Posted by Florian – April 6, 2010
Wrapped in layers of clothes I am laying on my stomach, watching a large group of longhaired beasts, that seemed to be from a prehistoric world. The wind has picked up in the course of the night to 40 miles and hour. It whips up the mountain sides and sweeps up small ice crystals that hit my skin like needles. In different areas blowing snow becomes thick and travels across the ground like a ghost of fog.
As parts of my face start to get colder and want to turn numb; and my hands can’t handle my camera anymore, I am thinking how lucky I am to be hit with this weather. It is these types of conditions, that I was hoping for. In my photography I really want to convey a sense of place – take people out into the field with me. For that, my images need to convey the harsh weather conditions, the powerful elements of the wind and the cold.
I am laying on the ground to get a unique perspective. The blowing snow creates this mystical atmosphere and ads to my interpretation of an animal that rather belongs to a children’s fairytale than to this world. I also have learned that the Muskoxen are much less mindful of my presence if I stay low to the ground. They often just eye me with curiosity.
As I am out there observing them many hours a day, I become ever more fascinated. What puzzles me the most is how they can live of a few lichen on the barren tundra, that they scratch up from underneath the snow. How can they possibly receive sufficient energy from this bit of vegetation to withstand constant arctic winter conditions?
What gets me even more, is that I seem to always find them on the most exposed and windy spots on the mountain sides and hilltops. They appear completely indifferent to the wind and the cold. It becomes obvious how well they have adapted to their environment. Their wool apparently has 6 times the insulating qualities of regular wool. No wonder they stay warm.
I am wrapped in several layers of underwear, polar fleece and outer shells that keep me warm. I had never paid much attention to high-tech clothes in the past. Part of that was probably the price tag: out of reach for a broke photographer who spends all of his money on camera gear. This time around however, I had received a sample of Patagonia´s winter clothes. I have to say I was totally impressed. The combination of inside layers and outer shells completely kept any wind from getting to me. It allowed me to hang out with the muskox patiently waiting for those special moments that make up a great image.
Posted in: Adventure, Alaska, Arctic, Experience, Photography, wilderness, Wildlife | Tagged: Alaska, Arctic, Florian Schulz, musk oxen, muskox, Photography, wilderness, Wildlife, wildlife photography, winter
Posted by Florian – July 20, 2009
Dreaming is such a wonderful thing. It lets our mind unfold in an entirely hopeful fashion. No fears of failure or negativity. It seems that the older I have grown, the more I dare to dream. It unleashes an incredible amount of energy. When I dreamed off the arctic in the past it was the thoughts of a wast unspoiled wilderness filled with resilient life. A landscape so unknown and big, that my imagination could run free creating a fascinating sense of wonder and desire to explore. As wilderness is shrinking around the world, we need such wilderness, that is not disrupted with mines and drilling rigs. We need it, to simply give our mind and spirit the Freedom to Roam!
By the hundreds of thousands members of the Western Arctic Caribou Herd fill valley after valley, Nikon D3x, 24-70mm f2.8
Barren Ground Grizzly wandering the edge of the Arctic Refuge. Nikon D3x, 600mm f4 VR lens
Far away from the centers of our civilization lies a land of wonder, where hundreds of thousands of caribou roam the plains, where myriads of birds migrate to rear their chicks and where the kingdoms of grizzly and polar bears meet. It is America’s vast Arctic, far removed from the rest of the world, but heavily affected by humankind.
Thousands of murres gather on pools on the ice awaiting the nesting season on the nearby cliffs; Nikon D3x, 70-200mm f2.8
A large lead opens in the Chuckchi Sea between Pt. Hope and Cape Lisburne; Nikon D3x, 24-70mm f2.8
For many years environmental organizations have fought for the protection of the Alaskan arctic, but as the energy crisis worsens, pressure is driving Congress to open this wilderness sanctuary to oil drilling and mining operations. As part of my Freedom to Roam project in connection with the Blue Earth Alliance and Braided River Books, I am working to produce photographic material in support of the Arctic Conservation Campaign. With compelling imagery I hope we can reach Congress and the general public by showing a true portrait of a land often called a “barren wasteland”.
