My wife and I have a favourite place, and it is deep in the mountains of Wales’ Snowdonia National Park.
For our holiday this year we went back and stayed there, and on one day climbed a peak called Y Garn, next to the Glyders and Tryfan. It’s quite a steep climb, and more than my wife is used to, but she powered through and we were treated to some magnificent views from the top.
Nestled in a pass between Y Garn and the ominous scree slopes of Glyder Fawr is a small mountain pool: Llyn Cwn
Llyn Cwn at Y Garn, Snowdonia
This image was taken using a 10-stop filter, smoothing out the ripples caused by a healthy breeze blowing through the pass. I love the soft pastel purple hues from the rocks (a natural feature, not something added by me) and the gentle brown and green of the far shore. The water was crystal clear and icy cold.
Beyond composing to keep a clean crop, I wanted to use the rocks in the foreground to take the viewer to the rocks in the middle, where the view is soothed by the soft colours and smooth water, to then drift to the lighter grass top left, and finally to the rocks top right, which bring a nice harmony to the image. The detail of the grass top left balances nicely with the rocks under water in the bottom right, and the whole image conveys a sense of calm.
I love images like this, because it was a genuine hard effort to reach this pool, and so many people in the world will never see it with their own eyes that it feels special, a privilege to have been there and sat by its cool waters.
