River of Ice by Philippe Sainte-Laudy

Friday, 21st March 2008

River of Ice

by Philippe Sainte-Laudy

The EU’s agency predicts that three-quarters of Switzerland’s glaciers will disapear by 2050 if current trends continued unchanged. The Aletsch glacier, in the bernese Oberland, in south-wetern Switzerland, has retreated 3,4 km since peaking at a length of 23 km in 1860. About 1,4 km of the shrinkage has happened over the past 56 years. The Aletsch was once seen as a threat, adding ice and threatening to encroach on inhabited areas. These days, the glacier is more of a threat from is melting ice worsening valley floods.

Equipment: Nikon D200 with 10/20 mm

Philippe Sainte-Laudy

Photographer by passion for years, I like in particular the photography of landscape and nature generally.
Always in search of the best light and of the most original angle, I “hunt” all the time the most beautiful places which surround me.

www.naturephotographie.com

32 Comments

joe ullman Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 3:20 am
good lord; where on earth do you live?! Two amazing shots.
John Harrison Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 6:20 am
Philippe,
Very nicely composed! I really would like to be there right now. You have done a nice job capturing the depth and height of those peaks. Good cloud detail as well.
Enjoy!
John
Marc Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 6:24 am
This is why photography is not just a hobby, but a necessity. Thanks for adding to the historical record. And, it’s an excellent shot in its own right.
Linda Jones Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 6:39 am
Absolutely a precious photo of mother earths beauty. The message of your photo speaks to us all.
Md. Ziaul Hoque Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 7:37 am
Paradise lost!
Craig Wilson Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 8:04 am
Beautiful image - something straight out of Lord Of The Rings!
Anurag Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 9:25 am
A shot with a lot of atmosphere. Well composed. And, an equally pertinent write up.
Chetna Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 9:30 am
There is an unearthly quality about the photo… (Kind of sad that when something is as beautiful as this we think of it existing on another plane!) The composition of this is outstanding. Amazing depth of field taking us from the clouds and trees in the front, a mirror lake reflecting in the centre, all the way into the deep valley up the glacier. Magnifique! I too wish I was there! Superb! I thank you for blessing my day with this!
Philippe Sainte-Laudy Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 10:03 am
Many thanks everyone for your awesome comments!!!
Mark Simms Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 10:34 am
Probably the best landscape shot I have seen on Earthshots, and I have subscribed since day 10… simply amazing.
Keith Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 10:38 am
A superb image with incredible depth to it. On my monitor it is almost 3d. Composition and exposure are spot on.
Terry Everson Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 12:34 pm
An excellent photo,it has all the elements just right.
Reuben Chircop Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 12:41 pm
What a wonderful shot. So balanced and also the shadows are as clear as the whole picture.

Great job.
Matt Kadey Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Awesome light and color.
Renee Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Wow what a amazing shot you captured very stunning! well done!
Dale D Swanson Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 3:13 pm
Absolutely exceptional…
Pieter -sAner- van der Horst Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 4:15 pm
Excellent photo. Very nicely exposed (altough conditions were far from ideal; shadows & lights) and good compo. Well done!
Macromoments Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 6:47 pm
This is one of the most powerful images I’ve seen in a long time. You must be very proud of your work–it’s spectacular.
O cohen Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 9:08 pm
wow, i love how the clouds almost touch the earth, keep it up! and i love your glacier message, its truly terrible how they are disappearing, they are the true ice giants of the world.
Alex Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 10:44 pm
Woow!

i would love to have the money to travel on those places!

Great photo, so many different colors, the perspective, the ligth - just great!
Eileen Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 10:59 pm
I have always loved taking shots with clouds. I like the way the clouds hug the mountains. Grrreat shot. EZ
Philippe Sainte-Laudy Says:
March 21st, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Many thanks everyone, for taking the time to leave kind comments.
S. N. Rama Raju Says:
March 22nd, 2008 at 2:22 am
Looks like an ampitheatre and I felt I was waiting for the performer to appear at the edge of the lake. Beatiful composition.
a. Says:
March 22nd, 2008 at 3:22 pm
Oh my god. What a gorgeous spot. I love how close the first cloud is. It is so sad that people are destroying places like this…
Pauline Jones Says:
March 22nd, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Switzerland is a beautiful place, I recommend anyone who has the money to go there.
reza Says:
March 22nd, 2008 at 4:55 pm
nice shot . oh my god i wish i was there ….
good luck
Tommy Says:
March 22nd, 2008 at 8:50 pm
This should open up more land for plants. Beautiful scene.
Azu Says:
March 23rd, 2008 at 2:11 am
Impressive!!
Ottoman Says:
March 23rd, 2008 at 10:22 am
Very nice shot!
Chris Says:
March 24th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
So awesome…one of those places where heaven meets earth. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Philippe Sainte-Laudy Says:
March 24th, 2008 at 10:23 pm
Thank you so much for all of your nice comments.
I appreciate you all.
amanda Says:
March 25th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
i love it i’d hang it up in my house