Moose on The Loose

Here in Anchorage, the "locals" are on a constant move in the neighborhood.

Yesterday morning we captured this shot of Laurie Campbell (our Marketing Director) talking with a client as she watches a moose head down the street in front of the office.

This young guy is probably about three years old and this is possibly its first year on its own. However, he's not alone in Anchorage. Hundreds of moose make their home in Anchorage and enjoy the easy walking along streets.

It's definitely a "Big Wild Life" here in Anchorage...

Alaska at 50!

It's official. Alaska is now a 50 year old state. Welcome to middle age! Except Alaska is aging pretty darn well. The air is still clean, the tourists still come, the wildlife still hang out, and it's still a great place to get away from it all.

Alaska's Statehood celebration has been a year long event leading up to the official event held on Saturday, January 3, 2009 (Anchorage Daily News article). Alaska Stock has been pleased to contribute to the celebration by providing the photo for the official United States Postal Service stamp honoring Alaska's 50 years. Our own Jeff Schultz provided a great shot of DeeDee Jonrowe mushing in the Iditarod through Rainy Pass (see blog entry on the official stamp).

Other events included a delegate procession and lighting of the official 50th Anniversary Cauldron, public celebration of the Alaska Statehood at Anchorage's new Dena'ina convention center, the Egan Center and the Alaska Center for Performing Arts. Free music, entertainment, kids activities and exhibits. Anchorage Museum celebrated with "Life in Alaska Leading to Statehood" exhibit. Finally, the weekend was topped off with the 50th Anniversary Gala at the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center which included the Anchorage Symphony Orchestra, the Anchorage Concert Chorus, Alaska Native dancers, opera singers and Sitka's New Archangel Dancers. Outgoing Mayor Mark Begich, Gov. Sarah Palin and U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski also appeared.

Celebrate Alaska's 50th Anniversary with us by browsing some of our favorite historical photos from Alaska's history at AlaskaStock.com: Statehood

Toughest Race on Earth...IDITAROD!

In the tradition of nitty-gritty reality based TV, the Discovery Channel is offering its latest Alaska-based show titled "The Toughest Race on Earth." This series follows six mushers along the trail during the 2008 race. Tuesday, October 14th, the show kicks off with problems for returning champ Lance Mackey and iditraod icon DeeDee Jonrowe in the series opener:

"The 2008 Iditarod race begins in the crowded city of Anchorage, AK. The dog teams take their starting blocks and being the adventure across the arctic terrain. Leading the pack is returning champion Lance Mackey, whose strategies are hampered by fighting among his canine teammates. Martin Buser and son, Rohn, head up the trail together, and Iditarod icon, DeeDee Jonrowe loses her dog team outside the Finger Lake checkpoint. Then, the mushers prepare to face the dreaded Alaska Range."

Of course we are excited here at Alaska Stock because we get to be "behind the scenes" every year helping the Official Iditarod Photographer, Jeff Schultz, organize, process, and promote the 3,000+ images that he shoots every year!

It's not just the mushers working hard out on the trail. Every year, hundreds of volunteers give up two weeks or more of their lives to go out to remote checkpoints along the trail in order to brave below-zero temperatures, long hours of darkness, blistering wind, minimal & close sleeping quarters with other volunteers to help make the Iditarod race run smoothly.

Jeff is no exception, after 25+ years of photographing the race, Jeff's endurance has paid off with some of the best images covering the race and complete archive of the history of the Iditarod. Jeff Schultz has been photographing in Alaska since arriving in 1978. A native of the Bay Area of California, Jeff moved to Alaska chasing his dream of building a log cabin and living off the land. While that never materialized, he knew he was home when he arrived in Alaska. Jeff has been photographing both stock and assignment photos of Alaska and Alaskans ever since. His images have been published world-wide in books, magazines, advertisements, brochures, annual reports, websites, retail products and more.

Iditarod Musher and Official Photographer Make their Stamp on Alaska History

Anchorage, AK - The U.S. Postal Service revealed Alaska Stock Images owner, Jeff Schultz's photo as the final selection for the new statehood stamp commemorating Alaska’s 50th anniversary. Alaska became an official U.S. territory in 1912 and the 49th state on January 3, 1959. Scheduled to be issued on January 2, 2009, the new stamp features a picture from the Iditarod trail of veteran sled dog racer DeeDee Jonrowe.

This year marks Jeff’s 29th year volunteering as the official Iditarod photographer and sharing images from the Last Great Race with mushers, race fans and other volunteers. He commented, “I'm honored that one of my photos was chosen to represent the State of Alaska on the U.S. postage stamp. I'm just plain ecstatic that it's this particular photo, because it's one of my all-time favorite photos from the Iditarod --- DeeDee Jonrowe mushing in the Rainy Pass area at dusk with alpenglow on the Alaska Range. I couldn't be more pleased.”

