unbearable lightness of distance Photo

Photographer’s Note

You don't know where you've been until you've come back.
Or so it seems.

Will we know how far we've gone, before it's too late?

April is normally still a cold time in Northern Finland, beyond the arctic circle, in Lapland. This year the trees suffered from unusually heavy loads of tykky, also known as those extraordinarily beautiful views of snowy beings. Abnormally warm days combined with below zero nights have damaged large portions of the forests. The snow becomes wet during the day, gathers weight and then freezes over at night, remaining fixed in place, weighing down especially on young trees.

Across the road where I stood, the other side of this lake was still frozen, but looking back on the arctic hills of Pallas, the lake had given in to the warmer side of things.

The land I was born in; the hills I took 25 years to get acquainted with.

So often we run around the world, looking for that something no one else has seen, capturing sights and sounds, running after ideas and thoughts we believe will get us to that undefinable somewhere.

But what if we were already there?
What if we are right there, right now, right here?

On June 16th I leave for a trip to Asia.
I will land in Shanghai on the 17th and spend some weeks there, getting to know and hopefully better understand Life as it is experienced there. Then Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, Siberia, and... then we'll see what next.

After 25 comfortable years in the cradle of an opulent West, I seek another approach to Life, another understanding of every breath we take in and let go of.
I seek to understand our specie better, to find different tools for communication, to listen, learn and grow.

When, or perhaps more precisely if I come back, then I will take time to know these hills, rivers, lakes and vast arctic landscapes better. Then perhaps I'll have gone far enough to see myself and the world from a clearer perspective. Then perhaps, I'll have shed my heavy loads and moved towards an unbearable lightness of being...

An advance Thank You to all those amongst You who take time to leave a comment and/or criticise!

Floydian, sarju, ktanska, mpb001 has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

euryan (8349) 2007-06-03 20:09

Hi Julia,
I need to introduce you to my friend Chris. I think you two would understand each other perfectly. He just returned from a three-month trip to Asia where he was trying to find...understanding? Happiness? Meaning? An alternative to western society? I'm not quite sure, but whatever it was he didn't find it. I told him whatever it was he was looking for could be found right here. He didn't need to travel to Asia, or anywhere else, to find it. It sounds like you already know that. From your note it sounds like you are indeed going to expound your knowledge of the human existence, which I think is a good thing. However, if you go looking for answers, I'm afraid you may end up like my friend Chris... more confused.
Thank goodness I am just a simpleton. Deep thoughts hurt my brain, so I try and avoid them. ;)

I like this photo. It’s nicely balanced, and has a cold, yet peaceful atmosphere.
Regards,
Ryan
P.S. Do you want me to introduce you to my friend Chris? It sounds like you guys could be soul mates. ;-)

anes_lc (14768) 2007-06-04 3:00

amazing landscape....lucky you for all this travels that you make...and lucky us that you share this great pictures
regards,anes

Floydian (30970) 2007-06-04 4:17

Hi Julia,
I am much older then you are, and also i tried to find something a very long time ago but could not give it a name, some feeling from deep inside. I found it at home, also a very long time ago ;-)
Home is were the heart is Julia...4ever..!!!
Your photo has such a great mood, so serene and peacefull, truly wonderful.
Wishing you a very safe trip, try to learn, to observe, to get that deeper feeling about your self and the people around you...and after all that...come home, safely ;-)
Take care..!!!
Regards, Henk

dkeus31 (26216) 2007-06-04 15:29

hello Julia,
A nice moody picture of Finnaland, I like the ambiance in this picture, the quuietness and the calmness.
Best regards
didier

ktanska (16603) 2007-06-05 6:49

Hei Julia,
Again you have good charm of wilderness even with cloudy weather. Composition is as good as it gets. Scene is made of those few elements that are available on late winter landscape. I'm surprised to see so much free water on the beginning of April.
Good luck to your journey!
Kari

waseemkhan (1070) 2007-06-08 4:34

Hi Julia,
A nice moody picture of Finnaland, I like the ambiance in this picture, the quuietness and the calmness.
Best regards.............
waseem khan

canova (1) 2007-06-08 12:58

Hi Julia,

I am happy to find those new shots from you. You have a natural talent for shooting snowy stuff and landscapes, which does not come necessarily naturally for many of us. I happen to be quite lost in front of the snow, not really knowing how to picture it.

Nobody knows what you will find in Asia, and I am not sure even you knows what you are exactly looking for there. But you definitely, through your art, gave rise in me to curiosity and a thirst to get to know your homeland better, a region of the world I knew little of (not to say I only had very caricatural prejudice, which I knew not to rely on, but still represented my full knowlege) before getting to know you.

Since my father's tales of trip through inhospitable deserts, I have always dreamt of experiencing the mysteries of desolate sandy areas. Now there is another spot I am eager to get to know. A place which would look like this dreamy and contrasted landscape which I discovered and learned to love in your photos.

I am not sure what I will find there, nor what I am looking for finding there (and I know I might be disappointed in comparison to your pics :P).

But I am already very grateful towards you for offering to my life anything else to long for.

One question, did you reframe the original pic? Or did you use some sophisticated software to make a panoramic shot out of a couple shots?

Great idea to use this black frame. It is a great asset to light up the scenery.

cobraphil8 (11652) 2007-06-13 5:35

En voici une que j'avais loupé et ta note est pleine de sagesse, les problèmes écologiques seront de plus en plus cruciaux dans les années à venir et on a l'impression que tout le monde attend l'irrémédiable (ce qui n'est pas totalement juste), mais ceux qui peuvent faire bouger concrètement les choses prévoient des choses non-chiffrées pour 2050, de qui se moque-t-on?
La plupart seront sans doute morts à cette date !!!

Concernant l'Asie, tu vas te régaler...

Et si tu ne rentres pas, donnes une adresse pour que je puisse venir te voir :)

a+
Philippe

Karmenu (1384) 2007-06-14 6:38

Another look for another photo in your collection. Impressive places which gives you the oportunity to share with us this wonderful shots! Congratulation also for other photos.
Best regards
Carmel

mpb001 (4600) 2007-06-14 19:30

Great scene, Julia. I can almost feel the calmness of the scene. The muted, cool colors really add to the composition. This looks very much like a winter landscape in my area of the world. Have a good trip and I hope that you will return with lots of memories, insight into culture and of course...photos.
Mike