2nd place
silver star award
Matthias Conrad
germany 
Photo © Matthias Conrad
title
Lights, Shadows, and Glaciers.
For the past 10 years, I’ve been exploring Switzerland, and what captivates me most is the mesmerizing dance of clouds and glaciers atop the mountain peaks.
To highlight the intricate details of the glaciers, I decided to shoot my images in black and white. This choice strips away the distraction of color, allowing the textures and contrasts to take center stage. It’s incredible how much more you can notice—the cracks, the ridges, the play of light and shadow—when you aren’t overwhelmed by the vibrant hues of nature.
What started as a small hobby developed over the years into my job and my passion. During the time I was studying business administration, I also developed my love for travel. My fascination with landscape photography began through various stays abroad in Canada, Mexico, and the USA and their diverse landscapes. In the meantime, this type of photography also plays a decisive role in my professional life.
In addition to workshops and photo trips, I am often out in the mountains of Switzerland, Austria as well as the Bavarian mountains to do work for commercial projects. A long-term project on minimalist plant studies was significantly inspired by the drawings and illustrations by Ernst Haeckel and, among other things, by numerous visits to the Phyletic Museum in Jena.
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entry description
Mountain Spring in the Swiss Alps is always a spectacle of nature. During my hikes up to the glaciers, the abundance of wildflowers made it difficult for me to focus on capturing the scenes I envisioned.For the past 10 years, I’ve been exploring Switzerland, and what captivates me most is the mesmerizing dance of clouds and glaciers atop the mountain peaks.
To highlight the intricate details of the glaciers, I decided to shoot my images in black and white. This choice strips away the distraction of color, allowing the textures and contrasts to take center stage. It’s incredible how much more you can notice—the cracks, the ridges, the play of light and shadow—when you aren’t overwhelmed by the vibrant hues of nature.
about the photographer
Nature and landscapes have always played a big role in my life. I was born in the mid-1970s in a small town in Thuringia on the edge of Hainich National Park - right in the middle of Germany - and I grew up there very close to nature. Trips and vacations with my parents and grandparents often led to nature. Already during my school days, I was exploring my patents and grandparents' analog EXA and Praktika cameras made in GDR (German Democratic Republic) and so I discovered photography for me.What started as a small hobby developed over the years into my job and my passion. During the time I was studying business administration, I also developed my love for travel. My fascination with landscape photography began through various stays abroad in Canada, Mexico, and the USA and their diverse landscapes. In the meantime, this type of photography also plays a decisive role in my professional life.
In addition to workshops and photo trips, I am often out in the mountains of Switzerland, Austria as well as the Bavarian mountains to do work for commercial projects. A long-term project on minimalist plant studies was significantly inspired by the drawings and illustrations by Ernst Haeckel and, among other things, by numerous visits to the Phyletic Museum in Jena.
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