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Lucas
@scott.inc
Landscape photographer based in France
I was one of those young people, in search of a truth different from what was offered by traditional Western patterns. skeptical, I constantly questioned our modern habits and the world around us. I was looking for lucidity, and I am fortunate to have a brother who pursues this too. He is neither convinced by the current social codes and expectations. Facing this rather rigid and limiting conditioning, something pushed him to leave on foot, alone with his backpack to live a true experience.
"This trip was a first lesson of life that encouraged him to leave again after he had just arrived back home from his first backpacking adventure."
That was the moment that I too, made the decision to quit my studies and join the adventure. One trekking after the other, we quickly took on a nomadic lifestyle. This art of living teaches lots of things that we wouldn’t learn at school, things that are so essential for fulfillment as well as for physical and mental health. Being a nomad means to accept leaving security and habits behind to dare to take risks. It’s a jump into the unknown where one must accept to fall and learn from mistakes to grow. A world where you are free to create your own reality without being judged, and where you give meaning to simple things as well as our basic needs. These journeys, also the internal journey you go through, is a great opportunity to get to know yourself. Observing your behavior in a variety of situations, being attentive to your unconscious blockages and above all learn to relativize.
"Both curious and thirsty for new experiences and horizons, the weeks in the mountains were not enough anymore. We are now crossing entire countries on foot!"
The moments that are etched in our memories are always the ones characterized by emotion. I have seen so many beautiful landscapes that haven’t been saved in my memory. On the other hand, there are many moments of laughter, surprise, joy and fear that have marked me deeply. I will never forget that time when we crossed the French alps by foot. We walked everyday for one month with just our backpack. It was there that I experienced what a nomad life really involves. We were living in constant improvisation with a very rudimentary comfort of life. No doubts that it was the most engaging travel I have done so far and also the one that has taught me the most.
"On one particular moment, after a challenging and rainy day, we had to find a spot to set up our tent to spend the night, as we did every day."
This time, we were just at the exit of a bustling city in between the Jura and the Vosges. Deprived of nature to set up our tent, we were dirty, tired and helpless for what was seemingly going to be a tough night. Seeing our despair, a man stopped and invited us to get in his car; that’s where the surprise started. He let us in his wonderful house and treated us like his own sons, with so much goodwill. He offered us a huge meal, washed our clothes and prepared a lovely room upstairs for both of us before leaving. We were two complete strangers, all alone in his comfortable and luxurious house. From what I remember, I have never appreciated a meal that much. The room and the bed were the best present I could have ever dreamt of. That day, I learnt that deprivation and lack are absolutely necessary to really realize the value of these little things yet so banal. Everyone should try to deprive themselves of their usual comfort for several days to experience and realize two things: First, that we can easily survive eating less, without a warm shower to wash yourself and without bed nor mattress to sleep. Secondly, that we are fortunate to have access to those things, so easily that we don’t even realize it. Knowing how to be satisfied with little for a living greatly expands the possibilities when we travel.
"That reminds me of the following quote: “A man is rich not by what he owns but what he can do without.”
I would define myself as someone very social and I love to joke. During my life experiences I quickly realized that making people laugh, cheering up, motivating or inspiring people gave me great vital energy. Much more than any material acquisition. Besides, watching videos and movies has always been a source of inspiration and energy. I just have to see a beautiful cinematic of any discipline to want to practice what I saw. With film, it’s possible to inspire, motivate and encourage whoever to accomplish anything, and it’s this power and potential that I find so fascinating.
It was obvious to me that I wanted a camera in order to express and offer emotions visually. For that, I began learning photography by necessity because when you want to manage a film camera properly there’s a need to know the basics of photography. That resulted in me having lots of fun editing my photos, which is what made me fall in love with this art too.
