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How To Capture Your Alaskan Vacation, According To An Alaskan Photographer

Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner

Going to Alaska is a major adventure -- the scenery, the climate, the cuisine, the people -- everything in the 49th State is at least a little different than in the Lower 48. And whether you're exploring the Last Frontier by water, land or air (or likely, a combination of all three), you're probably going to want to capture every single moment. Or as many as you can. Forbes enlisted Alaska born-and-raised photographer Bex Farleigh to share a few pro tips on getting like-worthy Instagrams during your Alaskan vacation.

What are the best photography tools to bring along for photography on a trip to Alaska

The best camera is the one you have with you, so if it's your iPhone, use it! If you have a DSLR or another camera, get familiar with the settings and options you have available to you before you go on your trip. Learn the basics of how to utilize aperture, shutter speed, ISO, and types of lenses to achieve the final product you're looking for. If you're shooting wildlife and animals, look for lenses with longer focal lengths. If you want to capture wide, encompassing photos, use your wider angle lenses. The more you know about the basics of photography, the better product you're going to make. your Use your camera or iPhone and a lot! You don't want to miss the opportunity to make a photo.

Which iPhone settings or editing modes do you recommend?

Your iPhone settings completely depend on what you're trying to achieve. It's fun to play with the depth of field options offered in Portrait Mode. iPhones shoots really wide, so you're able to capture a lot in one frame. I use apps like VSCO and Snapseed to edit my photos: you can tweak everything to make your photo look more produced than it is straight out of camera and it adds a lot of style and professionalism.

What are some common mistakes you see people making in Alaska that prevent them from capturing a better photo?Spending thousands of dollars on camera equipment to have the "best gear", but failing to learn how to utilize the gear to the fullest potential.

A lot of Alaskan sites are extreme- large (mountains!), fast (mushing!), dark (the Northern Lights!): Do you have suggestions for capturing these moments digitally?

First and foremost, you have to go to Alaska at the right time of year for what you want to see: If you want to see the Northern Lights, be sure to go in the dead of winter and bring a tripod and a camera that can be adjusted to use low shutter speeds and high ISO. Capturing the mountains and mushing tend to be a little easier, you can use a DSLR camera or alternatively just shoot with your iPhone. 

Is there an ideal time of day for photography in Alaska?It depends on what time of year you're going to Alaska and what you want to shoot! If you're shooting in the winter and looking for Northern Lights, you're going to want to shoot in the middle of the night. That being said, in the summer you get light all day and pretty much all night. If you can, go to your favorite spots at sunrise and golden hour, they last a long time and they're stunning.

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