“Capturing Alaska”
with Wayde Carroll






Great Day!



Last week I talked a bit about how I like to pick an area and a date and go shooting regardless of weather etc. Well, the day after I posted that blog I headed south to Portage Valley. It was a very cold morning, around five degrees, and I was slightly hesitant to spend the day in it but I knew I should keep my own advice and “go no matter what!”. Besides, I was eager to get out and shoot after many long days at my desk. So off I went!
Because we don’t have many hours of daylight in the winter I didn’t have to head out until 8:30 am or so! My plan was to see if I could catch some good dawn colors in the sky along Turnagain Arm on the way down, get to Portage Valley at sunrise and see what looked good, make my way to Portage Lake and shoot people skating around icebergs on the frozen lake, and then try and catch some colors in the sky again on the way back. I’ve also been wanting to capture some details of the many ice walls along the Seward Highway.
So much for what I wanted! As it turned out, there was no color in the sky on the way down and Portage Lake wasn’t frozen over yet so there were no ice skaters! But, with persistence, my bravery (Ha) in facing the cold wilds of Alaska eventually paid off. I ended up with some nice images of Portage Creek, some late breaking rays of sunshine on the Chugach Mountains, some nice color in the sky at dusk, and some great images of the ice walls!
I’m very glad I didn’t succumb to the desire to sit in a coffee shop and read, or turn around when the morning sky proved to be dull and lifeless. Alaska proved to me again that it’s always worth getting out. You never know when she’ll offer up that sweet light and you can’t capture it unless you’re out there.