Raw emotion, frozen in time.
You can have your extensive lighting, planning, controlled
conditions and fancy specialised equipment when taking photographs. It are the
alternatives composed from rawness, decisive moments, and perfect timing that
are my absolute favourites.
They strike a chord in anyone that cast their eyes upon
them, because they tell a story. Everyone single person, especially those passionate
about adventure, can relate to hardship and raw, genuine emotions.
That’s what makes
us as all human.
A while ago, I bought a point and shoot camera as I decided
I wanted to capture real moments in life.
Recently, I embarked on a climbing trip in Utah that ended
up testing all the experienced climbers we had in our party. Fritz
Carpenter took the lead, he is a real trailblazer and we were all concerned
about what route he would take us on. He fought up the off width for close to three
gutsy and exhausting hours. Fritz is renowned for his grit and determination,
characteristics that are necessary in a world-class climber.
I’d never seen anything like it. After barely following the
pitch, I found him slouched in his harness, utterly depleted.
Done. Cactus. Kaput.
His partner was grabbing gear from him as he sat whipping
the sand from his eyes. I knew I needed to be capturing this raw, unmolested
and entirely real moment.
There were no studio lights, medium format cameras, or
C-Stands. The moment featured nothing more than sand and gut wrenching effort, coined
with genuine raw emotion.
Maybe I am biased, it may not even be a good photograph. An
old mentor told me to “kill your darlings.” By this he meant, you’ll have
certain photographs that mean more than anything because of the emotion and
story attached to them.
They trick you into thinking they are good photographs.
I am proud that this is a darling of mine and wish you were
there on this journey with me so it could be a darling of yours too.
I’ve come to learn, and attempt to embrace, my life is
always about movement. Hopefully I capture some of it during the process. All I
want to do is get out into the mountains. Push my boundaries. Documenting this
feeling is my true passion. Although, I see myself as a mountain athlete ultra
runner, ice climber, and rock climber, I’ve learned that’s what I do, not my
end goal. My goal is to document others pushing themselves in the mountains,
and in life.
- Seth Langbauer