"North" by Jamen Percy
COMMENDED - 2014
North was shot after many seasons of enthusiastically chasing the Aurora borealis in the north of Scandinavia. Jamen Percy perfected the art of capturing photographs and creating time-lapses over years of returning to feed his passion.
By using a panning slider to capture the time-lapses Jamen was able to create more of an immersive and dynamic experience for the viewer.
However, none of this came easy. With temperatures plummeting down to -45 degrees celsius in the first snow scene, and high winds on the Norway coast, it is a test of dedication. On top of that, the unique battery pack that powers the movement of the camera on the time-lapse slider wasn't able to be transported on the plane trip, so I had no way of powering the automated system. With a high level auroral prediction coming and no way of powering it, Jamen sat for 3 hours in subzero temperatures manually moving the camera 5mm every 8 seconds in time with the remote. Without being able to move or take a break or even warm his hands, this was a real test of commitment.
The Lynx shots were captured with a tiny GoPro camera to encourage the cat to come closer, as the SLR camera was too big. It was a bonus the cat picked up the camera with its mouth, luckily it wasn't tasty and put it down.
Shooting locations include Abisko National Park in Sweden, Lofoten Island in Norway and Lynx shots were in Bardu, Norway.
With this video Jamen wanted to show viewers the natural wonder of the arctic, through its beauty in the night as well as the day.
