Antarctica may be the coldest, windiest and driest continent on Earth. Regardless, Australian photographer Leah Kennedy remained intrigued by the beauty of its desolate landscape and made the journey to the continent. There she focused her creativity on capturing Antarctica’s unique light and reflection off the environment’s icy surface. And seeing as how it contains 90 percent of all of the ice on Earth, there was a lot to capture.

“The intriguing thing about the light in Antarctica was in the seeming absence of sunlight. The ice and snow seemed to be its own light source. There was a luminescent quality apparent even when the sun wasn’t shining. What is a dramatic and intriguing landscape is even more appealing because of this quality.”

Antarctica’s ice isn’t a smooth sheet but a continuously changing expanse. Here glaciers inch across the continent, cracking and breaking the ice. Icebergs fall along the coast, where shelves and glaciers break off into the sea. And because of this, the resulting portfolio is a breathtaking look at this majestic landscape.

Leah’s photographs capture the rich detail, giving an almost sculptural appearance to them. Silvery chunks of ice float in the water, their blue-grey colour contrasting with the snow-covered terrain in the background. By exploring light and shadow, she highlights these icy surfaces and invites the viewer to experience every detail. Other, seemingly more abstract photographs, hone in on the luminescence that appealed to her. The gently glowing blue tones are intriguing and soothing. 

Leah’s project is an homage to an environment that is slowly disappearing. It’s also a warning about Antarctica‘s fragility. She hopes that this contribution will be a reminder that any small step towards helping our planet is an effort worth making. If you’re intrigued by these images, take a look at more unbelievable places on Earth.

Source: https://mymodernmet.com/antarctica-light-leah-kennedy/