...to another
issue of the MountainWorld Productions E-Newsletter! I hope you
enjoy it!
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The mountain may
well be a way of escape - from cities and people, from turmoil and doubt, from the complexities and uncertainties and
sorrows that thread our lives. But in the truest and most
profound sense, it is an escape not from but to reality. Over
and above all else, the story of mountaineering is a story of
faith and affirmation - that the high road is the good road;
that there are still among us those who are willing to struggle
and suffer greatly for wholly ideal ends; that security is not
the be-all and end-all of living; that there are conquests to be
won in the world other than over each other. The climbing of
earth's heights, in itself, means little. That we want to try to
climb them means everything. For it is the ultimate wisdom of
the mountains that we are never so much as we can be as when we
are striving for what is beyond our grasp, and that there is no
battle worth the winning save that against our own ignorance and
fear.
- James Ramsey
Ullman, Age of Mountaineering
The
Summit Perspective...
Think for a moment about a big
goal or objective you accomplished in your life. Maybe it was a
financial goal, a physical, emotional, or spiritual one. Maybe
it was buying a new house, getting a new job, securing a new
client in business, having children or getting children through
college.
Now, what five things stand out in
your mind as being most important about reaching that goal,
accomplishing that objective. Write those down.
I'm willing to bet that, for most
of us, the five things - aside from the basic feeling of
accomplishment when reaching the end, standing on the summit -
are parts of the journey, things that happened to us while
working toward the end goal: lessons we learned about
ourselves, about others, about our strengths, weaknesses, our
good points and bad ones.
For me, the goal I am thinking of
is Everest, the Top of the World.
May 18, 2002, 6:45 AM.
I'm struggling upward with my
friend, Karma Rita Sherpa at 28,700 Feet on Everest's Southeast
Ridge. We are breaking trail through a windslab atop 12 inches
of fresh snow. We are ahead so I can be in position to get shots
for Discovery of our climbing team as they progress upwards.
A slight breeze bites into my
face, making my eyes water...and then freezing the tears to my
eyelashes. My breathing is labored, evidence of the struggle to
take step after step at this altitude.
Whew....Whew....Whew....I take a step. Whew....Whew....
Whew....I take another step.
Soon, we crest the 28,750 foot
South Summit of Everest. I stop in my tracks, breath catching in
my throat. It's the view I have been waiting 20 years to see in
person: The shadow of Everest itself stretching to the western
horizon as the sun rises behind me to the east. I take a few
shots, slip my camera back into the protective cocoon of my down
suit, and keep climbing up the final 250 feet of the Southeast
Ridge.
At 7:45 AM, Karma and I reach the
top. We hoot and holler, give eachother celebratory hugs, and
gaze out at the majestic view all around: Makalu, Chomolhunzo,
Lhotse, Nuptse, Cho Oyu...Himalayan giants as far as the eye can
see. I take some pictures, shake hands again with Karma. In five
minutes, we are on our way down into a storm.
Five minutes? Five
minutes??!! Twenty years of dreaming about Everest, two
failed summit attempts, six weeks of hard work on this
expedition...all for five little minutes on top? No, it wasn't
right. The summit had to be more than that. There had to be an
epiphany, some sort of life-altering experience. I was temped to
turn around and go back up, to look again, this time a bit
harder, and find what I missed, that nugget of insight proving
the top was more than just a little patch of snow at 29,035
feet.
I didn't go back that day, but I
did the next year. May 30, 2003, found me standing on the Top of
the World for my second time, almost 50 years to the day since
Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzin Norgay made the first
ascent. Again, it was just a patch of snow, not a Shangri La, no
enlightenment to be found. The summit was truly one small part
of a much greater journey.
And, strangely enough, that
thrilled me to no end. It thrilled me because it underscored
something I knew all along but was reluctant to believe: the
value in climbing lies not in reaching the summit, planting our
flag and checking it off our to-do list. The true value, the
true joy, lies rather on the sides of the mountain. It lies
precisely in the challenges we find ourselves struggling
against, the crevasses we have to cross. The growth on our
mountains - and thus the value and the joy - occurs on the
sides, not on the top. It is on the sides of our peaks that we
push ourselves to our limits, reach to new heights, attain the
seemingly unattainable and, by doing so, realize just how much
we can accomplish in our lives, just how high we can climb.
It is the sides of the mountain
which sustain life, not the top, writes Robert Pirsig in
"Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". But, of
course, without the top, we can't have the sides.
