Mountain Snow Aglow
With its fairy-tale aesthetics and 7,000-year-old salt mines, the village of Hallstatt on Lake Hallstatt’s western shore is one of the most intriguing locations in Austria. Set within the mountainous region of Salzkammergut, it’s made all the more beautiful by the towering massifs that stand in snow-capped majesty all around it, rising to over 6,000ft in altitude. Natural magnets for the eye, these mountains create a truly formidable backdrop, everchanging with the seasons and the weather. During my trip to Hallstatt, I was particularly keen to capture the drama of these mountains, made all the more brooding with their winter cloaks.
During a bus trip through the area, we pulled over to a beautiful viewing spot which gave me the opportunity to really drink in the surroundings. The weather was gloomy and threatened rain, but a few determined rays of sunshine broke through clouds, drawing the eye closer to the mountains and highlighting the details of the slopes. One spot in particular really caught my eye, with the sun falling into a snowy hollow within the trees on a steep mountainside. It especially stood out to me as it really emphasised that contrasting textures and tones between the dark trees of the forest and the exposed patches of snow. The image’s simplistic, neutral colour palette complements this well – striking in its raw, unadulterated beauty.
With its fairy-tale aesthetics and 7,000-year-old salt mines, the village of Hallstatt on Lake Hallstatt’s western shore is one of the most intriguing locations in Austria. Set within the mountainous region of Salzkammergut, it’s made all the more beautiful by the towering massifs that stand in snow-capped majesty all around it, rising to over 6,000ft in altitude. Natural magnets for the eye, these mountains create a truly formidable backdrop, everchanging with the seasons and the weather. During my trip to Hallstatt, I was particularly keen to capture the drama of these mountains, made all the more brooding with their winter cloaks.
During a bus trip through the area, we pulled over to a beautiful viewing spot which gave me the opportunity to really drink in the surroundings. The weather was gloomy and threatened rain, but a few determined rays of sunshine broke through clouds, drawing the eye closer to the mountains and highlighting the details of the slopes. One spot in particular really caught my eye, with the sun falling into a snowy hollow within the trees on a steep mountainside. It especially stood out to me as it really emphasised that contrasting textures and tones between the dark trees of the forest and the exposed patches of snow. The image’s simplistic, neutral colour palette complements this well – striking in its raw, unadulterated beauty.
With its fairy-tale aesthetics and 7,000-year-old salt mines, the village of Hallstatt on Lake Hallstatt’s western shore is one of the most intriguing locations in Austria. Set within the mountainous region of Salzkammergut, it’s made all the more beautiful by the towering massifs that stand in snow-capped majesty all around it, rising to over 6,000ft in altitude. Natural magnets for the eye, these mountains create a truly formidable backdrop, everchanging with the seasons and the weather. During my trip to Hallstatt, I was particularly keen to capture the drama of these mountains, made all the more brooding with their winter cloaks.
During a bus trip through the area, we pulled over to a beautiful viewing spot which gave me the opportunity to really drink in the surroundings. The weather was gloomy and threatened rain, but a few determined rays of sunshine broke through clouds, drawing the eye closer to the mountains and highlighting the details of the slopes. One spot in particular really caught my eye, with the sun falling into a snowy hollow within the trees on a steep mountainside. It especially stood out to me as it really emphasised that contrasting textures and tones between the dark trees of the forest and the exposed patches of snow. The image’s simplistic, neutral colour palette complements this well – striking in its raw, unadulterated beauty.