Celebration 2010, Juneau, Alaska – Image 2745

Celebration is a biennial gathering of Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian tribal members organized every two years by Sealaska Heritage Institute. Held in Juneau on the even years, the festival attracts thousands of participants for a four-day celebration of dance and culture in early June. It has become the largest cultural gathering of Southeast Alaska natives in the world. June 2012 will mark its 16th anniversary. I have shot the event on and off since its inception in 1982. In 2010, I decided to shoot the main stage celebration in Centennial Hall with my 500mm f/4 and new Wimberley tripod head. I wanted the intimacy a long telephoto would give me. The lighting was horrible and miserably dark. I shot a lot and threw away a lot because of a combination of a show shutter speed and dance movement made for many unsharp images. But, there were some really wonderful images that came out of a really difficult conditions. The experiment of shooting with the really long lens worked and this image is my favorite from the shoot. The image illustrates the month of June in my 2012 Juneau Alaska Calendar. Enjoy the photo and thanks for visiting. Camera body: Nikon D700, Lens: Nikkor 500mm f/4 Digital Capture, ISO 2000© Mark Kelley