More Madeira
Despite alarmingly expanding numbers of tourists, Madeira is still a magical place. I’ve just got back from my last visit, and the next one is all arranged. It’s not just about photography, in fact photography is rather peripheral. I’m not sure just how feasible it is to really capture the essence of highland Madeira, with it’s other-worldly peaks, the remnants of the ancient laurisilva forest, the natural and man-made waterways, the wild weather, all of it. Madeira has certainly climbed up the ranking of trendy destinations recently, and has attracted YouTube wannabe photo-influencers, although thankfully so far not to saturation level. But I’m afraid that could soon change. And why not - Madeira is a dream destination for travel/adventure/landscape photographers, especially those who don’t mind a bit of a challenge (both physically and photographically).
Madeira
Madeira is several things. It’s a fortified wine. It’s an island. It’s a place favoured by retiree Brits, since due to imperial histories and flying boat legends, English is widely spoken. And it is an enthralling landscape, of spectacular peaks and high plains, plummeting sea cliffs, and above all the near-magical labyrinth of “Levada” canals snaking across the island, bringing water from the mountains to the fertile low(er) lands. Above all Madeira is green (ok, for some Madeira = Cristiano Ronaldo, but allow me to skip that part). And for whatever reason, although it largely lives from tourism, it hasn’t - yet - been overrun.
Of course Madeira doesn’t have a lot of snow, but it does happily fit into to my other obsession, with islands.
Iceland, here I come
Icelanders can resign themselves to 10 days of even more miserable weather than usual, as I prepare to set off tomorrow. I don’t have a habit of bringing good weather with me, and I’ve never seen an aurora in Iceland.
I actually have no expectations at all for this trip. It will bring whatever it brings. I’m not even sure I feel much like 9-10 days of concentrated photography. As mentioned in a previous post, I dropped the idea of taking the Hasselblad supercamera with me. I’m not 100% sure this was a good idea, but whatever may be, I will still have some pretty competent camera gear with me. Actually it will be something of a reality check: if I don’t feel disappointed that I didn’t take the Hasselblad, it will be a strong sign that I should divest myself of it.
Mountain Surprise
I’m afraid there hasn’t been a lot of activity in these parts recently. I have actually been doing a reasonable amount of photography, fitting it it in where I can, but I feel less and less motivated to write about it. Partly because maintaining a blog, or at least this one, often feels like trying to push water uphill, partly due to life bringing higher priorities, and partly there really doesn’t seem much point.
But anyway, I thought the following photo was worth sharing. I guess I really don’t need to point out that it is the Matterhorn, but the optical phenomenon- which I’m informed is called a “sun pillar” is something I’ve never seen there before, either in person or as a photo. It appeared as a faint trace and gradually became more intense for about 20 minutes, peaking pretty much as shown here, before vanishing abruptly as the sun set.