This photograph provides a spectacular and dramatic backdrop to the crater of Kawah Ijen, where the acid lake glows an incredibly vivid turquoise colour. In the foreground are the twisted, blackened silhouettes of charred branches, remnants of the fires and the corrosive action of the sulphur. These twisted forms seem almost to dance before the abyss, like shadows frozen in time. Immediately behind, the lake occupies the visual centre: its surface appears milky, as if saturated with minerals, and reflects the variations in the grey-blue sky. The steep walls of the crater show different strata of volcanic rock, ranging from light grey to oxidised brown. The whole scene exudes an atmosphere that is at once mysterious, silent and brutal. It feels like a world in perpetual geological motion, a place where the air itself seems charged with raw energy and sulphurous vapour. Kawah Ijen illustrates the power of the Earth, its strange beauty, and the way in which life persists despite extreme conditions.
Passionate about photography, I travel the world in search of the most beautiful shots.
Currently in Thailand..
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