Denali National Park, Sunrise Wonder Lake, Alaska…Cover Image of my Book, “Alaska: A Photographic Excursion” – Image #2906

This image was shot on the same morning I shot last week’s web image, #2905. This photo was taken about 45 minutes later when the first rays of sunrise started to light up the top of Denali and other peaks in the Alaska Range. I chose this image for the cover of my Alaska book over the previous one and still wonder if it was the right decision. Both of them would work, but I could only pick one. Did I choose correctly and what is your preference? 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. Thank you for visiting. Camera: Nikon F5, Lens: 20-35mm f/4 zoom, Fuji Velvia: 35 film – Copyright Mark Kelley 2006