Harbor Mountain, Sitka, Alaska – Image 2793

I went to the top of Harbor Mountain in Sitka in hopes of spending the night to shoot northern lights. There is a great website managed by the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks that gives viewers a northern light forecast (http://www.gi.alaska.edu/AuroraForecast). According to the forecast, the probability of northern lights was high. The northern lights never appeared, and I hiked down the mountain at 3am guided by the light from my headlamp. While waiting for the night, this incredible sunset happened. As a general rule, I hardly ever go out shooting just to shoot. I usually have an idea or concept in my head. More often than not my preconceived notion did not work, but some surprise came along that I could not have anticipated that made my day. This image illustrates the month of February in my Southeast Alaska 2013 Calendar. Enjoy the photo and thanks for visiting. Camera body: D700, Lens: Nikkor 16-35mm f/4/ Digital capture/ ISO 200 © Mark Kelley