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Maximilian Lehrke
@maximilian.lehrke
Best of the week 45 at #nomadict 2020
A tingling in my fingers. A freedom I had never experienced before. An uncertainty of where I would be tomorrow. A deep excitement for what nature would show me next. That’s how it all began – with an unforgettable road trip in the USA.
I had dealt with other cultures at an early age as I grew up in Cologne, one of the most multicultural cities in Germany. However, I couldn’t afford big travels until my mid-twenties to experience it firsthand.
"After finishing university I had saved up enough money to start the first of many traveling adventures."
In Budapest 2015, I realized that the camera of my cell phone wasn’t enough to catch the city’s atmosphere. I felt that I needed a more sophisticated camera; while my picture was blurred and totally skew, a photographer next to me smiled mischievously at his camera display showcasing a wonderful shot. Less than 24 hours later I was holding my first Canon in my hands.
Photography is now one of the mainstays of my life. For me photography goes hand in hand with my emotional well being. After a few shots I immediately feel good, especially when taken in nature. In nature I feel free. I breathe more profoundly, listen more carefully and perceive my surroundings with more awareness.
"Compared to nature, many daily problems look so small and stress is being relieved during the short escape out of the city."
The natural environment drives my passion and my commitment to protect it. Our daily problems are nothing compared to the problem of nature abuse by humans. From my perspective, the world is in a seemingly unstoppable state of chance – for the worse. Trees are being uprooted. Rainforests are becoming scorched earth. Mountains of plastic drift through our oceans. Animals are being killed by illegal hunting. These are just a few examples that have a significant impact on our ecosystem.
"My pictures should show people how fascinating, versatile and unique our nature is in order to create awareness of what we might lose in the future."
With my photography I want to invite people to treat it in a more sustainable way. It is too big to solve the issue with a handful of people, but everybody can contribute with just a little bit of work and adjusting their routine for the better. Who is harmed by bending down on the beach to take plastic waste to the garbage, instead of letting it be washed into the sea again at the next tide? Of course, everyone will say “nobody” and everyone will agree that reducing use of plastic, water and energy is important and a little effort. But who has the self discipline to actually do it? It comes all down to the actions of those who are stronger than laziness. Of those who do not act like if they were ignorant. Of those who do not (unconsciously) search for excuses to reduce the feeling of guilt.
"Ultimately, we are just one piece of the puzzle in the history of our planet."
Nevertheless, we are currently the most influential factor that creates an imbalance on our planet. It is important to understand that we live in the here and now but nobody knows for how long. What is clear, however, is that nature is indispensable for us to survive, while on the other hand, nature’s not shying away from showing its brutal forces. We should understand this and act accordingly.
One day, arriving at the top of Seceda in the Dolomites, suddenly a heavy thunderstorm hit. The emergency tent we set up offered us no protection from the thunderstorm cell which was exactly on one level. We ran through the thunderstorm to the lower situated emergency hut. Three guardian angels must have accompanied us; afterwards the tent was gone but a beautiful and magical moment emerged. Without knowing what these clouds meant to say, our cameras captured unique moments! I realized how precious every second of life actually is.
Never forget to be nice to everyone, smile, keep up a good spirit and not let fear hold you back to go on new adventures or do something you love, because it could all be gone within a second.
I am always trying to live up to this. With my twin brother, we are a bit crazy together. Always in pursuit of thrilling experiences and adventures. Just like when I took the winning shot. On our trip to Switzerland we heard about a hike along steep and rugged rocks, which should give you a fascinating view on a giant ship bow made of stones. So only the captain was missing. When the sun finally came out from behind the clouds, we were presented a spectacle that we had to capture! The ship took shape, the play of shadows and the changing colors made it almost look as if the captain had arrived and slowly steered it forward.
I took the shot with a drone and the final panorama consists of nine images which I cropped for Instagram. When editing, it was important to me that it is showing the scale of this huge mountain. So I pulled down the black tones on the persons and increased the highlights around us. To emphasize the sharpness of the rugged rocks, I increased the clarity and brightness. For the final result I applied a light vignette and raised the orange tones a bit. There are many different ways in which I could have edited this shot.
For me, landscape photography is much more than capturing a beautiful frame. It connects me with other souls that inspire me. It brings me back to nature. It is a tool to express myself. Landscape photography has brought me to where I am now and allows me to capture moments that instantly become history. Hours and days pass by.
"Seasons come and go. And although ever changing, nature surrounds us universally - always - and I want to immortalize its presence each moment in time."
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