Over winter break, I was lucky enough to photograph the eastern Sierra from a new perspective – from the air! A special thanks to the pilot Pat Armstrong.
We departed from the Bishop airport around 6:30 a.m. and were in the air just before sunrise. The flight over Bishop and the Tableland was smooth, but became bumpy once we neared Wheeler Crest. We flew along the crest and eventually around Mount Tom, Basin Mountain, and Mount Humphreys. As we flew over Pine Creek, the plane danced, like a feather in the wind – tipping, bouncing, and dropping. But I had become so overwhelmed with the views of Elderberry Canyon, I didn’t care. Although the wind forced us to lower elevations, the views were spectacular! This should be official scenic tour of the Sierra.
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Last week I went on a hike near the base of Wheeler Crest in search of a heard of Big Horn Sheep. As a result of the recent snow, the sheep were forced to find food at lower elevations. Lucky for me, this meant less hiking and more photography. With the help of Ali and Jeff Ostergard, I was fortunate enough to find, observe, and photograph these unique animals. Here are a few of my shots. Enjoy!
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The Ethan Thompson Band is a classic rock/jazz group based out of Missoula, MT. Last spring, I helped the group film their Folgers Jingle which eventually took them to New York where they won $25,000.
Over the past several months, Ethan and the crew have been recording an album and more recently took a trip to Los Angeles to film an official Folgers Coffee commercial.
There album can be found on Itunes and the website (designed by Pollini Productions) should be up and running soon! Check out the links!
Folgers Jingle
Official Contest Recap
Ethan Thompson Band
Itunes Album
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Aside from the recognition received from Astronomy Magazine, I also submitted several photos to a small photo contest. I took first prize for what I believe is my “Winter Sunrise Over Farmers Pond,” but the image “Stormy Sunset over Palisade Lakes and Mount Bolton Brown” also received some acclaim. I capture the image of Palisade Lakes on my JMT adventure. The stories behind both images are included in the following links, I will let you decide the winning image
Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce Photo Contest December Newsletter
Inyo Register’s Article regarding Lone Pine Photo Contest
© Alex Pollini
© Alex Pollini
Astronomy Magazine Screenshot
The photo of the Milky Way Galaxy over the Whitney Shelter was taken at the end of my journey on the John Muir Trail. I had thought about spending the night on the top of Whitney before setting out to complete the trail, but was uncertain if it would be safe for a solo hiker. A day before the final stretch I met a couple from Quebec and a hiker from Crowley Lake that also had the desire to catch the sunrise at the top of the tallest peak in the contiguous United States. With a common goal, we headed to the top. From Shepard’s Plateau (behind Mt. Williamson) to the top of Whitney made a for a 16 mile day with about 4,000 ft of elevation gain. I made the summit first and had about an hour of solitude before the others arrived. Having the summit to myself was exhilarating and empowering. The joy of completing the trail combined with the fatigue and utter exhaustion is a feeling I will never forget. While the other hikers weren’t reluctant to jump into bed after dinner, I set out on another mission, to capture the Milky Way and Mt. Whitney Shelter.
I had a several years of experience capturing the night skies, but without an equatorial tripod I relied on a high ISO and noise reduction to photograph the stars and the shelter. Being only a couple days after the Perseid Meteor Shower, I was fortunate enough to capture a meteor in the image. This photo was featured as Astronomy Magazine’s “Photo of the Day” on August 17th.
Milky Way and Mt. Whitney Shelter ©Alex Pollini
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Get Flash.So here are some photos of my journey from Yosemite National Park to Mt. Whitney (211 miles). The the opening landscapes, the towering granite peaks, the clean mountain water, the abundant wildlife, the sunrise/sunset on top of Whitney, the grueling Forester’s Pass, the powdered mashed potatoes, the friends I made on the trail and the list goes on. It was an experience I will always cherish. Hopefully I will return for a second round. Fun Fact: I recently discovered the elevation gain over the course of the trail is something near 45,000 feet.
Hey Everyone!
As an avid photographer and filmmaker I am always taking photos, making movies, designing animations, etc. Unfortunately few of these make the cut for the official portfolio so I thought it would be fun to share these works in different environment. I hope to get the blog up and running in the next month so stay tuned!
Thanks guys!
Alex