After having tried different gear and different genres, I rapidly found my style using very simple, light, compact and above all quick to set up equipment. I want to be always ready to capture a moment where emotion speaks. Aware that this spontaneity is not always maximizing the material’s potential performance, I always choose to be fast and capture when I feel an emotion rushing through my body. This may result in photos taken against the light, not necessarily well exposed or even blurry because of a little fog on the lens, but that’s ok. Resetting the scene doesn’t allow me to obtain the same authenticity. So I always hike with my little hybrid beginners camera in my hand, ready to shoot. In addition to that, when we are backpacking and hiking for several days it’s necessary to be as minimal as possible. Bringing performing and heavy gear is unbearable. Beyond this weight and size constraint, offering videos during my trip is a real challenge for me. Some weeks are intense, fatigue is accumulating and it is difficult to find the time and the energy to work on projects when finding a spot, washing yourself, preparing food and spending the night somewhere is already a real challenge. No office with a well performing PC and professional software to edit videos.
"No electricity or internet most of the time. Only my little cell phone and my sleeping bag in a small tent up there in the mountains, as close as possible to the stars."
“If there is a reality that goes beyond dreams, it’s this: Live.”
I always keep this sentence in mind. We absolutely have to make our life fun and enjoyable, I believe. To live, starts with being in harmony with your desires and intuitions. Doing something everyday that has a profound meaning for you. Forcing yourself to experiment what really makes you thrill no matter the price. Confront your judgements, face your fears and dare to take risks to unleash your true potential. Also, to love yourself and to take care of your mental health is essential to create the future you deserve. In my opinion, that’s life. Learning through experiences and growing toward that direction with maximum positivity, benevolence and happiness.
"Related to that, my favorite video or photo would always be the one not necessarily with the most beautiful landscapes but the one that represents something meaningful to me, a great memory."
Without doubts that is the fifth video I posted. The ascend of the massif behind the village of Dormillouse in France. I wouldn’t know how to explain but that day, there was an euphorisch ambiance, very particular, maybe because of the challenge this ascend came with. We hiked in the rain, which transformed into snow when getting to higher altitudes. The goal was to spend the night halfway to our final destination, a large frozen lake. However, that would have turned into a survival mission with this weather. Just before giving up on the project and heading back, we found refuge in a small shepherd’s hut. And that was not the first time: On just the third day of one of our hiking trips in the Alps we found ourselves in the middle of a storm that had started out of a sudden, after having had a whole day of sun and clear sky. Going back wasn’t possible, we didn’t even have energy for that, and pitching our tent to take refuge would be wiser but we were already very cold, things got soaked and the weather was only getting worse. Then, out of a sudden, a little hut appeared in the fog and I went to see it with the hope of being able to shelter for a bit. Miraculously, the door opens to my hopeless attempt. A few words on the walls and on the ceiling make us understand that we are in the house of a shepherdess, “the shepherdess of the stars”.
"This lovely lady had left the door open for travelers in despair who could take a rest in her little hut."
Another surprise, an unexpectancy that changed everything in a blink. It’s exactly these kinds of emotional moments that add so much value to your travels. I don’t like the type of trips where I already know what’s going to happen and where everything is organized. There is one saying that truly matches with my way of thinking in this sense and what I try to say here:
“The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see.”
"I would like to conclude by saying that all my experiences and all my encounters good or bad have made me progress."
My inspirations and my vision of life were born on these journeys. As a result of that I love changing my daily routine, doing new things and meeting new people. I am perfectly at my place now; I do what I like, I learn, I evolve and develop within a domain that I am passionate about. For the moment, I work a lot on different projects that are unpaid, but the opportunities arise out of these projects. I believe that the universe always rewards those who choose to listen and to follow their convictions.
Above all, I believe that if we are aware that every single experience has something to teach us, life suddenly becomes easier. Each event is what it is, it’s on us to modify our perception to always get something positive out of it and grow. So there is no place for fear, all we have to do is let life inspire us and teach us – which we can use to become who we want to be.
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