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Mountain
As we come to understand the true extent of Man's modern day impact on the planet, many of us increasingly seek hope in wild, greener places, with mountain landscape providing a sizeable therapeutic dose. No other landscape is as mesmeric, can stir the emotions and take us to a place where form and force exert such potent fascination and mystery.
A mountain's inaccessibility and apparent permanence is the source of its power over us, speaking as it does of a time-span beyond comprehension in our impatient age. There is nothing trivial about mountains. The upland habitat has survival at its core and I have felt more keenly than anywhere else how susceptible plants and animals are to even the smallest change in altitude, to a switch in bearing on a slope, and to the relentless duel with wind, water and ice.
These same three sculptors of the landscape also have a huge impact on a photographer's inspiration and reward in the mountains. No other form of photography is so dependent on the weather (past, present and future) to the extent that on the low cloud no-go days the mountains are just not there to be seen
Many have written about an irresistible passion for being in mountains and a similar urge is starting to grip me, albeit from the foothills. There are navigation and safety skills I need to learn before venturing further (and no small matter of a fear of heights to conquer or at least come to terms with). But I am convinced that the rewards will be great, not in terms of mere photography or the tang of summit, but in experience and appreciation of a hostile but pure beauty.