Epic Landscapes / Epic Images
What makes an epic photograph (and what does that term even mean?)
Hello, I’m Gill and I write a photography blog inspired by the landscapes of Suffolk and beyond. Please subscribe to read more of my writing and visit my website to view my images.
Walking across the dew covered grass under the twisted boughs of numerous oak trees I hear a cuckoo call from the depths of the oak wood - a sure sign spring has arrived. Mist rises in the cold morning air as the first rays of sun banish the darkness from the land. I can feel the contrasts of the morning; the dampness in the air and the warming presence of the sun as it begins to filter through this magical woodland. At my feet a trail of spiders webs glisten in their dewy coats creating a fairy pathway between the trees. I follow it, searching for images, but am overwhelmed by the beauty of the morning. If there was ever a moment that could be considered epic, it would be this one.
Earlier in the week I had been listening to Danish Landscape Photographer Mads Peter Iversen talk on a photography podcast. He was discussing photographing his home country and the differences between that and photographing somewhere more grand like Iceland or the Faroe Islands. Referencing his local photography he said
‘When I go out, it’s more about what Denmark has to offer. It’s the still scenes, the calm scenes, its tranquility. It’s not yelling in your face, this is epic.
A lot of people associate my work with this statement - oh it’s absolutely epic. It is when you're standing on a cliff edge 500 meters above the ocean in the Faroe Islands. But when I go out on a calm, foggy morning next to a fjord with completely calm water and have a little boat, and perfect reflections and a couple of birds flying over it, I would never say that’s epic….’
Listening to him speak, my first reaction was why not? Why could that perfect moment in nature not be epic? Was he saying that he cannot create an epic photograph in Denmark and that epic images are only possible in grand landscapes?
I have been pondering this ever since and have been thinking back to my time in Scotland, to my photography in a landscape that is definitely impressive and awe inspiring. Is this the sort of landscape that we need to visit to take epic photographs? What about the more familiar landscapes of Suffolk? Is this landscape too flat to be epic? Am I destined never to make an epic shot in a landscape that I love because it is not generally considered awe inspiring?
To help my thought process I googled - what is an epic landscape and this was the definition that came back.
a grand or awe-inspiring natural scene, often characterised by its vastness, dramatic features, and the potential for evoking a sense of wonder.
On this basis I assume that this image taken in Scotland could be considered epic?
It has a grand landscape, amazing light and some nice mood, but does it evoke a sense of wonder?
Similarly this landscape is grand and undeniably beautiful but is that enough to make the image epic?
I love both these shots and both these locations and to me the images will always speak of two very special places. But I don’t know whether grand vistas are always what we should be searching for when we make landscape photographs.
When I go out with my camera it is nature that I find epic, no matter where I am. So for me the important part of the Google definition for epic landscapes is this - the potential for evoking a sense of wonder.
I can find wonder in any landscape and it is always nature that inspires me.
Back in Suffolk surrounded by trees in my ancient woodland I am convinced that I am standing in an epic landscape. It may not comprise mountains, but it does contain giants in the form of ancient oak trees. It has beauty and awe and in my mind is wondrous in so many small ways. For me epic is about the experience and the connection rather than the landscape itself. It is about nature and the magic of moments that resonate deeply.
As landscape photographers I do not think we should always seek out the tallest mountains or the grandest landscapes. We should let ourselves be open to the smaller wonders of nature because it is these that we are likely to encounter on a daily basis. Always seeking the high impact scenes is surely missing the point of landscape photography and being out in nature.
I think a photograph should say something about the photographers connection to place and our images should speak about the things that inspire us. We cannot always spend our lives travelling from one grand landscape to the next, only making images when we deem a place to be worthy of an epic shot. There is so much more to nature than that and so much deeper we can go.
I would rather see the wonders of nature in all its smaller moments depicted with passion and connection by the photographer than instant impact shots of grand landscapes that don’t even scratch the surface of what that place is really about.
Nature is awe inspiring, wherever we choose to photograph it and for me that is the most important thing to get across when I am making an image. And as for the term epic - I don’t care for it much! 🙂
What do you feel makes an epic landscape? Does this term mean different things to different people and if so what, for you, is an epic shot? I would love to hear your views on this or anything else that has been inspired by this post, so please leave your comments below.
Thank you very much for reading and until next time, enjoy your photography.
Gill
Wise words, Gill and lovely images, as always. When I first started out on my photographic journey I thought you could only get epic shots in honeypot locations like the Lakes, Dolomites or Scotland. What I soon learned was that there was beauty everywhere and if anything the greater challenge was to unearth the more intimate scenes of epicness. These days I am no longer drawn to the wide mountain vistas that I once was but instead look for the details and human elements that tell epic stories of people and place. Your woodland photos certainly look epic to me and your description of your walk though the woods was beautiful.
I had to think about your question, and I believe what you've identified here is a way that a photograph can convey feeling that our limited vocabulary cannot. I see a nuanced spectrum in between awe and wonder. An expansive landscape can make us feel small within the vast scope of the world and of life. A more intimate scene, like your wonderful photos of the oaks, bring us to the present, as if THIS moment and THIS place holds all the magic we will ever need. There are infinite shades of feeling on the spectrum and I find value in all of them. But, I do think 'epic' has become a colloquialism and poorly describes any of this.