One of the highlights of our trip to Alaska was seeing glaciers. Many glaciers. And a few up close!
This was our third visit to Portage Lake since the kids moved to Alaska- but the first time we have taken the boat ride across the lake to see the glacier! While Caitlin and Lonnie were buying tickets, the boys and I walked down to the water’s edge, and I was able to take this shot featuring one of the large chunks of ice floating in the lake.
These two sleepy otters were not the least bit perturbed by the approach of the Anna D. in the harbor at Homer!
Fireweed had just begun its bloom when we were in Alaska. I used a slow shutter speed with my iPhone to create this impressionist style image.
We took a morning drive above the town to get a different perspective. Here is a view of Kachemak Bay, the mountains and glaciers beyond, and the Homer spit.
Another interesting sight on the Homer Spit . . .
I came upon an amazing sight as we drove along the Homer Spit- old, rickety boats tied up or sitting amidst the wildflowers by the path along Kachemak Bay. After we ate dinner one night, I had Lonnie drop me off so I could walk along and take photos. At least one of the boats looked like someone lived in it or had lived in it. There was a small sign that said Kachemak Bay Wooden Boat Society, so I googled it and discovered it is a non-profit organization “dedicated to sharing the history, preservation, and creation of wooden boats and maritime traditions. ” So cool! They have a wooden boat festival on Labor Day, but I don’t know if these boats are part of it or not.
I found this boat particularly appealing.
One of the features of Homer, Alaska is the Homer Spit- a narrow strip of land extending out into Kachemak Bay. It is lined with shops and places to eat, and has a harbor where fishing boats take off and return all day long. Here is a view of one of the rows of shops and eateries.
We stopped at a viewpoint as we approached Homer- gorgeous!
A view from the top- Alyeska ski resort
I haven’t been doing much shooting lately- so thank goodness there are dozens of unprocessed photos to go through. Here’s a photo from last summer of the Matanuska River in Alaska.
Yes, another bird- and another artsy fartsy bird at that! This is a ptarmigan, perhaps a female or a juvenile (can’t remember), and it is the state bird of Alaska. This info is courtesy of my Park Service son-in-law, so I am breaking with my policy of not identifying birds, because I’m always wrong- or at least I believe everyone who identifies a bird incorrectly for me. Crossing my fingers here. . .
It was our youngest grandson, Henry who spotted it as we were walking a trail at the Nature Center. It was motionless in the grasses and probably scared out of its mind. I said, “Oh, look a grouse!” We all gathered on the trail watching it, as I snapped 4 or 5 shots. Then Justin gave the command to Penny, the golden retriever, who promptly flushed it out and away flew the grouse/ptarmigan/chicken(?) into the woods.
I gave it the clipping mask and stroke treatment, because it’s fun and I just can’t stop doing it. . .
Like every other photographer, I’m drawn to reflections. This one caught my eye at the Eagle River Nature Center in Alaska. I loved the contrast between the bits poking above the surface of the water and the watercolor swirls beneath.
I sometimes get bored editing landscapes- a little clarity and contrast, maybe a little vibrance, some dodging and burning, some sharpening- and done. Since joining the photo group, I’ve tended to use Nik Color Efex Pro or sometimes Silver Efex (both photoshop plug-ins) to edit my landscapes – because that’s what they all use in class. Now I am trying to use Luminar, because Google, who bought the program, is no longer supporting or updating the older programs. And we all use the TK Actions panel as well.
I decided to try doing a black and white in Luminar- but I ended up having to do a lot more more afterward in Photoshop, because I couldn’t figure out how to get the look I wanted. And when I was done getting the look, I decided I really wanted a color image after all.
Here is the black and white, edited in Lightroom, Luminar, and Photoshop. This was taken in the Matanuska Valley in Alaska.
And here is another view from a slightly different angle (and with a different focal length) of the same scene, edited mostly in Lightroom, with just a little work in Photoshop.
Sometimes you CAN have it both ways!
And now that I see them together, I think I like the black and white better after all. Maybe.
Here’s one of the many beautiful vistas we saw in Alaska- a view of the Matanuska River.
There is the Thumb Butte here in Prescott, and it turns out there is a thumb in Alaska as well- near the Matanuska glacier.
melinda anderson photography 