Yves Adams on M/S Origo
We traveled with photographer Yves Adams (shown), based in Belgium, and Swiss Expedition Leader Martin Enckell to Svalbard in July 2015 on the M/S Origo with a small group of other photographers. Although the sun remained above the horizon throughout our trip, we experienced a variety of weather and lighting conditions.
Fire and Ice
I grew up in Chicago, spent two and a half years living in Minnesota and have photographed in Svalbard (78° north latitude), Kaktovik, AK (70° north latitude), Iceland (64° north latitude) and Lapland (66° north latitude). The Arctic Polar Circle is located at 66.6° north latitude, so I’ve been cold a lot. I now live in the Sonoran Desert with a closet full of insulated boots, HotHands hand and foot warmers, long johns, scarves and Carhartt Extreme Insulated Coveralls. I don’t really like cold weather and it’s not healthy for my asthma. But I do like frozen waterfalls, polar bears, the aurora borealis, glaciers and icebergs. Since I am a senior citizen, it is easy for me to forget things, like how much I hate being really, really cold. So, about once a year, I get excited about going someplace freezing cold or colder and commit to some photo shoot or another.
It’s often not until I begin packing that I realize what a bad idea it was. But, by then, it’s too late and off I go. I used to be able to get Cynny to come along, but she got too smart for that a long time ago and now plans a girls get-together or a trip to visit family or just a week or two binge-eating Mexican and Indian food that don’t agree with me and tells me to call if I find a place with phone service.
Since I like to lead a balanced life, I also find beauty at the other end of the spectrum, especially photographing lava, the hottest natural thing on Earth, with a temperature of about 2,140° F. I particularly enjoy the spectacle when lava reaches the ocean. The interaction between lava and water creates a hazardous mix of hydrochloric acid, steam and volcanic glass particles that creates a scene easily mistaken for hell on earth.
As with many things, it is the extremes of nature that are often most interesting visually.
