glaciers

© Frank T. Smith Photograph

Photographer Captures Gorgeous Photos of Fall Colors in Patagonia

OM SYSTEM Ambassador and travel photographer Frank Smith has been capturing the diverse beauty of the world for decades. Whether it be through his photographs of people, cultures, or nature, Smith is a passionate and accomplished storyteller. However, documenting the fall colors in Patagonia had been one story that had eluded Smith for years.

Kluane Glaciers

The power of the slowly moving ice could be felt even from our lofty vantage point in the small, single-engine plane. A vast river of glacial ice stretched far into the horizon. Treeless mountains reared above us on both sides as we soared up the valley, their grey stone walls loosely robed in a white frock of snow, even though it was the height of summer.

Using Time-Lapse Photography to See the Movement of Massive Glaciers

People sometimes use the expression "slow as a glacier" to describe something so stagnant that even the speeds of snails and molasses would feel inadequately fast in comparison. The fastest glaciers ever measured move at tens of meters per day, while the slowest ones may budge only have a meter over the course of a year. Most of the time, the movement is too slow for the human eye to see.

Luckily for us, there's something called time-lapse photography. Back in 2004, PBS aired a NOVA episode titled Descent into the Ice, which followed photographers and adventurers as they ventured deep into the heart of a glacier found on Mont Blanc. One of the things they did was set up cameras to capture the movement of glaciers over extremely long periods of time. The video above shows 5 months of movement seen under a glacier moving 2 feet per day.

Speeding Up Climate Change Through Time-Lapse Photography

The Extreme Ice Survey (EIS) is a multi-year project by National Geographic photographer James Balog that aims to make show climate change in action through time-lapse imagery of glaciers. Balog has 27 Nikon D200 DSLRs pointed at 18 glaciers around the world snapping 8,000 photographs each year while powered by solar panels. His custom-designed rigs -- created through months of trial and error -- also include heavy duty tripods, waterproof cases, and wind-proof anchors. He has also created a documentary film about his project titled Chasing Ice.