In 2013, I had an idea for a pilot project named ‘Samaya - traces of human being existence’. It is a thought-provoking and personal exploration of the themes of economic sustainability and our responsibility towards nature.
In early December 2014 my team and I went to Iceland to take the first step to bringing my idea to life. Here in Iceland it was as much about capturing the pristine nature, as it was about bringing the fragility of the elements – the human being included – into focus.
In my photographs the athletes’ presence shrinks to a blink of an eye. When you compare the timescales of the elements of nature with our lives, we are merely a guest performance on planet earth.
The photo with the ice climbing is one of a series of photos with different athletes in their respective disciplines. It was taken on the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier. And it was already late afternoon when I was able to photograph this setting with Róbert Halldórsson. I was absolutely fascinated by the gleaming black ice in this area, which was produced by the black lava ash.
For this project, and my follow-up project ‘Manuiri’ in other places on earth, I photographed the athletes with a ALPA 12 STC, Apo Helvitar 5.6 / 48 mm lens, LB, and digital back Phase One IQ260 with a setting of f 8 and a shutter speed of 1/2 second.
