Rankin Inlet, Nunavut to Ferguson Lake

I spent last night at the CoOp hotel in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.  Rankin Inlet is a very small community which got it's start back in 1957 with the discovery of Nickel.  The hotel had less quality than a motel 6 and yet it cost $235.00 a night!

Had a wonderful flight this morning out to Ferguson Lake in a Twin Otter aircraft.  I was the only passenger on board along with about 2500 or so pounds of drilling mud and pipe as well as some camp supplies.  The flight was about 1 hour and 15 minute northwest of Rankin Inlet.

Then landscape was spectacular, the closest way I can think of describing it is as follows:  Say you are looking at a surface of a completely soaked sponge.  The edges of the cells of the sponge would be the land mass and the cells are of course filled with water.  There was more water than land, bodies of water in all sorts of shapes and sizes.

In the winter months when the land and water are covered with ice and snow, Ice Truckers make the trek to the mining camp.  As a matter of fact, the Discovery program Ice Truckers has been filmed up here in the Rankin Inlet area.

Ferguson Lake is just beautiful, water is clear and the wide life is abundant.  No fishing is allowed while in camp, they have hugh lake trout and other I can't remember.  Here is a look at the lake from the airstrip we landed on.

After arriving, we unloaded the plane, and than rode a helicopter to the camp.  They use a helicopter around here for everything.  No roads out here, no trucks only Quad's and snowmobiles with they don't use this time of year.

I logged about 2 hours in the copter today and most likely another 2 or 3 tomorrow.  They have two rigs drilling close by and some really scenic areas for shooting some surveying and exploration shots using geologists as models.

I'll leave you with this one shot from today.  While out flying to a location to photograph a surveyor, we spotted these two guy's.  GIZZLY!  The start of this journey can be found HERE

Travel Day-Rankin Inlet, Nunavut

I was up early this morning, about 4:30 AM. Not because I had a flight to catch but rather due to the unfamiliar surroundings.  If you travel a lot you know what I mean, bed doesn't feel the same, air conditioning noises plus the vestiges of sore throat.

This was the view from my hotel window at the Four Points Hotel across the street from the Winnipeg airport.  Sound proofing on these windows are incredible, woke to find several planes at their gates, yet I never heard them arrive.

Packing light and compact is the name of the game nowadays!  I have one checked bag and two carry on bags.  I carry a small backpack containing my laptop, cables, ipod, G9, travel documents, chargers and various cold medicines.  Did I mention that I am recovering from a major cold that I picked up while in PA last week.  The center bag is my new Think Tank International case and the blue bag on the right is my personal bag which is check.

I use this bag to carry my personal cloths and some equipment.  I bought this bag a couple of years ago at Costco and I find it very useful for this reason.  The bottom of the bag has a separate compartment where I can store my tripod and stands etc.

In this photo you can see the compartment I speak of.  The first thing you see here is a 5 in 1 collapsible reflector. The red and black articles are jackets I use to cushion the contents.

In this compartment I carry the following equipment. Tripod, one 8 foot stand, 43" collapsible umbrella, white translucent ripstop nylon sheet (silk), Justin Clamp, battery charger, grip equipment (black bag) and a sensor cleaning kit (gray bag on the right).

As far as camera equipment is concerned, let's take a look inside.  Before we do that, I want to mention that this is the first trip I've taken with my new Think Tank International bag.  I am very impressed with the quality of craftsmanship and attention to detail they put into this bag.

I'm carrying the following items in this case. 2 camera's (D2X, D300), 80-400 mm VR, 12-24 mm, 24-85 mm, 50 mm f/1.8 (love this lens), 85 mm f/1.4 (really love this lens), 10.5 mm, polarizer, 3 PocketWizards, (2) SB-800's, 8 spare AA batteries, WhiBal gray card, cleaning cloth and blower, a viewing Lupe, Lee Filter system, and a SC-29 cord.  In the inside lid of the case I carry 3 form flags/gobos for the SB's, gels for the SB's and 2 plastic foot stands for the SB's.  WOW  This case hold a boat load, and to think that it's the smaller international case.

I had planned on writing a bit about building and maintaining client relationships in this post but have decided to save that for later on this trip.  I've been told that they have internet connection at the man camp, if so I should be able to make a few posts.

