Denali National Park, Pre-Dawn Wonder Lake, Alaska – Image # 2905

I took this photo from the north-end of Wonder Lake in Denali National Park while staying at Camp Denali in 2006. Camp Denali is the only place in the park where one can see Denali, or Mt. McKinley, 24 hours per day. Denali is famous for only showing itself about 25-30% of the time. Its view often clears up for just short periods and the entrance of the park is a ten-plus-hour round-trip bus ride away. I arrived for this shoot at 5:30 in the morning and by 7:30 clouds had covered the mountain range. During my weeklong stay at Camp Denali, I ended up with just one clear morning. The photo shoot was part of my upcoming book, “Alaska: A Photographic Excursion” and Denali had to be on the cover. Whenever shooting a sunrise image, I like to show up at least an hour before dawn in order to watch the light because the pre-dawn light can be exquisite. This image was shot in that wonderful pre-dawn light and was in the running for the cover of my book. Alas, I chose another shot from the same morning shoot. Next week, I will show the cover shot and let you decide which one you would have picked. Thank you for visiting. Camera: Nikon F5, Lens: 20-35mm f/4 zoom,  Fuji Velvia: 35 film – Copyright Mark Kelley 2006