Hockey Boys

Awhile back, Heather Siegel of B2E asked me to do a photoshoot of her son and her friends son's playing hockey. Everything finally setup and with the outdoor rinks frozen and ready to skate on, we went over to Mears Middle School to skate around and have some fun. Before we could even get on the ice though, we spent 20 minutes shoveling away the snow that fell overnight. Luckily it wasn't as much as on the hillside - probably about 6 inches or so. After an hour or so everyone's noses were dripping and it was time to go home.

O'Brien Family Shoot

On Wednesday I met up with the O'Brien family at their Hillside home for a really cool family session where we did some of the "standard" holiday family photos, then went outside for some fun in the snow. The kids had a blast and even the family dog and cat get in on the action. Their driveway is perfectly sloped and a foot of snow overnight made sledding an obvious choice.

Anchorage Wedding - Winter & Brandon

On Saturday I photographed Winter and Brandon's wedding at the Railroad Depot. We managed to get a lot of the photos done before the ceremony which gave the bride and groom more time to hang out with their guests, which is always great. This was the third wedding I'd photographed for this family and it's nice to know they are happy with what we are doing and keep coming back :) Winter and Brandon were a lot of fun to work with and totally easy to photograph. Brandon couldn't seem to get enough of the camera and kept trying to steal all the glory from Winter. It was pretty bad; I had to put a stop to it. Just kidding! Really though, they seemed completely at ease together and are a perfect match. Congrats Winter and Brandon! On to the eye candy, check it out...

Ski, Ice, Snowmachine, Ski

This post is two outings combined because I didn't take a bunch of photos on either. The first few pictures are from last Friday when Bryan and I went out to Black Lake, which is located on the backside (east) of O'Malley Peak. During the approach, we saw a lone male Dall Sheep cross the Ballpark. He must have been the food scout because usually they travel in groups. The ice was good but we were pretty rusty on the ice because we haven't been ice climbing since March. After some climbing and flailing, we rappeled down and skiied back to Glen Alps. A Good day!The last two photos are from Tuesday when Jed and Bryan and I rode the snowmachines back out to the Upper Willow Creek valley (again) where we did a few laps on the skis, then took turns being towed by the snowmachine. I should have taken pictures of that, but didn't, so you'll have to see that next time we go out. It's quite a site to see a skiier being towed 50mph by a snowmachine! We also found a little Shrew running around, which we were able to catch without issue. After some online research I discovered that Shrews don't hibernate, eat 80-90% of their body mass each day, and there is no bag limit for hunting them in Alaska. That means you can kill thousands of them for your dinner and no one will stop you. Can 'em, freeze 'em, smoke 'em.. they don't care how you do it. I don't know why they'd even need a hunting regulation for Shrews, but there is. There is also a picture of a skiier climbing the False Peak Ridge above Little O'Malley. I took that shot through my spotting scope this weekend while checking out our ski tracks from Friday.

Hatcher Ski Day

On Wednesday John Schwieder and I headed up to Hatcher Pass to do some backcountry skiing on the backside of Skyscraper, where Bryan and I went last week. The skin up was terrible and one of the worst skin tracks I've ever followed. We ran into a couple other guys but otherwise the whole place was empty. The snow was mostly fluffy powder and we saw some really big Glide Cracks, which are weak layers of snow sliding very slowly, maybe only a foot a week. Sort of like an avalanche but not as sudden. John also got taken out by his own sluff and had both his skis and one pole buried for awhile. Sluff is the snow moving downhill that you have disturbed, again, sort of like an avalanche but not as problematic in most (emphasis on most) cases. John is also a photographer and has a really nice book coming out called "Alaska - America's Wildest State" It's packed full of over 150 of his favorite images. A great gift for out of state family and friends, or even for your own coffee table! Check out John's site for more info and look for it in stores next month. The first photo is from John's point and shoot. The rest are from mine. Between the two of us we could probably fill a van full of camera equipment, but on days like this, it's only our trusty 5 ounce pocket cameras!

Homer Engagement Shoot - Andrea & Mike

On Saturday I met up with Andrea & Mike to do their engagement photos at Bishop Beach in Homer, undoubtedly one of the most lovely non-tropical beaches anywhere. Glaciers, eagles, bush planes and tons of dogs running around make up a typical Homer beach day. Andrea and Mike brought their dog along too, a wonderful creature who used me as his fire hydrant twice in two days. Yep, that's right.. as I am sitting there getting camera gear out, I feel a distinctively wet spraying feeling on my jacket and look over to see that I am receiving the full fury of a stream of dog pee. Sweet. Luckily it brushed off and didnt soak in. Mike was embarassed but I thought it was more funny than anything else. The next day we met up again to cut driftwood pieces so we could take some home and make end tables. We now have two 100lb pieces of Homer driftwood sitting in the garage, just needing a little sanding and varnish. Andrea and Mike will be married next summer in Anchorage at the Anchorage museum. Mike and I met the old fashioned way - over the internet, on a backcounry ski forum and met up last winter to shred the pow pow. (That means to ski good snow to all the non-skiers). -Joe

Picking A Wedding Location

Picking a wedding location is hard. Especially when you are a wedding photographer and you've been to hundreds of weddings. Brook and I decided to get married in Homer, as it is one of our favorite places in Alaska, but finding the "perfect" place was tough. We finally found our place today when we discovered a recently renovated forest service house atop the bluffs before you enter Homer. The owner, John, did an amazing job bringing the place into the modern era. The property is big, with 11 acres and lots of open area to hang out. The views are great and the place sleeps 15-20 and there's plenty of ground to pitch a tent. So all those who make it down are welcome to stay under a roof or under their own nylon..! Check out these pics... I didn't take a ton but it gives a general impression of the place. Also, it's brand new on the market as of last month, and the owner would love to do more weddings.... if you are planning a wedding, big or small, or want a destination wedding in Alaska, give me a call and I will help you line things up. -Joe