I've arrived here in Rankin Inlet, managed to get out for a walk and a few pic's with the G9.  More tomorrow. DT 

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Travel Day-Winnipeg

Fairly short day today, flew from Denver to Winnipeg, MB Canada.  I am on my way to the Canadian Arctic to shoot some exploration drilling for a new client on mine.  I actually have two days of travel to get to my final destination of Ferguson Lake.

I'll be spending the night here in Winnipeg and tomorrow, I'll take a 3 1/2 hour flight to Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.  I'll have to spend tomorrow night in Rankin Inlet because flights to the man camp leaves at 7 AM and there are no flights that allow a connection so early in the morning.

You can see how far I have to travel just to get there.  I've never been this far north before and I am really looking forward to being there.  At this time of year the sun is up for 18 1/2 hours, sunrise at 4 AM and sunset 10:30 PM.

Since I'm traveling along on this assignment, I've packed very light in terms of equipment.  Tomorrow I'll show you what I've packed for this trip and I'll talk a bit about the importance of maintaining professional relationships with your clients.  I am shooting this assignment as a direct result of past relations with the president of the company I'm shooting for. 

Lancaster County, PA

What a wonder place to visit! The scenery is stunning and the photo opportunities are plentiful. I'm back from a week vacation in the Amish land of Lancaster County, PA. Spent a week in Strusburg, PA doing the tourist stuff, Independence Hall, Liberty Bell, Eastern State Penitentiary and the Mutter Museum in Philadelphia, Also spent a day in the historic town of Gettysburg looking at battle grounds and learning some new history.

One of the really fun things that I did was to go on a ghost hunt at the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia.  I had an opportunity to walk the dark hallways of the old place, the prison was build in the early 1800's.  Very Creepy!

Using a tripod, I shot this 6 second exposure of the guard tower,  I added a bit of light using my flashlight during the exposure. 

This is what the place looks like during daylight hours.  Long hallways with small cells on either side. It's really a cool place to visit if you have the chance.

As I mentioned earlier, the scenery around Lancaster County, PA is beautiful.  Here are some of the results from an outing shooting sunrise.  I only had one opportunity to shoot a sunrise and one sunset but I'm happy with what I came back with.

I might also mention that I have 3 more spots open for the August 23 Small Strobes, Big Results workshop in Denver.  If your interested in attending, please contact me soon. DT

A Few Spaces Left

There are just a few spaces left for both the August 2nd and August 23 Small Strobes, Big Results lighting workshop in Denver.

Don't miss out, if you've been thinking about it, it's time to act. Give me a call or drop me an email so I can hold a spot for you. I'll be traveling this next week and than up to the Canadian Arctic on assignment.

My intern, Ian recently shot some photos for some friends of his for a wedding announcement. Ian did not want to shoot the typical announcement photos of a hugging and kissing couple. He only agreed to do so if he could have complete creative control over the photos. These are not your typical announcement photos for sure.

I mention this because from what I've seen thus far, the photos are outstanding and are worth bring them to your attention. Ian knows the couple through his part time work at a local restaurant and after learning more about their interests, Ian came up with several photographic idea's for their announcement. I might also add that the announcement will be in the form of a web site rather than a printed piece. Ian came up with 6 photo concepts, he's finished 3 of the 6.

Ian is fairly new to lighting, He used my Qflash with one of my home made beauty dishes. Anyway, I just realized that he has posted a lighting diagram on his blog. Please take a look at these photos, let him know what you think.

You might say that Ian has taken my Small Strobes, Big Results workshop to heart! Nice work Ian, proud of you. DT

New Flash - Death Valley Mentor Series

It's now official, I've joined the Popular Photography/American PHOTO Mentor Series as an instructor.  I'm thrilled to join such an outstanding group of Mentors such as Dave Black, Joe McNally, Tony Sweet, Doug Menuez and many others.

Photographer/instructor Bill Durrence and I will be leading a winter trek to Death Valley, CA.  The trek is scheduled for February 18th through the 22nd. 2009.  I am very honored and excited to be part of the Mentor Series and hope that it will develop into a long term relationship.