It was 4 in the morning when the alarm went off.
I was sleeping in the pop-up roof of the van, and the cold outside was anything but inviting to step out.
With my eyes half-shut and my body aching from the previous days, I managed to drag myself down to the lower part and start preparing breakfast on autopilot.
At that moment, all I could think was, "Damn, why did I get myself into this?" Slowly but surely, that thought faded from my mind, and I moved on to going through my equipment checklist before heading out.
"Batteries, cards, 24mm, 50mm, 70-200mm, water, nuts..." and a long list of things I knew were in my backpack.
Outside, there was hustle and bustle, and the headlamps of our Italian crew were constantly darting around.
"Andiamo Nicki!"
Damn! Let's get out of here...
I grabbed my things while trying not to choke on the last spoonful of porridge that felt like reinforced concrete.
I stepped outside, greeted the whole team, and turned around to see what lay ahead. We were at Tre Cime in the Dolomites, still dark, but what I saw left me stunned.
So stunned that the sprint I made to catch up with the Italians almost made me throw up that reinforced concrete I called breakfast earlier.
Fiore saw me and said, "Qué Mario!, ready for another day of catching Pokémons?"
You know it, buddy! I replied.
At that moment, I got into the zone and started shooting. I don't think I had ever seen such blue light, such mountains, and on top of that, we were alone...
All I could think was Damn! Thank goodness I got myself into this mess. This is unique!
But what I want you to take away today is that there's no other way to capture the photos you want than by getting your hands dirty. There are no shortcuts. There are better or worse methods, but no magic formulas.
Photography, like life, is about making decisions, playing the cards you're dealt, and making the best move with them.
That day, I could have stayed in bed or gone out later. We had been hiking for over 5 days, with daily ascents of over 1000m and 8-hour van trips. My whole body ached, but I knew theirs did too.
I knew it was going to be an epic day, I knew it was going to be something unique, and above all, I knew I had a commitment to fulfill.
And in the end, that's what sets apart a good photographer from one who isn't so good: the ability to commit to oneself and one's work.
You choose which group you want to belong to.
A story from the Red Bull X - Alps 2023
