Week 1 - A New Journey Begins
To be honest, creating a coffee table book featuring my nature and scenic photography feels both thrilling and uncomfortable. For more than twenty years, I’ve designed beautiful family portrait albums—collections that tell other people’s stories. But this project is different. It’s personal.
Sharing the images that speak to me, that have stopped me in my tracks or moved me to silence, feels vulnerable. What if others don’t see what I see? What if what speaks to my heart doesn’t speak to theirs?
Still, I know this is the moment to stretch beyond what’s familiar—to grow, to take a creative risk, and to trust the work.
So I invite you to come along on this journey of exploration—to see Alaska as Seen In My Lens, and to follow the process of bringing a coffee table book to life. My hope is that these pages will be shared not only with my family and friends, but with others who, like me, find beauty, peace, and wonder in the natural world
This new project is both a book and a weekly series that follows two journeys to Alaska:
2024, when I traveled alone to Silver Salmon Creek Lodge in Lake Clark National Park to photograph coastal brown bears.
2025, when my husband Dave joined me for a journey through Anchorage, Denali, and Kenai Fjords.
Each week I will share one section of that record, including photographs, daily notes, and reflections gathered directly from those days in the field.
Finding the Name That Fit
The name Seen in My Lens emerged during a long brainstorming session. We sifted through dozens of possibilities until this one sounded right. It captured the idea of inviting others to see Alaska as I saw it—through my lens and my experience. The title was created specifically for this project to carry both the photographs and the reflections that grew from these journeys.
Why Alaska Called Me Back
Alaska changes how you see the world. It is not only the size of the landscape but the perspective it gives.
In 2024, I learned to move carefully among the bears with the guidance of local naturalists. A year later, Dave and I flew into Denali National Park, hiked with Camp Denali naturalists, and recorded wildlife observations such as moose, ptarmigan, a fox, and a distant grizzly feeding on blueberries.
Those experiences reminded me that photography is about being present and patient and paying attention to what is actually unfolding.
What’s Coming in This Series
Over the next twenty weeks, this blog will follow the real sequence of our travels across Alaska, drawn from our daily notes, recordings, and photographs.
The journey begins with highlights from our 2024 trip to Lake Clark National Park, where I photographed coastal brown bears in their natural habitat. From there, we move into our 2025 adventure in Denali National Park, exploring alongside Camp Denali’s naturalist guides. Finally, we’ll head south to Seward and travel by boat through Kenai Fjords National Park, where the mountains meet the sea.
Each post will include selected photographs and background information about the people, wildlife, and conservation stories connected to each place.
If you would like to follow along, you can join my mailing list for new posts and book updates. This project will culminate in a photobook capturing Alaska’s wild beauty through real photographs, field notes, and reflections from two unforgettable journeys. (A pre-order waitlist will open later this year.)
Looking Ahead
This project is about attention, about learning to see clearly and to value moments that are real and unrehearsed. My hope is that Seen in My Lens: Alaska offers a genuine record of what it means to witness nature as it is.
Thank you for being here at the start. The journey begins now.
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With gratitude,
Danielle
