A new photography exhibit at the Nordic Heritage Museum by Corey Arnold provides a slice of life aboard a fishing vessel in the dangerous waters off the Alaskan coast.

"Crabbing in the Bering Sea," has 16 color prints by Arnold, who describes himself as a photographer attempting to defy the boundaries of art, editorial photography and the commercial realm.

Photographs show the power of the sea, with waves towering over boats. The images were taken over five King and Opillo Crab seasons. Each time the season would last four to ten days, but each trip would last about five weeks.

In "Cod Spooning," shows a crew member sleeping on the deck, cuddling with cod fish like it was a stuffed animal. "Cleaning the Mast," shows a deckhand suspended in the air by a crane as he prepares for maintenance.

Arnold captured one light moment as the crew offered a sea lion that seemed eager to accept the treat of small fish. An artfully composed image of crabs coming out of the water, with the boots of two fishermen framing it is another highlight of the show.

Arnold has been working as a deckhand on the crabbing vessel F/V Rollo for over three years. "At first I was blown away by the intensity of the work. Although the seasons were short, we'd work 20-hour days moving at a grueling pace. Big waves, ice and exhaustion led to many scary situations but the danger becomes more predictable the longer you do it," he said.

Because he grew up as a sports fisherman and hunter in Southern California, commercial fishing was a natural progression for Arnold. He went to Alaska commercial fishing for Salmon in Bristol Bay and then gravitated towards crabbing in the Bering Sea because he was curious about the rough nature of the work.

"It became the perfect photo project...a merger between my two professions, fishing and photography," said Arnold.

As an artist who is also working on the boat, Arnold said the job came first. "The worst weather makes for the most dramatic photos but it's also when my work as a fishermen is essential. I find myself constantly apologizing to the rest of the crew when I'm taking photos of them working. Crabbing at the time was a derby style fishery, meaning that we were racing to catch as big a share of the quota as fast as possible," said Arnold.

Shooting with a Mamiya 645 medium format camera was Arnold's preference. "The quality from medium format dwarfs that of 35mm or digital in my opinion, but it is a challenge to use a big camera in the chaotic situations aboard a crab boat," he said.

On the deck of the boat, Arnold had to constantly protect his cameras from the saltwater which he said was always raining down everywhere and blowing from every direction.

"The weather is usually awful in the Bering Sea so equipment will suffer. I make a custom Ziploc bag housing for my cameras with duct tape to seal the plastic to my lens filter. Every nook of the camera must be sealed. The worst hazard is the saltwater droplets are almost immediately on the lens once I step outside. Rain-X and a chamois help to cut the smearing nightmare that is saltwater," said Arnold.

In the exhibit, Arnold includes photos of crewmembers proudly posing with giant King Crabs.

"The guys on my boat are practically family. They realize how important photography is to me so they've been tolerant to me being in their faces. Plus I think that most of the fishermen up here are proud of what they do and everyone secretly likes to have photos of themselves braving the elements to show their buddies back home," said Arnold.

The Rollo is docked at Ballard Oil in the off-season. Arnold had some spare time and walked into the Nordic Heritage Museum one day.

"It seemed like the perfect place to exhibit photos about an industry that was founded by Norwegians. Probably every Norwegian in Ballard is related to someone involved in commercial fishing. It's a subject that people in Ballard can relate to," said Arnold.

The F/V Rollo will be featured in the Discovery Channel's "Deadliest Catch" program that will air is March or April. Discovery Channel crews spent time on the boat the last two seasons. Arnold was hired to do the still photographs of television production.

Arnold has been awarded a grant from the American Scandinavian Foundation to photograph the fishing industry in North Norway. He began the project last year documenting fishermen and whalers in Lofoten, Troms and Finnmark. He also does photography for magazines, advertising agencies and record companies in Oslo, Norway.

"Crabbing in the Bering Sea," runs through February 5 at the Nordic Heritage Museum. Visit www.nordicmuseum.org or www.coreyfishes.com.