Sea ice landscape at the edge of the lead. Nikon D3x, 14-24mm f2.8
A polar bear roams the edge of the packice in the Chuckchi Sea. Nikon D300, 200-400mm f4 + TC/E 1.4
After spending many months on the ground amongst hundreds of thousands of caribou, nesting birds and barren ground grizzlies in 2008, I realize, that the only way to cover this massive expanse of land is the aerial perspective. So in 2008 I started to plan a major “Arctic Aerial Expedition”, as part of the 2009 work on the Freedom to Roam project. The goal was to show wildlife in their environment, offering a true representation of the way animals depend on this interconnected ecosystem. My goal was to document the retreating sea ice, the platform for seals, walrus, birds and the polar bear as well as to document the 3 major caribou herds of the arctic slope.
I want to invite you to follow my blog as I am going to share with you some of the amazing experiences I had over the last weeks photographing Alaska`s Arctic. Please pass the info on to friends who are interested in wildlife, conservation, Alaska and photography.
Posted in: Adventure, Alaska, Conservation, Expeditions, Experience, Photography, wilderness, Wildlife | Tagged: aerial photography, aerials, Alaska, American Arctic, Arctic, arctic aerial expedition, arctic ocean, Conservation, Freedom to Roam, nature photography, nikon, Photography, polar bears, sea ice, seals, wilderness, Wildlife
Posted by Florian – July 14, 2009
It is the worst trying to hold the lens still, when you feel the mosquitos landing on your hand starting to sting
Remember this moment, when you peacefully lay in bed on a warm summer evening, you close your eyes and want to finally relax and slip off into dream world……. and then suddenly you hear this single little mosquito flying around your head. You hear the ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii ziiiiiiiiii coming closer to your face and you try to feel where this damn mosquito lands, so you can hit yourself over the head and hopefully smash the little bugger. Most of the time however your face may flinch in anticipation of the oncoming hand, giving this mosquito just enough time to escape its fate.
Well now multiply this mosquito by a thousand, NO! by tenthousand and you may be able to imagnine the kind of hell you might find yourself in on an arctic river in summer. The noise level of mosquitoes resembles a concert of dog wissles that are just within the realm of the human ear.
So you are still with me? – ok; then you imagine my idea to wade through a river and sit patiently in the tundra near a wolf den to see if I might get lucky to get a photograph. Well yeah, this is the thing with me. If I have a glimpse of hope, my will can be pretty strong. ( Read about my story on PATIENCE )
So what was I after? I had know about this wolf den the year before. Together with my pilot we checked the location this year again to confirm that the wolves were actually still present. We did one round over the den and saw a grey wolf peacefully resting on the river bank. I got one image and this observation gave me reason to come back. When we planned to come back in July we thought about mosquitoes; I bought a mosquito net last minute, because I had forgotten mine. Thank god! As we arrived at the river and flow over the den site we still saw a black wolf nearby. That wolf never even looked up but just shook his fir. It was a sign. As soon as we landed, we know what was going on. This poor creature was so miserable, it could care less what we were all about. Aerial wolf-hunters? Who cares! Put me out of this misery!
Grey Wolf watching the den. Nikon D3x, 70-200mm/f2.8
Good thing we were of the other kind! Longer story short: After crossing the river, I sat down near the den for a couple of hours. For some reason the mosquitoes always found away to work their ways to my skin. I tried to stay calm and the dream of the wolf images kept me pretty upbeat. The bigger problem for me was that I saw not much sign of activity on the river bank. The sand seemed not disturbed from tracks of playing wolf pups, nor was there an obvious path where they would emerge. I checked out different angles but I just could not convince myself that these wolves would ever appear in the open, if they were there at all. So I decided to leave, one of the many times where a hope for an image did not result in success.
Maybe it saved my life, that there were no fresh signs! With my stubbornness I may have stayed out there until the mosquitoes would have sucked the last drop of blood out of me and just left my dried up outer shell – mummified; of course with camera in hand.
