Humpback Whale Breach, Inside Passage, Alaska #3365

As a child I always dreamed of seeing a whale. I moved to Juneau to become its newspaper’s first full-time photojournalist in August 1979. In November I found myself running along the icy docks of the Coast Guard downtown station with my heart pumping wildly, chasing a humpback for my first image of a whale.  Since then, my childhood wish has morphed into a full-on photographic passion. Here, an adult humpback whale breaches by launching its entire body out of the water. It is hard to imagine, but a humpback can weigh between 25 to 40 tons and grow to between 40 to 50 feet long (the size of a school bus). This image is featured in the 2025 Alaska Calendar, now available at markkelley.com and in your Juneau stores. Thank you for visiting and for the gift of your time, enjoy! Camera Nikon D850, Lens 80-400mm, Digital Capture, ©Mark Kelley