Click here for behind the scenes video.

Special thanks to Tandy, Aaron, Jeff, Aaron B, Andrew, Paul, Chuck & Jan, and Carol for their help with this shoot.  We couldn’t have done it without you!

Every year in the heart of Alaska’s Katmai National Park, the world’s largest population of protected brown bears congregates to feast upon the millions of salmon that flood its lakes and rivers to spawn.  Alaska’s brown bears and grizzlies are now considered one species, though people commonly consider grizzlies to be those that live 100 miles or more inland.  Browns, however, are bigger than grizzlies thanks to their rich diet of fish.  In summer, North America’s largest land predators gather along these rivers to feast on salmon runs, building weight from this wealth of protein and fat, preparing for the long winter ahead.

Our workshop takes place at one of their favorite fishing sites, the world-renown Brooks River.  We will stay at the Brooks Lodge, the only lodging inside the park authorized by the National Park Service.  Nestled on the banks of the river, this rustic lodge books years in advance with people from all over the globe eager to garner this rare opportunity to capture images of these magnificent creatures in the wild.  Each cabin at Brooks is rustic and comfortable, with four twin-sized bunk beds – two upper and two lower beds – and is shared by 4 guests.

Once you arrive in Alaska, we take care of you from there!  All meals,  transportation, inter-Alaska flights, and accommodations are included.  While at Brooks, you will benefit from the instructor’s undivided attention throughout the workshop, as we make ourselves constantly available to assist participants and answer questions.  During the day we will photograph the bears, and at night we will edit our images and discuss the day’s events.

$3100 per person

Price includes round-trip ground transportation from Anchorage airport (ANC) to your hotel; accommodations for two nights in Anchorage; round-trip air transportation between Anchorage and Brooks Lodge; accommodations for 3 nights at Brooks Lodge; and all meals and non-alcoholic beverages.  Round-trip airfare to Anchorage, personal expenses, and alcoholic beverages are not included.

Registration

Email info@nelsakerlund.com or call 815.395.0101 for more information.  A 50% deposit (via personal check) is required to secure registration.  Please contact us for the cancellation policy specific to this workshop.

My parents are very open-minded, and I have them to thank for giving me the opportunity to fall in love with photographing live music.  As a 14-year-old kid, my parents would take me into Chicago to photograph concerts like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and other punk bands.  My folks would drop me off at the club where leather-clad punkers with mohawks and combat boots were chain smoking, waiting for the doors to open.  They would then go for dinner and return a couple hours later to pick me up.

The inside of these clubs were magical to me.  Most of them featured ornate architecture complimented by the sweet smell of cigarettes and beer that had long absorbed into the wood floor.  Being 14 and having a camera around my neck, I didn’t blend in well with the sea of tattoos and colored hair…but the bouncers always took me under their wing and allowed me on stage to shoot the shows.  These clubs were my training ground for photographing live music.

All the images below were taken within the last month at Farm Aid in Kansas City, Kansas; Cain’s Ballroom in Tulsa, Oklahoma (one of the few venues the Sex Pistols played on their only American tour in 1978); and On The Waterfront in Rockford, Illinois.

Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson

Neil Young

Neil Young

Neil Young

Neil Young

John Mellencamp

John Mellencamp

John Mellencamp

Dave Matthews

Dave Matthews

Tim Reynolds

Jakob Dylan

Jason Mraz

Ray Price

Will Dailey

Lukas Nelson

Rebecca Pidgeon

Congressman Dennis Kucinich

Trevor Hall

Trevor Hall

Trevor Hall

Matisyahu

Matisyahu

Matisyahu

Matisyahu

Matisyahu

Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots

Stone Temple Pilots

Hope you enjoy the photographs!

How did we get this shot?

Shooting in the middle of a busy street is always a concern: don’t get hit by a car, don’t let your model get hit by a car, don’t fall in an open manhole…stuff like that.  I wanted this image to be shot at dusk so timing was an issue.  When shooting dusk images, I prefer to have everything set up and ready to go well ahead of the setting sun just to reduce the stress if any problems arise.  This image had four flashes with gels converting the flash to tungsten-balanced light, and I shot in tungsten white balance in the camera.  The main light was above Tim in a softbox, creating the street light effect on him.  I had another softbox to the camera left creating a fill light on his body.  The last two lights where used to create the glow behind Tim as if the blinking barricade light was illuminating him.  The shutter was dragged to 1/6 of a second to allow for the ambient light and cars to bleed into the image.

Check out this video of the shoot or click this link to view it in your browser:

Planning an architectural shoot involves lots of steps: from gaining access to the building, to figuring out how to turn on the lights and keep them on (the days of light switches have long since been replaced with motion timers).  Blocking off the parking lot so cars are not in your shot is always a feat (it’s akin to herding cats).  Once you have secured the building (so to speak) you are ready to start shooting, weather permitting.  I use up to a dozen weather websites and programs to average the predicted weather of the city where we’ll be shooting.  Weather is certainly the biggest unknown factor in architectural photography.