Recalling the many times she and Jeff Schultz have traveled the Iditarod trail together DeeDee remarked, “It is humbling to be part of the image chosen to represent Alaska as the U.S. Postage Service recognizes our beautiful states 50th birthday. I have been blessed to live my dreams for over a quarter of a century combining my love of my dogs, my passion for this beautiful state, and to experience adventure beyond my wildest imagination. Thanks to Jeff Schultz's god-given talent for capturing that on film, I now have the honor to celebrate this through this stamp.”

About Alaska Stock Images: Alaska Stock Images is a specialty agency with BIG-time services and world-class images. With an offering of over 400,000 Rights-Managed and Royalty-Free images of summer and winter lifestyles, Alaskan culture, outdoor recreation, adventure, historic, wildlife, majestic landscapes and photos from Antarctica and Canada. Their trusted website, Alaskastock.com, is stocked with handy features: Fully searchable collection, complete lightbox functionality, price and download instantly, comp-use, thesaurus tool plus much more. And the service is second to none. You'll always talk with a live, intelligent person who is actually in Alaska and can handle your request immediately. They've been providing Alaskans and national clients with dependable top-quality imagery for over 18 years.

Alaska Stock Partners with National Geographic Image Collection

Anchorage, Alaska - Alaska's premier photo agency, Alaska Stock Images, revealed the most recent progression in their strategic growth plan to further distribution channels for their stock photography via a much anticipated liaison with National Geographic Image Collection. Thousands of Alaska Stock's images will soon appear on the Image Collection’s web site: nationalgeographicstock.com

The National Geographic Society owns one of the most comprehensive and unique collections of photographs and original artwork in the world. The Image Collection contains more than 10 million transparencies, black-and-white prints, glass plates and pieces of original art. These images and the services of hundreds of photographers, writers and artists are marketed worldwide by a full-time staff of account representatives.

Owner, Jeff Schultz remarked, "I am excited to be able to offer our stock images to the world through nationalgeographicstock.com. We consider it a privilege to have them represent our work and we look forward to a long and fruitful relationship."
"We are pleased to license Alaska Stock images worldwide," said Maura Mulvihill, vice president, National Geographic Image Collection. "Their work is consistent with the high quality of photographs our clients expect from National Geographic, both in the type of coverage and the individual photographers represented."

About Alaska Stock Images: Alaska Stock Images is a specialty agency with BIG-time services and world-class images. As the largest photo agency in Alaska, this dedicated provider represents over 150 photographers and offers over 400,000 Rights-Managed and Royalty-Free images of summer and winter lifestyles, outdoor recreation, adventure, historic, wildlife, majestic landscapes and photos from Alaska, Antarctica and Canada. Their trusted website, www.AlaskaStock.com, has all the features of the "big boys" sites --- Fully searchable collection, complete lightbox functionality, price and download instantly, comp-use, thesaurus tool plus much more. And the service is second to none. You'll always talk with a live, intelligent person who is actually in Alaska and can handle your request immediately. They've been providing national clients with dependable top-quality imagery for over 18 years. Globally represented in 29 countries, the Alaska Stock collection provides an excellent source of imagery from the Last Frontier.

For further information, please contact:
Jeff Schultz, Owner
www.AlaskaStock.com
toll free: 800.487.4285
em: jeff@alaskastock.com

Alaska Stock Images team participates in Anchorage's Bike to Work day

With the return of the light and almost summer like conditions the folks at Alaska Stock were excited to join in on the Municipality of Anchorage's Annual Bike to Work day. This year we had our best turnout yet with over half of the office participating.
While it wan't quite as sunny as it could have been, it was still great to see so many people out on the trails taking the opportunity to peddle their way in to work.

Pictured left to right: Jeff Schultz (Founder & Owner), Laurie Campbell (Director of Marketing & Sales), Ann Matchett (Office Assistant) & Jim Kohl (Manager of Production & IT)

NEW Download Lightbox Feature from Alaska Stock

Here's a real time-saver feature that many of our clients have been asking for! Now you can download all or selected images directly from any of your lightboxes for low-res or high-res comp size use. This feature is now live on our site for our clients who have registered and been upgraded to a "Recognized Image Buyer,” so get your FREE upgrade by emailing us today!

IT’S EASY - Download photos by navigating to the "Download Lighbox Images" page found in the "My Lightbox" drop down menu on Alaska Stock’s main menu bar. (If you are logged in but you don't see this menu item, we have not yet upgraded you to a "recognized image buyer.” Contact us for a FREE upgrade! )

Simply select the lightbox you want to download, select the images you want ( all or just a few ), scroll to the bottom and select the file size you want - low-res ( 5x7 72 dpi ) or high-res( 11x17 72 dpi ) comps are available. All images are then “ZIPPED” together into a folder and you can save them onto your computer. Thanks for keeping Alaska Stock on your “A” list!