Field Notes
February 2017
Class Magazine in Italy used these Mark Kelley images for this beautiful layout in their Alaska story. WOW!
February 2017
Every other year I participate in the NANPA Showcase Photo Competition. NANPA, the North American Nature Photography Association, is North America’s preeminent nature photography organization. For the 2017 Showcase Competition 369 Photographers submitted a total of 3350 images. Three Mark Kelley images made it in the top 20! I am happy the image “Bald Eagle Fire”, shot in Adak, Alaska, made Best in Show. The image is a great example of why I like to sometimes call myself a nature photojournalist.
February 2017
Every fall Pete Huberth used to come by the office for calendars. Pete mailed over 20 Mark Kelley calendars all over the world. This February 2017 our good friend Pete passed away. We will miss you, Pete!
October 2016
Glad to meet up with all the great folks that make Alaska the best place for a visit.
Thank you Alaska Travel Industry Association! I joined Gwen Horchover from Entrée Alaska on the train to Palmer.
August 2016
It is an honor to have been selected for a Mayor’s Award for the Arts this year. Read more at the Juneau Empire. The celebration for the awards is Aug. 19, 5:30–7:30 p.m. at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center. There will be live music, election of new JAHC board members, and award presentation, among other things. The event is free; anyone can attend.
June 2016
A fun shot of a sea otter in Frederick Sound, taken during a recent photo expedition with great new friends. A big thank you goes out to captain Ronn Patterson of the Delphinus and Dolphin Charters.
May 2016
I placed first in this year’s Showcase 2016, the 24th annual photo contest. The fun news is that the first place prize is two round-trip, first class tickets to anywhere they fly…hmm, Costa Rica or Hawaii, tough decisions! I call this photo “OMG Glacier Calve”: As the Johns Hopkins Glacier calves, a kayaker paddles away from the massive falling ice blocks. The long lens that I was using compresses one’s distance perspective and makes things seem closer together than they really are. It seems unbelievable, but to my surprise the kayaker just appeared in front of the glacier as it started its massive calve. The kayaker was not hurt or even in danger. There are two rules of photography at work here in this image: Serendipity happens (1), and, if you don’t go you will never get the photo (2), so go out there! Thanks for visiting and thank you, Alaska Airlines
March, 2016
The Memorial Maria Luisa Photo Contest is an International Mountain, Nature, and Adventure Photo Contest. Winners in the 26 MML were selected from 16,000 entries by 1772 photographers from 79 countries. Just six Americans made the winners’ list and I am honored to be the only American with four Honorable Mentions. My entry Denali Dream received an honorable mention and is also the book cover of the newly released second edition of the Alaskan bestseller Alaska: A Photographic Excursion. The entry Glacier Calve OMG is the cover of my 2017 Alaska Calendar. Some beautiful winning images and all four Mark Kelley entries can be viewed in this twenty minute 26 MML-Photo Video (at 1:02, 3:18, 4:00, and 6:45) ,and during the 26 MML travelling exhibit in Spain. Thank you for visiting markkelley.com!
February 2016
Thanks for all who came to my show at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center. This year’s Fireside Chat titled “Thinking Photos” focused a bit more on the technical aspects of photography. I especially wanted to share my insights with members of the Juneau Photo Group, who post such amazing photos on Facebook for all of us to enjoy. My way of saying thank you, and for keeping up the great work!
February 2016
“Ode to Glacier Bay”- The February 2016 issue of Alaska Magazine features a special cruise section, and it would not be complete without a section on Glacier Bay. The magazine chose an excerpt by author Sherry Simpson, from my Glacier Bay National Park book, and illustrated with Mark Kelley Photography images. Thank you Alaska Magazine.
January, 2016
It is done! Am very happy with a fully updated Second Edition of my photo book “Alaska: A Photographic Excursion – 2nd Edition”
January 2016
I have been photographing Glacier Bay for over 35 years, and this last summer was the first time I was able to get really close to Johns Hopkins Glacier. As soon as we got there on July 5, Johns Hopkins started going off like the 4th of July fireworks. In the space of two hours we had at least seven major calvings. This image is the first calving and I just pulled up and shot. I was shooting my Nikon 80-400mm in DX mode which gave me the equivalent of a 600mm lens. Everything happened so quickly, I did not even see the kayakers in the frame. What a PATAGONIA moment!
