Check out "Oceans North Canada"

If you have a few minutes I invite you to browse through the Oceans North Canada website.  Well worth a read.  

Oceans North is a campaign led by The Pew Environment Group. It promotes science and a community-based conservation of North America's Arctic Ocean and the resulting well-being of indigenous Arctic residents who rely upon its natural wealth.  

The Pew Environment Group has become one of my most recent clients.  

There's no looking back now!

Bald Eagle, Haines Alaska 

Just a quick posting to say "I'm finally back!!"  The last few weeks have presented me with some challenges and important life lessons, many of which have thrown me completely off course.  Glad to say  I'm back to my usual self again, thanks to a few days of photography in Haines, Alaska.

Photography plays an important role in my life as it allows me to temporarily mask my thoughts of the day.  I've quickly learned, and have been reminded by many friends and colleagues these past few weeks, that there's no better medicine for the mind, body and soul than to spend a few hours behind a camera.  Who knows what you will capture as you step out that door?

In my world it's very possible to be completely caught off guard as enormous curtains of northern lights suddenly begin to unfurl and flutter across the Northern sky.  A few seconds later you're left breathless as a few thousand trumpeter swans suddenly descended, en-mass, onto a nearby lake to herald the end of yet another very long, and bitterly cold, Yukon winter.  Or, for the refined photographers,  one can immerse themselves for hours in the fine details and textures of the delicate pedals of a prairie crocus or be captivated by the elegance in design, form and function of a pod of narwhal swimming gracefully in the icy waters along the Flog Edge in the High Arctic.  All moments, and memories, you wouldn't want to miss with a camera (or sketch pad).

Last week I had the opportunity to photograph some of the 3,000+ bald eagles that have gathered along the shores of the unfrozen Chilkat River in Haines, Alaska.  These majestic birds arrived a few weeks ago to feast on an abundance of salmon.  What a sight it was see so many eagles in one spot.

Join me in the coming days as I share some of those images and stories from the "Gathering of Eagles".

Yes, I know - grizzly bear photos (and much more) will be posted too.

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,
Claus

Dreaming of Spring....already

Lesser Yellowlegs, near Pelly Crossing Yukon (Spring 2011)

Once again, my apologies for the lengthy delay in updating this blog.  Lots on my mind these days.

Most of the Yukon is finally ankle-deep in fresh snow.  Daily temperatures remain well below zero degrees with the mercury hovering near the minus 20 degree mark during the night.  The days are noticeably shorter and I'm finding it a challenge to catch even a fleeting glimpse of the sun.

As we adjust to another winter season my thoughts drift back to this past April and May when the entire Yukon landscape was basking in the glow of the midnight sun.  Regardless of where one looked, the entire Territory was alive in colour, song and endless photo opps.

I'm finally sorting through the thousands of images of shorebirds, swans, grizzly bears and scenery from that fabulous spring.  Pictured above is one of my favourites - a lesser yellow legs ruffling its feathers in a small lake near Pelly Crossing.  Oh, how I long for those endless days of spring when I can spend countless hours outdoors chasing birds and searching for that perfect shot!

I know, winter does offer the photographer some wonderful photo opportunities as well.  One just has to bundle up and make the effort to get outdoors and search for the image that captures the beauty of the land during this season of pure white snow, delicate textures and the soft pastel colours of a northern sky dominated by the silhouettes of rugged mountains, thick stands of black spruce and soaring ravens.

I promise - grizzly bear images from my trip to Haines Alaska will be posted in the next day or two.

Hope all is well in your corner of the world.

Cheers,

Claus