Alaska Focus Photog Blog

I’m excited to report that the first Audubon Society that I was ever an official member of has accepted my invitation to become a fundraising partner with Alaska Focus Nature Photography!

When Laura and I lived in southern California in the mid 1990s, I ran the Rare Bird Alert, was the Membership Secretary, wrote a monthly bird column for the Western Meadowlark newsletter, and served on the Board of Directors for San Bernardino Valley Audubon Society.  This very active bird club and environmental conservation organization has done – and will continue to do – great work in the ever-changing landscape that is southern California.  And I’m excited about the potential to help them continue their activities through our fundraiser.  I will be donating 40% of the purchase price of any print to SBVAS when the buyer indicates this organization when placing their order. 

SBVAS now joins Gem State Academy, Desert View Christian School, and Mat Valley Adventist School as participating nonprofit organizations.  We invite more nature, conservation, science, education, and community service organizations to participate.  If your nonprofit -501(c)3- organization would like to use my photos as a fundraiser, please contact me.  

When I started Alaska Focus Nature Photography, LLC, I quickly notified a few of the nonprofit groups that I’ve been involved with most recently, asking if they were interested in participating as fundraising partners. As discussed elsewhere, my business plan involves giving back a significant percentage of the purchase price to participating nonprofit groups if the buyer indicates that group when they place an order with me.

The response from most groups has been gratifying! Who wouldn’t jump at the opportunity to make some extra dollars for their organization without paying out any cash? It’s hard for me to imagine, anyway.

GEM STATE ACADEMY

The award for fastest response so far has to go to Gem State Academy, my secondary-school alma mater in Caldwell, Idaho. Their development director, Linda Klinger, responded to my initial email within minutes. I’m very excited that Gem State is going to work with us. I have a lot of great memories from my school years there (nearly 20 years ago, if you can believe that). And I know how financially strapped this private school has been for the last few years. Any bit I can do to help, I do thankfully.

DESERT VIEW CHRISTIAN SCHOOL

Desert View Christian School in Mountain Home, Idaho is a small private school in the town of Mountain Home. I served on their School Board for a few years before we moved to Alaska in 2005. Like Gem State Academy, this church school also needs all the financial assistance it can get. I’m happy to help support this school as well.

MAT VALLEY ADVENTIST SCHOOL

Mat Valley Adventist School in Palmer, Alaska, is the local school associated with my current church in the Matanuska Valley. At this point they don’t have a website, but interested parties can contact them through the Palmer SDA Church. I was happy to present my business proposal directly to their School Board recently, and was honored by the resounding approval they provided.

OTHERS?

I’ve offered this partnership to a couple Audubon groups that I’ve been closely involved with in the past. These conservation organizations, like private schools, depend largely on the support of members and their constituency, and it can be a tough road…

I’ve also invited some nonprofit bird research organizations to get involved. We’ll see if my proposal excites their respective Boards.

Alaska Focus Nature Photography, LLC essentially started out as the collaborative brainchild of my brother-in-law and mentor, Eddie Fisher and myself. When Eddie and his wife moved to town in the summer of 2006, he brought with him his “old” Canon 20D, and a love for the great outdoors that matched my own. For a small fee, I took the 20D off his hands, and the rest is history.

Sharing my pictures with other people is the ultimate in personal fulfillment for a photographer. But everyone says you can’t sell Alaska photos to Alaskans (”We see that everyday…”). And the local tourist market is largely tapped by entrepreneurs who have already staked their claim.

So why not offer my photographs to a wider audience? Why not share them with those who may not have had the opportunity to visit the Great Land? Good idea!

In setting up my business I had to recognize two things:

1. I’m not in this to get rich, and
2. I have always been a community-oriented member of society.

The business plan then became very simple:

1. To share Alaska photographs with others at a very competitive price, and
2. To give something back to the community who was with me along the way.

Enter fundraisers!

Initially I’ve invited a handful of private schools, wildlife conservation organizations, and science research organizations to be partners with Alaska Focus Nature Photography. For every sale that they generate, I will return 40% of the purchase price to that organization. It’s a win-win.

• I get to share my photos and support my photography addiction.
• The customer gets a high quality, archival print from the Land of the Midnight Sun.
• Nonprofit organizations like those I’ve been involved with all my life get some much needed infusion of cash with no financial commitment up front. They only need to advertise and generate sales…

Response so far has been positive from most of the nonprofit groups I’ve contacted initially. They’re excited about the potential. What remains to be seen, however, is how enthusiastically they will promote this fundraiser, and how their constituency responds. I hope they benefit as much from this as I will!

–Stacy Peterson
Eagle River, Alaska