Onyxpected

Oh Wow.

Wow wow wow wow wow.

Tonight we had Derek Hawes and his better half in to entertain us for the evening.

Derek is a member of the camera club that gave us a sound thrashing yesterday, but we didn't hold that against him for to long.

His evening was called Alaska. Derek is a nature photographer so his subjects for tonight were Bears, Salmon, Eagles Whales and Ice.

I'm sorry for those of you that missed it. The shots and stories that made up the first half of the evening concentrated around the Katmai National Park and its inlets. His trip had taken in the salmon run season, so we had incredible photos of bears and eagles picking on the poor salmon as they made their way home. I can't even imagine getting within twenty feet of a bear without bicycle clips, or even closer to a Bald Eagle. The back drop to this adventure was stunning too.

The second half of the show was again split into two halves. The first part centered around Juno and a huge glacier close by. His aerial shots didn't do it justice but hopping in a boat really brought home the size and beauty that can be attained. Incredible Ice sculptured by nature. Then he took us down to Frederick sound to 'chase' humpback whales. I've always admired Bob Talbot's photos of whale tails, but these were something else. You could almost smell the salt water and touch the whales themselves. Well done, sir, well done.

Anybody want to buy a camera