Ethereal Light Photography
The Naranjo de Bulnes, Picos de Europa, Spain
A few years ago we first visited the Refugio Vega de Urriellu at the foot of the Pico Urriellu, also known as the Naranjo de Bulnes (the Orange Tree of Bulnes), the most famous mountain in the Picos de Europa, in Asturias, Spain, which is very reminiscent of Patagonia. Since then we have acquired a full frame camera, better lenses and filters, and simply had to return here to get the killer shot we knew was possible. This meant getting all of our ducks in a row! The western horizon had to be completely clear of cloud to allow the mountain to turn orange, and we wanted a rising moon and some snow at the base of the mountain to add some drama. To get to the refugio involves a hard and steep climb from any direction, made more difficult in blazing sunshine which radiates back off the limestone rock, making the going extremely tough. The first time we climbed to the Refugio from the village of Bulnes, a gruelling ascent of 1,300 metres carrying our tent, sleeping equipment and camera gear. In May 2019 we used our Land Rover Defender to drive closer to the base of the mountain which resulted in a climb of 800 metres and a 16 km round trip. We set off in the early evening to avoid the worst of the heat, arriving in time for the setting sun to turn the mountain orange, and then descended to our Land Rover by the light of head torches through the cool and silent mountains, peaks still garlanded in snow, and bathed in the silvery light of the moon, which was a truly exhilarating experience. The resultant photograph is a panorama of 8 stitched images taken on a Pentax K1 with a 15-30mm Pentax lens and a Formatt-Hitech soft grad filter.
The Naranjo de Bulnes, Picos de Europa, Spain
A few years ago we first visited the Refugio Vega de Urriellu at the foot of the Pico Urriellu, also known as the Naranjo de Bulnes (the Orange Tree of Bulnes), the most famous mountain in the Picos de Europa, in Asturias, Spain, which is very reminiscent of Patagonia. Since then we have acquired a full frame camera, better lenses and filters, and simply had to return here to get the killer shot we knew was possible. This meant getting all of our ducks in a row! The western horizon had to be completely clear of cloud to allow the mountain to turn orange, and we wanted a rising moon and some snow at the base of the mountain to add some drama. To get to the refugio involves a hard and steep climb from any direction, made more difficult in blazing sunshine which radiates back off the limestone rock, making the going extremely tough. The first time we climbed to the Refugio from the village of Bulnes, a gruelling ascent of 1,300 metres carrying our tent, sleeping equipment and camera gear. In May 2019 we used our Land Rover Defender to drive closer to the base of the mountain which resulted in a climb of 800 metres and a 16 km round trip. We set off in the early evening to avoid the worst of the heat, arriving in time for the setting sun to turn the mountain orange, and then descended to our Land Rover by the light of head torches through the cool and silent mountains, peaks still garlanded in snow, and bathed in the silvery light of the moon, which was a truly exhilarating experience. The resultant photograph is a panorama of 8 stitched images taken on a Pentax K1 with a 15-30mm Pentax lens and a Formatt-Hitech soft grad filter.