Saving herself from depression, the 32-year-old girl carries a camera and a tripod along the South – North, regardless of rain, shine, snow, capturing the beauty of nature.
In 2018, after an event that caused her to suffer from depression, Ao Kim Ngoc (HCMC) decided to make friends with trips. The first time she stood in front of the sea of clouds in Da Lat (Lam Dong), she was extremely overwhelmed and did not believe the scene before her eyes were real. Wondering how many times she was lucky enough to admire and how to preserve that beauty for the next generation, in 2019 Ngoc began to get acquainted with the camera, going along the South-North to save her image. with nature.
Ngoc shared, for 2 consecutive years, she often goes to photograph the seasons in each locality or follows inspirations such as the peach blossom season in Sa Pa (Lao Cai), the cloud scene in Tam Duong (Lai Chau); a sea of clouds in Ngai Thau Thuong; snowfall, the Milky Way in Y Ty (Lao Cai); Ripe rice season in Ta Pa (An Giang).
When going to a place, she usually stays 5-7 days or longer to capture the desired moments. There are some places that have to come back 2-3 times a year. With trips that are not in the typical season of the region, or the weather is not favorable, Ngoc spends time learning about the culinary culture and activities of the indigenous people.
Beautiful, every place causes nostalgia when leaving is Ngoc’s words about the destinations in the journey. One of the places she is most impressed with is the northern mountainous provinces, with wild, majestic nature and the friendliness and gentleness of the people. In addition, Ngoc especially loves Da Lat, the city that aroused her passion for landscape portrait photography, and where she met many friends with the same passion.
“There are moments when I think I’m lost in a dream because it’s so fairy and romantic. The feeling of leaving all the daily chaos behind to fully enjoy the beauty of nature helps me to love and appreciate it. more important than what I have, and at the same time dispel my negative and bad emotions”, Ngoc laughed and said.
Therefore, in addition to saving her own moments with nature, Ngoc also loves to save pictures of people’s daily lives, especially children. For her, the typical lifestyle in places she has been through is all wrapped up and stored as a memory through photos.
Besides solo trips, Ngoc also joins local friends and uncles who work in the field of photography. After traveling with the group, she took time to go alone to compose in her own style. Saving and safety are the criteria Ngoc puts on top, so on trips, she often books her plane tickets about a month in advance for the Northern region, takes a passenger car, and rents a motorbike to move with the locals. near destination. On long trips, she invites her friends to go along, sharing the cost to save and have more fun. Each trip costs an average of 6 – 7.5 million VND. In many places, she is invited by hospitable people with rice and specialties, ready to give her a ride.
The places she went to were mostly wild and deserted. She always prepares clothes to match the natural setting. In addition, her indispensable companions are the camera, tripod (camera stand), memory card, battery…
Ngoc shared that the new days of shooting are very difficult, if you are lucky, you can ask someone to shoot for you after you have prepared the machines and shooting angles. There are points with difficult terrain, having to run many times to adjust the camera, Ngoc fell and ripped her limbs and clothes but still patiently got the desired photo. Gradually, she was taught more experiences and photography techniques of her predecessors, to take photos more easily and safely.
Many times, Ngoc has to wake up and depart from 00:00 or 2-3 am to “hunt” the dawn and the Milky Way in the sky. Sometimes she also walks for kilometers with a heavy backpack on her back, the outdoor temperature is only a few degrees Celsius, or other times in the car up the steep and bumpy road, and the waves wet all the machinery and equipment. suffer.
For her, difficulties are part of the journey that youth needs to experience, to appreciate what they have and what nature has to offer. “If anyone asks me what my most valuable asset is, it’s probably my photos. Looking at photos, I can see how valuable it is when the urbanization process is happening rapidly, and I’m lucky to have great memories. This is beautiful,” Ngoc shared.
The concept of a good photo always changes with time and each person’s judgment. For Ngoc, a beautiful photo is when the camera is taken at the time when she and nature are most strongly connected with each other, with the happiest emotions. She also hopes that visitors who love check-in can save beautiful but not-so-beautiful photos in a way that destroys nature and the environment such as cutting trees, breaking flowers…
Ngoc said that in the coming time, she will continue to learn and experience new lands to have more beautiful images of Vietnam, making a small contribution to inspiring young people to travel and check-in sustainably. . “Try to test your limits, don’t be afraid to move and explore new things. Nature is a great gift of nature, and a smile is the most effective passport of every trip.” she said. Follow vnexpress