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First Friday supporters will see something a little different from the norm at the March First Friday event March 7. Instead of painting, the art form this month will be photography.

The Interior Alaska Photography Club was started by a small group of enthusiasts in 2006. From a few e-mails back and forth between two people in North Pole, an idea was formed to try to take advantage of the numerous photography opportunities that are available in the Interior.

Today, the organization is thriving, and word is that 10 of their members will be showing their work next week. The range of subjects will be as varied as the photographers. Everything from summer flowers to scenic Alaska scenes to compositions displaying the play of light and form.

Here is a peek at some of the photographers who will be displaying their work:

Carol Gering

An adjunct instructor in digital photography at Tanana Valley Campus, Gering said she began experimenting with digital photography in 2000 as a byproduct of her fascination with Photoshop. She is captivated by color and light, pattern and texture and symmetry, nostalgia and untold stories.

“I find beauty all around me, in the most ordinary of things. My goal in photography is to capture that beauty in a tangible form.” One of her images, called “The Diner,” is sure to be a hit at the show.

Susan Stevenson

A self-taught photographer, Susan said her interest in the art of photography began when she was just a child and was invited into her grandfather’s darkroom to watch him turn film into family photos. Recognizing her interest, he gave her a camera and a couple of rolls of film and instructed her to go out and photograph her world. She has seldom been without a camera since.

In 2003, Stevenson and her family moved to Alaska courtesy of the U.S. Army. She has traveled all over the state, seeking to capture the grandeur and details of Alaska’s landscape, wildlife and culture.

Kathy Adams

Kathy Adams was born in Spokane, Wash., but moved to Fairbanks in 1965 when her father took a teaching position at the old Main School. Adams said she received her first film camera when she was 9 years old, which started a lifelong love for photography. She bought her first digital camera in 2001 and has purchased three more since then.

Adams said this is her first show and she decided to enter to learn. She said she is looking for comments, suggestions and critiques of her work.

Kevin McCarthy

A retired U.S. Coast Guard electronics chief with 30-plus years of darkroom, film, video and digital photographic experience, Kevin McCarthy has traveled extensively across Alaska and enjoys Alaskan wildlife and nature photography along with action shots of sports and dog sled race events. His current focus is on low-light photography of nighttime ice art and especially the Aurora Borealis.  McCarthy serves as the volunteer Superintendent of Photography for the Tanana Valley State Fair, where he presents free photography workshops on matting and home printing technology.

Joe Lovick

Joe Lovick said he can't imagine a life without photography. Growing up in rural England, he spent many a happy hour developing pictures in the darkroom but, over time, he joined the modern world.

“The new millennium brought many changes to my life; most importantly, I replaced my faithful Nikon film camera with a Fuji digital one.”

He said that coming to Alaska really opened his eyes to a new realm. “Size does matter!” he said. “The wildlife, the light and the endless skies of “the Great Land” inspired me to explore my boundaries as an outdoor photographer.”

Scott Chesney

Scott Chesney said he has been sharing the world around him for more than 40 years through photographs.

“For the last several years, I have focused, so to speak, on sled dogs, wild Alaska and the natural world that is threatened by climate change and ‘progress.’”

Chesney has had images published in print, including Mushing and Ruralite magazines, and has covered the Yukon Quest, Yukon Quest 300, the Cantwell Classic, Open North American Championship, the Serum Run and the Two Rivers 200. But he doesn’t just take photos of sled dogs — he maintains a kennel of about 36 of them.

The public is invited to check out the March First Friday show at North Pole Grange. To get there, follow the signs on Santa Claus Lane. The show opens at 4:30 p.m. with the artists’ reception from 6-9 p.m. For more information, contact John Poirrier at 488-7247.

Capturing the Aurora

If you want to know more about photographing the northern lights, check out photographer Kevin McCarthy’s Web site www.northpolegallery.com. In it, he hosts a popular “how to” guide written for novice photographers and visitors from around the world on how to best capture the beauty of elusive lights.

Spaghetti dinner tonight

Here’s a great way to get out of cooking tonight.

The North Pole High School cross-country ski team is holding a fundraising spaghetti feed, quilt raffle and silent auction tonight at 6 in the NPHS commons. They will serve spaghetti with meat sauce or marinara, salad and bread with a dessert auction afterwards.

Ice park open

The 2008 World Ice Art Championships are open, which means it surely must be spring. Check them out from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. between now and March 23.

Last year, my husband and I and our grandson, Scooter, spent a lazy day at the Ice Park and had a great time. This is a wonderful yearly event and I am always amazed at the magnificent sculptures. There is no way to describe the beauty and the imagination that went into these incredible pieces.

The sad thing is that a lot of them had been vandalized. The first prize in the single-block category was a huge bug. Vandals had totally demolished it. They’d also knocked the leg off of a majestic horse, shattered a coiled snake and destroyed others.  Three pieces had been trashed just that morning.

I will never understand how someone could be so destructive and so uncaring of the people who come from around the world to create these sculptures.

I think any captured culprits should be given a block of ice and some tools and ordered to create a piece. A sign should be placed in front explaining their crime and punishment. If they freeze their tootsies, too bad.

And finally ...

A friend who is retired a Air Force member sent me this joke:

A pilot was sitting in his seat before takeoff and pulled out a .38 revolver. He placed it on top of the instrument panel and then turned and asked the navigator, “Do you know what I use this for?” The navigator replied timidly, “No, what’s it for?”

The pilot responded, “I use this on navigators who get me lost!”

The navigator proceeded to pull out a .45 and place it on his chart table. The pilot asked, “What’s that for?”

“To be honest sir,” the navigator replied, “I’ll know we’re lost before you will.”