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Available for excerpt, book review and/or author interview
Select hi-‐res photos available Media & events contact: Lace Thornberg
Braided River/Mountaineers Books 206-‐223-‐6303 x120
1001 SW Klickitat Way Suite 201 Seattle WA 800-‐553-‐4453 www.mountaineersbooks.org
www.mountaineersbooks.org Page 1
“Turn these pages and you, too, will understand why in Bristol Bay, it is water that is the true gold.” —from the foreword by Sandra Day O’Connor, former U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Anchorage Photographer Captures Essence of Bristol Bay Carl Johnson, an Anchorage photographer with nearly 20 years professional experience, has attempted to capture the natural beauty of Bristol Bay’s 40 million acres of land and water, and the lives of its 7,259 residents, in 176 pages with the new book, Where Water is Gold: Life and Livelihood in Alaska’s Bristol Bay. Johnson, who is primarily a landscape and wildlife photographer, had to return to his roots of shooting in a photojournalistic style to create this “photoethnography” of the region. “You cannot tell the story of Bristol Bay without covering the way of life,” says Johnson, “The story of Bristol Bay is the people of Bristol Bay.” He also hopes this full-color photography book will highlight the importance of Bristol Bay as a pristine water habitat. As he notes, “The abundance and availability of fresh water is an increasingly important issue throughout the United States. Even in Alaska, where water is abundant, we still need to be careful to protect truly unique areas of critical importance.”
Johnson captured the unique images that fill the book, including one of a nine-year-old boy hunting for ptarmigan and snowshoe hares and several of commercial fishermen hauling in their catch in choppy seas, over a period of five years. Johnson is convinced that visiting the region in various seasons, over a period of years, was critical to creating an authentic portrait of this place. And, for Johnson, “getting it right,” was key: “I want to make sure that people outside of Alaska understand this area, understand how important it is, and hopefully become invested themselves in protecting Bristol Bay’s riches. But I also want Alaskans to celebrate it as well.” These years of shooting have also held some interesting milestones for Johnson. Covering the Togiak herring fishery proved to be the messiest work he has ever undertaken in the field. As he says, “I had to clean my clothing in my back yard because of the smell and I found herring bits and pieces on my camera gear for weeks after.” Informative and lyrical essays by Alaskan writers Bill Sherwonit, Nick Jans, Steve Kahn and Anne Coray, Dave Atcheson, and Erin McKittrick add to the portrait of this place. Where Water is Gold is Johnson’s first book.
176 pages * 10” x 9” * 193 color photographs * 4 maps *
$24.95 * ISBN 978-1-59485-773-7 * Available in bookstores everywhere
Where Water is Gold: Life and Livelihood in Alaska’s Bristol Bay New nonfiction available June 15, 2016 By Carl Johnson Foreword by Sandra Day O’Connor
Available for excerpt, book review and/or author interview
Select hi-‐res photos available Media & events contact: Lace Thornberg
Braided River/Mountaineers Books 206-‐223-‐6303 x120
1001 SW Klickitat Way Suite 201 Seattle WA 800-‐553-‐4453 www.mountaineersbooks.org
www.mountaineersbooks.org Page 2
About author/photographer Carl Johnson: Born in the Black Hills of South Dakota, Johnson’s photography career started in the US Navy, where he served a ship’s photographer for two commands and honed his photojournalistic style. One early photographic success was capturing the launch of a Tomahawk missile using a single-shot film camera. Later, while working as a canoe guide in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in northern Minnesota, the writing of Sigurd Olson and images by Jim Brandenburg inspired his passion for nature photography and informed his belief in using photography to promote conservation. Johnson has served as the artist-in-residence for Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Badlands National Park, and Rocky Mountain National Park and his photography has earned accolades in conservation photography competitions. Johnson currently lives in Anchorage, Alaska, with his wife, Michelle. You can view his photography on www.arcticlight-ak.com and you can learn more about this project, the region, and its people at www.wherewaterisgold.com.
About publisher Mountaineers Books: Based in Seattle, WA, independent non-profit Mountaineers Books crafts award-winning books on outdoor recreation, travel, and adventure. Our first publication, Mountaineering: Freedom of the Hills, is headed into its 9th edition after being a best-selling title since 1960. Each of the nearly 700 books we have in publication, including the books under our sustainable lifestyle imprint Skipstone and our conservation imprint Braided River, aims to build a deeper connection to the natural world.
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