Animal footprints in the snow, Hokkaido Photograph - Limited Edition of 5

This is a fairly unusual image for me. I normally try my best to remove any human (or animal) element from the scene, try to reduce everything to the bare natural elements, but sometimes I just can’t avoid leaving something in. In this case I love how the footprints create an s-shaped line from the bottom of the frame up to the middle, leading the eye to the hill first and then the sky. I also love that the very fleeting light here turned the snow into a white canvas, making it kind of unreal: this could be snow or a desert, anywhere in the world. This light only lasted a few seconds, and once it was gone all was left was a boringly normal snow field. Sometimes true beauty only lasts for a split second, and to be able to experience that with our camera is the true goal of photography. The original is printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Satin 310 gsm 100% Cotton white satin-finish paper and manually signed.