillow smothering an arched black spruce.
DSC_3248
The dynamic light of the landscape is what makes it so beautiful. Shadows of the low sun contrast heavily against lighted spires.
Black and White Winter Wonderland
I really like how the black and white contrast of needles, snow, sky lend themselves to back-and-white photography.
Winter Sun Burst
The sun erupts through a gap in the trees, but has no heat this time of year.
Arched Spruces
The large snow-load has bent many of the black spruces over. They will rebound in the spring once their burden has been lifted.
Snow Covered Aurora
At night, the aurora lit up the landscape where I watched the the sun play across the tree tops hours earlier.
Low Aurora
A combination of short and tall black spruces creates a beautiful effect in this winter wonderland.
Spinning Stars in a Winter Wonderland
This starspin shot was set up for 2 hours. Focusing on the north star, it is amazing to see how much they shift over that time!