Mt. McKinley, seen over Nugget Pond, Camp Denali (infrared)

Mt. McKinley, seen over Nugget Pond, Camp Denali (infrared), 1953
Silver gelatin print
Gift of Bradford Washburn, 1994.88.13
Anchorage Museum

Washburn used infrared film to shoot this scene. Infrared film captures infrared light that is most strongly reflected by foliage, resulting in a black-and-white print where the vegetation appears significantly lighter than it would otherwise. Infrared photographs are often described as dream-like or ethereal because of the stark tonal contrast and blurring of details due to a long exposure. In this photograph, the grass and pines above Nugget Pond are a radiant white and the shadow at water’s edge is a deep black.

Infrared film was used for surveillance in the early 20th century, and it is possible that the 1938 photograph Discovery of the Bagley Icefield, Infrared Experiment was made with surplus military film as a way to test new methods of geographic surveying.