Posted in: Adventure, Alaska, Expeditions, Experience, Photography, wilderness, Wildlife | Tagged: Adventure, Alaska, Arctic, determination, Florian Schulz, mosquitos, patience, Photography, summer, Wildlife, will, wolves
Posted by Florian – July 13, 2009
Grizzly on the coastal planes in the Alaskan Arctic
Hey everybody…….
I know I have been promising to write about my arctic aerial expedition. To tell you the truth, I am in kind of restless state where my thoughts are all over the place right now. The experience that I had in the arctic was so incredible. Some of the impressions were so profound, that I feel I cannot express it in a blog that I just write in a few minutes. I need to find a little more space first.
To get an idea of the vast arctic landscape touched me deeply. To see caribous by the hundred thousands was a long life dream of mine, that became reality in wonders that I hardly dared to imagine. I am aware that I see the last truly wild and wide ranging animals on this continent. I saw not caribou – I saw a larger organism: The herd as a whole.
I have some very difficult issues to go through right now and it is interesting how the landscape and the ancient rhythm of nature gave me not only a sense of place of being at home in nature and on this planet, but it also seemed to balance out some of the different realities we are living in. Nature is something very grounded, something pure and real. It gave me perspective. Maybe these are my spiritual moments. A friend just said to me: “When you are out there in wilderness – your are at church, Florian!” So much on this planet is full of wonder. I am fascinated to observe the interconnectedness of the natural world and to document some of the special moments I witness. It is a deep passion that seems to guide my life.
In our modern lives we are immersed in a very changed environment. Our realities change from city to city,work place, friends, peer groups and family. It is our sense of perception and those influences. If one spends more time in nature it seems one can find more to one`s self.
Up in the arctic I immersed myself into a world apart. When this grizzly wondered down towards the riverbed he stood tall catching his balance, I felt welcome to wilderness.
So be patient with me. I will write about this incredible adventure of witnessing the caribou, seals on the ice and the polar bear…… hopefully soon!
Posted in: Adventure, Alaska, Expeditions, Experience, Photography, wilderness, Wildlife | Tagged: Alaska, Experience, Florian Schulz, nature, spirituality, wilderness, Wildlife, wildlife photography
Posted by Florian – July 7, 2009
It is been a while since you have heard from me. After waiting for weeks for the weather to improve it suddenly all came together. We headed out on the arctic aerial expedition for the freedom to roam project. I am still in the middle of the whole adventure and just landed at Point Lonely. So how in the world would I have internet access? Point Lonely is a former Airforce Radar site. We had seen the landing strip as we had flown the coastline a few days before and took the opportunity at this point to “sit” the plane down and wait for the weather and especially light to improve.
We had no idea about what to expect or if even anyone was around. But quickly s.o. emerged from the bright red tower building and we were greated by a very nice foreman who turned out to be a bird biologist. The entire camp is being disassembled and a lot of contaminated soil removed by a special crew. We sat down in camp and learnt lots of interesting stories about birds and especially polar bears wondering along the coast.
Anyway, this is the long story behind the reason why I have a few minutes of internet in the middle of nowhere – at Point Lonely. And it is the same story of just having a few moments. Over night the fog rolled in. Now I have to be on “standby” to be ready to jump into the plane any moment the fog will give us the chance to take off. If we cannot, I might have the chance to write for the coming hours (or days) about my experiences.
What I want to share with you in short: I have seen a Arctic landscape come alive with hundreds of thousands of caribou, watched wolves chase across the tundra, thousands of seals on the ice-sheet and a lonely polar bear wonder the pack ice. As we were buzzing along with the plane it sometimes was hard to absorb and process all the impressions right that very second. I am so glad to have the images to come back to, where a single moment is frozen in time. It will give me a chance to understand what ALL I have seen. My expedition is coming to an end in a few days and after a quick edit, I will share with you some of the incredible moments I have witnessed. For now I better step outside and see what the fog does ……..
Visions of the 