17/07/2026
Sometimes on a shoot there are moments when I stop thinking like a photographer and just observe, feeling grateful. My Dogs of the World shoot with Hatcher the Alaskan Malamute was one of those times.
High up on Alaska’s Matanuska Glacier, crampons on, after several hours hiking, we arrived at a blue ice cave. Light filtered through the ice like stained glass. The cave was tall and thin, barely enough space to stand, but I knew I wanted Hatcher right in the middle, he was completely at home in this cold, wet realm of ice. Water echoed around us, our voices traveling through the crevices.
The malamute is one of the oldest sled-dog breeds in the Arctic, bred not for speed but for hauling heavy freight over long distances. You can see it in Hatcher: heavy bone, deep chest, sheer presence. But there’s softness too. His mum calls him a badass, and she’s right, but he’s also just a dog who loves the snow and belongs to it completely.
The light was dark and high contrast. This is exactly where I lean on my GFX 50S, the dynamic range let me hold onto that glow in the ice and retain the texture and colour.
In the silhouette image, look closely, there’s a ghostly figure beside Hatcher. An ice sprite, perhaps. I didn’t even notice until a friend pointed it out after I’d edited it!
Hatcher wasn’t performing. He was just being who he is, wild-hearted and completely at home on the ice, and I feel grateful to have shared that moment with him.
Swipe for the full images and a little BTS from the shoot.
📍 Matanuska Glacier, Alaska
📸 Fujifilm GFX 50S & GF63mm f/2.8
