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Alaskan locals photograph strange column of smoke and provoke conspiracy theories but there’s a simple explanation

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“It looks like something out of a Peter Jackson movie,” says one commenter. “A wormhole portal to another dimension” suggests another. Various musings about an aircraft going down, a rocket launch, meteors and alien invasions ensue. But what exactly did residents of Lazy Mountain, Alaska photograph?

From the images, it appears to be a column of smoke reaching down to the horizon. However, it looks nothing like any normal aircraft contrail that you would normally see. As rumour grew of a potential crash State Troopers moved in to investigate.

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Chinese rocket blasts in the sky photobombing aurora in Alaska

When someone mentions photobombing, I usually think of those annoying friends who ruin every shot. However, some photobombs can actually be pretty cool (I mean, just check this owl and this crow).

But it’s not only animals that make the best photobombs. Aurora Chasers’ Alaska Aurora Cam recently captured a Chinese rocket in the middle of filming aurora borealis. The lucky incident ended in a pretty epic video, with the team also explaining what happened.

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How to shoot Northern lights with a handheld smartphone

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Smartphones are getting smarter with every new generation, and so are their cameras. But when you combine a good photographer and a good smartphone, the sky is the limit. Quite literally. Zach Honig of The Points Guy recently shot magnificent Northern lights with nothing but his iPhone, handheld at a 3s exposure. He shared his experience and some photos with DIYP, so let’s see how he did it.

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Watch a bear sit next to a photographer: it’s both heartwarming and terrifying

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Ah, wildlife photography… What a great way to take some gorgeous shots while also enjoying nature. You sit there, enjoy peace, quiet and beautiful weather, think about stuff, hang out with a bear… Wait, what?

Yup, while he was taking photos, photographer Drew Hammond had a visit from a large bear who approached and sat beside him. It seems like the bear wanted to enjoy the beautiful day himself, and the scene is both adorable and scary as hell.

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Photographer Spotlight: Q&A With Willie Dalton – Outdoor Lifestyle Photographer

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Next in our ongoing Photographer Spotlight series it’s Willie Dalton.

Willie is an Anchorage, Alaska based travel and outdoor lifestyle photographer, film maker and a contributing creative professional at Akela Collective. Willie is also a stock photography contributor at Stocksy United.

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Photographer Hopes To Draw Attention To Global Warming With Magnificent Polar Photos

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What started as a journey to capture the icebergs and splendor of the Arctic and Antarctica has become a photographer’s attempt to battle climate change with her photos.

Camille Seaman spent a decade photographing icebergs and wildlife in some of the harshest environments on Earth until she decided to stop her polar trips in 2011, as there was almost no ice left.

“There was nothing on the radar for ice,” said the San Francisco bases photographer, adding that they could have continued sailing to the North Pole had they had enough fuel.

“I can’t say making a photo is very important. In fact I feel sad it’s all I can do. But that’s what I can do so that’s what I’m gonna do”.

While the evidence that humans are responsible for the global climate change is overwhelming, even non-believers will enjoy Seaman’s fascinating photos.

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Awesome Timelapse of North America Made With A Custom 3D Printed Dolly (And How You Can Print Your Own)

After 12 months of hiking through California, North Carolina, Georgia, and Alaska the team behind Upthink Lab have released a five minute long timelapse of their adventures that features some pretty impressive moments. Wanderment is meant to create a juxtaposition between the different landscapes of North America, a purpose the filmmakers pushed further by switching between color and black and white footage throughout the clip (all of which is in 4k).

You’ll be treated to an array of vivid landscapes in addition to some really cool macro slow motion of growing mushrooms, which is reason enough to watch the timelapse. There’s also an interesting transition at about 1:52 where the camera makes a fluid transition from underwater to above the surface. The shot was captured with a Canon T3i (with Magic Lantern) in an underwater housing mounted on a custom motion control dolly.[Read More…]

Photographer Captures Firebird Looking Aurora At Alaska

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When we feature Hawaiian photographer CJ Kale it is usually when he is under (or) over a wave at sunny Hawaii. Even when shooting hot lava he is wearing a swimsuit and in the water. In a 180 degrees change of scenery, CJ traveled to Alaska to document the Aurora Peak which accrued in 2013. The next peak is going to be at around 2022, a good 8 years from now.

Going out of his comfort zone, CJ captured the most wonderful northern aurora photos including one that amazingly resembles a Phoenix rising from Ashes.

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