Great news from Travel Photographer of the Year awards 2020!
My Musk Ox portfolio was awarded Runner Up (joint 2nd place) in the Nature, Sealife, Wildlife category out of a great gallery of images and a very tough competition.
I have been visiting Dovrefjell in Norway several times in the last couple of years working on this project and I truly enjoy everyday I spent with these ice age survivors on the mountains and I'm particularly proud of the way these photos where achieved by putting the time and effort hiking the mountains and tracking the animals with friends by ourselves in some harsh conditions.
The secret of building a strong portfolio of 4 images is choosing photos that works well together as one unite, not all necessary needs to be the strongest images I took in the location but they must support each other in terms of style, composition, diversity and most importantly storytelling.
This is my 3rd portfolio awarded in this competition out of 3 portfolios I entered in the last couple of years!
To the winners gallery: https://www.tpoty.com/2020-winners/
Living rocks.
On a very windy day in February 2018 I was snowshoeing up the Norwegian mountains with two friends. After a tough two hours hike we spotted a few dark spots in the distance.
As we got closer we realised they were a small group of Musk Ox, inhabiting the mountains like ancient living rocks.
During the cold winter Musk Ox are moving up the mountains to higher elevations where the strong winds blow off the deep snow and make it easier for them to use their hooves and dig through snow to graze on the roots, mosses, and lichens that sustain them.
Together as one.
We have spent a few hours with them on the top of the mountain especially watching the bonding between a female and two calves.
They were so gentle and affectionate to each other, playful, completely calm and naive to our presence.
I have captured many images of the family but this image capturing a dynamic playful moment between them stood out among the rest in my eyes.
It is not common to observe such interactions among Musk Ox.
Another thing I love about this image is how the way they are all standing tight together is forming a silhouette that looks like one big Musk Ox in profile, standing against the wind and fighting the elements.
Solitude.
A large male Musk ox stands at a high vantage point to watch over his herd of females and calves.
Climbing up the snowy mountain to observe and document them in their natural element made me feel like I was living in another age, it’s a miracle that they’ve survived the changes of our planet to this day.
Ice age survivors.
During a blizzard the Musk ox will often Lie down together to keep warm and Wait for the storm to pass.
Musk Oxen have 2 layers of fur – the outer layer called “guard hairs” and the inner layer of shorter hairs called “qiviut”.
The under-layer can be used to spin a form of wool that is 8 times warmer than a sheep’s wool and considered to be the warmest natural fibers in the world.
Spending time with them opens my imagination to ancient life and unknown times, a strong reminder of the fact that these majestic creatures are here to stay and must be protected.
