Gubbio Photo Contest - First place in landscape category

Thanks to Gubbio Photo Contest to have selected one of my photography (Moltitudes) as winner in category 'landscape'!

Competition title was 'Apennines: environment, history and territory'.
It has been the first edition of photographic competition ‘City of Gubbio’, together with 'INSIEME' Association and C.A.I. section of Gubbio, in collaboration with Gubbio Municipality.

This competition aim to collect photographic evidences about variegated mosaic of the entire Apennines ridge, through pictures related to environmental, ecological, social and historical aspects, with a special look at underway transformations and sustainable use forms of hilly and mountainous areas.
Here you can find more detailed info:
https://www.gubbiophotocontest.it

The winner pic in landscape category has been the first image of my previous post "I am large, I contain multitudes"). It has been taken in 'Val di luce' (Abetone, Tuscany) in january 2023.
It shows a wood in winter, with shadows of bare trees on snow. From faraway, it can appear as a texture, and you need to stay near to recognize the trees. The title reminds to this poem by Walt Whitman:
"Do I contradict myself?
Very well then I contradict myself,
(I am large, I contain multitudes.)"

A wood contains multitudes, like our soul. There are many presences inside us: our ancestors, and all the parts of us, building an inner community. At the same time, a community of human beings should learn from trees: they know how to stay still, to save the energy during cold season, and to talk, communicating with branches.

Here the award, a beautiful majolica painting showing a series of golden shining summits:

Another award has been the opportunity to partecipate to a photographic workshop with Maurizio Biancarelli naturalistic photographer, who has taken us inside the beautiful Monte Cucco park, to stay in touch with the nature, catching the sunset and an amazing foggy wood, plenty of ancient beech trees, walking in wild nature with the right spirit and the will to share and to improve photographic skills, with a fantastic nice groups! It has been very magic to breathe such environment, thanks also to teachings, suggestion and advices by Maurizio!

Here on Monte Cucco to wait and catch sunset lights:

The day after, we woke up early in the morning (around 5 am) to wait sunrise on Monte Cucco summit, but the day has been foggy and rainy. We decided to walk inside the foggy forest. We have been lucky to catch the special vision of fog appearing and disappearing between ancient trees:

Here a try moving camera with 1/10 second speed:

And some pics turned in black&white, recreating an otherness from an exclusive world:

Here you can see the works of Maurizio Biancarelli, that capture the soul of wild landscape, with his passion and his special way to watch the world around us, either on Italy mountains than around all the world:
https://www.facebook.com/maurizio.biancarelli.nature.photography

At the end, my improvised speech during ceremony. I'm not used to talk in public, so I was very exciting.

Pictures taken with Sony Alpha 7iii and Nikon D800.
11/12 november 2023