When you are ready to shoot, the time of day (and year) and quality of light are the two most important aspects to consider when it comes to architecture.  The photographs of this project would have been unsuccessful if it had not been sunny and clear out while the photographs were taken.  The exteriors were taken on two occasions: one at dusk and one early on a Sunday morning.  The interior was taken on a separate day, and the sky had to be blue or the atrium would have looked dreary and flat.   The project is great addition to the architectural landscape of the Rockford area and we were pleased to be part of it.

Contractor: Scandroli Construction

Architect: Larson & Darby

To see more architectural photography click here.

The thing I love most about my job is that I get to meet fascinating people and share a glimpse into their world.  In order to create a portrait, there is a trust that must also be created between photographer and subject: the subject has to have faith in your ability to capture a honest portrait of them or the partnership does not work.  Artist/craftsman Jim Julin gave us that opportunity when we photographed him in his studio last week.  Entering Jim’s studio causes sensory overload…he has collected found objects for decades ranging from tree trunks, to buoy markers from the Mississippi River, to deer antlers.  Every square inch is covered with a layer of fresh sawdust, including Jim’s beard!  He says his work is born out of a combination of old world Swedish craftsmanship, the simplicity of the Japanese aesthetic, and a touch of Dr. Seuss.  Jim has an exhibition at the Rockford Art Museum this summer starting August 26, and running through January 8, 2012…I would highly recommend you check it out.

How did we get this shot?

This was a tricky shot to get for two reasons: the space was tight to work in, and all the lighting was mixed florescent.  We used three flashes with gels converting them to florescent light and shot in florescent white balance in the camera.  We have our main light to the right of the subject (behind the tree trunk) shooting through a softbox.  The second light is bouncing off the floor to open up the shadows in the lower part of the scene.  The last light is behind the camera position bounced off the ceiling via a Lumiquest Quickbounce to open up the antlers in the lower right.  We dragged the exposure to allow the ambient light to help the with mood.

Rockford, Illinois

Limited to 16 participants

Enjoy this rare photographic opportunity to spend the weekend in North America’s finest Japanese Garden.  May is the best time of year to photograph the gardens, when flowers abound and the flora is coming to life.  This weekend workshop gives you the unique ability to photograph the gardens free from ordinary visitors, and learn advanced techniques in photography and digital processing in a breathtaking setting.  In addition to field instruction, participants will benefit from classroom time and critiques, and enjoy delicious lunches from the restaurant at Anderson Gardens.

• Over a dozen acres of garden to explore and photograph
• Dramatic two-story waterfall that cascades down boulders into a pool of colorful Koi fish
• Countless other water features including smaller waterfalls and intimate streams meandering through the garden
• Dozens of species of meticulously sculpted trees, shrubs and perennials, many in bloom
• Two pristine ponds with active wildlife
• Authentic Japanese Tea house and Guest house along with other architectural features
• Full access to the entire garden with your camera and tripod

This workshop is open to photographers of all levels with a basic working knowledge of their camera and equipment as a minimum requirement for enrollment.  This is not a basic photography class, but a workshop focused on how to improve and enhance your skills both photographically and digitally.

$475 per person

Click here for more information

Email:  info@nelsakerlund.com or call 815.395.0101 for more information.

Buckles enlisted in the United States Army at the age of 16 in August of 1917, after convincing the recruiters that he was 18 years old.  During the war Buckles served in England and France, working as a warehouse clerk and driving ambulances and motorcycles for the Army’s 1st Fort Riley Casual Detachment.  After the war Buckles attended business school in Oklahoma City and then worked as Chief Purser for the White Star Line steamship company (of Titanic fame) in South America, Europe, and Asia.  In 1940 Buckles went to work for another shipping company in Manila in the Philippines. It was there that he became a WWII POW after he was captured by the Japanese in 1942 and spent the next three and a half years in the Los Baños prison camp.  He became malnourished, his weight fell below 100 pounds, and he developed beriberi, yet continued to lead his fellow inmates in calisthenics.  He was rescued on February 23, 1945 in one of the most daring rescue operations in modern military history.

After World War II, he moved to San Francisco, where he married Audrey Mayo in 1946. In the mid-1950s, he retired from steamship work and bought the 330-acre Gap View Farm in West Virginia where he raised cattle.  His wife died in 1999 and their daughter Susannah moved back to the farm to care for him.

In his final years, Buckles became the public face of a movement to designate a national World War I veterans’ memorial in Washington, D.C.

Frank died February 27 at his home in West Virginia at the age of 110.  He will be buried with full military honors, which consists of a caisson, escort platoon, casket team, firing party, and a lone bugler playing the military hymn “Taps.”  Soldiers from the U.S. Army’s 3rd Infantry Regiment, the “Old Guard” (the oldest active-duty infantry unit in the Army) will conduct the military honors.

It really was our privilege to have met him.

Frank Buckles at age 108

Franks military issue cup and belt from World War I

Frank at age 16 in 1917 (photo on right)

Anna showing Frank and his daughter the portrait we took of him

Frank and Anna critiquing his photo

Arlington Cemetery