Michaël Arzur
Ephemeral
Iceberg drifting on the Jökulsárlón glacial lagoon, Iceland, 2024
Category - Polar Wonders
This photo was taken in March, when the surface of Jökulsárlón glacier lagoon in Iceland was partially frozen and blocks of ice were breaking away from the Vatnajökull glacier and drifting slowly towards the ocean. The sky was overcast that day, letting only a few rays of light break through. When this light passes through the ice, it reveals its changes in density in subtle shades of blue. I focused my attention on this particular iceberg because the density variations in the ice showed that a hole was forming at its base. Climate disruption is occurring more noticeably in the polar regions than anywhere else in the world. In this photograph, I wanted to highlight the ephemeral nature and fragility of this ecosystem. The accelerated melting, symbolised here by the hole forming, gave me a visual impression of impact: that of ours on the environment.
200 mm f/5.6 Lens - 1/1000 sec at f/7.1 ISO 100