Wildfires: beast and beauty

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Wildfires are hell. Not only because of the destruction they bring to the wildlife and humans living around it, but also because of the effect of the smoke they produce that can reach lands thousands of miles away.

I've experienced this a few times while living in Portland. Once, we left a window cracked during a smoky day, and came back a few hours later to an apartment covered in ash.

And yet, the apocalyptic and eerie scenes the smoke creates can make for incredible photographs. We've all seen images from New York City this week, affected by the smoke from wildfires happening in Canada. So horrible, yet so incredibly beautiful.

Similarly to fog, the smoke hides whatever is far away from you, while revealing in great detail the objects closer to you. It does have a distinct feel, though: it pollutes the whole landscape. Plus, these conditions happen at times when fog does not usually happen: there's nothing more dramatic than the Sun coming through a thick layer of smoke.

These two images are examples of some work I did in very smoky conditions. The first one was made in the Columbia River Gorge, Oregon, back in 2017, when wildfires in Alberta covered the whole PNW with smoke. The second image was made last year in Riaño, Spain, during a day with very strong calima (sand that is blown away from the Sahara desert, not from wildfires but the exact same effect).

Be cautious if you decide to adventure in these conditions, though: the danger to one's health can't be understated. Wear a good mask, and don't spend too much time outdoors anyway.