You, too, have an Everest to
climb. Go and climb it. Set your sights on the snowy summit.
Point your face into the wind, breath hard, struggle onward, and
stand on the top. But remember that your growth, your joy, and
your value will be found on the sides.
I
have been creating screensavers of my favorite images from my
travels around the world - the Himalaya, India, Nepal, Tibet,
South Africa, Guatemala, Tanzania, the Antarctic - and have
decided to make these available for you to download...FREE!
All you have to do
is go to my FREE screensaver download page on my photography
website, follow the instructions, and download the screensaver
of your choice. Currently I have four screensavers to choose
from:
PLEASE NOTE
THESE SCREENSAVERS ARE FOR WINDOWS SYSTEMS ONLY!
Photo Tip of the Month...
Silhouette for
Effect
Often when I am shooting people, I
want to convey a specific emotion, feeling, or concept. However,
that is often difficult to do when people's faces, clothing, or
appearance can give the viewer a different feeling or meaning.
The solution: try
silhouetting the subject.
It is simple to do, whether you
are using a state-of-the-art digital SLR or a simple
point-and-shoot camera. Just position your subject between you
and the sun (or other significant light source), compose, and
shoot away. Wait, no, it's not that simple.
Most cameras have very smart
metering systems, but not smart enough to know when you want
a dark subject and a bright background. So, you have to trick
the camera. Try this:
Disable your flash. You want your subject
black, a silhouette, not lightened by your flash. Turn it
off!
Trick your meter: Compose the photograph with
only the bright background filling the frame. Push down halfway
on the shutter button - on most cameras, this will "lock" the
exposure. With the shutter button still depressed half way,
recompose your photograph with the subject and light source in
it.
Push the shutter button all the way and -
bingo - you should have a nice silhouette!
This may take a
bit of trial and error depending on the camera you are using and the
setting. But, if you are shooting digital, you can easily check the
image and exposure and see if you nailed the shot!
Playing around
with silhouettes is one way to create meaning and power in your
photographs and a sense of anonymity which allows your viewer to
extract the meaning they seek.
New Book for Sale Online...
I just received the first copies
of a small-run photo book featuring my images from around the
world, an introductory message from me, and inspirational
passages from great thinkers. Entitled What Is Your Everest?,
this book will inspire you to seek out your summits in life.
Signed copies are available, so order yours online today!
"Life Is A Daring Adventure" Everest Poster for $10.00!
This
is a beautiful 18x24 inch poster printed on high-quality stock
with a protective coating. The picture is one of my personal
favorites: Taken by me in 2002 from the bottom of a crevasse in
the Khumbu Icefall! Below the image is a fitting quote by Helen
Keller:
Security is mostly a
superstition. It does not exist in Nature, nor do the children
of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in
the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring
adventure, or nothing.
I am often on
the road, traveling to speaking engagements, working as a
photographer on location, or leading expeditions for
International Mountain Guides.
A special thanks to my new speaking clients in the past few
months: Intelliden, ING Annuities, Allergan, Golden Financial
Partners, Isle of Capri, Asheville School, Summit School
Disctrict, Sandia Prep, and Bosque Academy.
I'm headed off to
climb Mount Fuji in May and visit sites around Japan.
Plans are still in
the works for a return to
Tibet in the Autumn of 2006. Possibilities include an ascent
of Gurla Mandhata, a 7700 meter peak in West Tibet that is
rarely climbed! I'll keep you posted!
Keep an eye on my
speaking schedule for public events in your area. Any event
marked with an asterisk (*) is open for everyone...I would love
to see you there!
I have been
adding new images to my
online database, which is fully searchable and e-commerce
enabled. Take a look around and let me know if you see a shot
you'd like to have on your home or office wall, or use in a
publication of some sort.
Contact
Information…
Jake Norton is a
professional speaker, photographer, climber, and guide from
Colorado. He delivers high-impact, multi-media motivational
presentations to audiences worldwide, inspiring them to set
lofty goals in life and giving them the tools to reach them.
Please forward
this newsletter to other people who might find it helpful.
Have a question
about Jake Norton or MountainWorld Productions? Please contact
us at:
Jake Norton
MountainWorld Productions
American Mountaineering Center
710 Tenth Street
Golden, CO 80401
I
have been creating screensavers of my favorite images from my
travels around the world - the Himalaya, India, Nepal, Tibet,
South Africa, Guatemala, Tanzania, the Antarctic - and have
decided to make these available for you to download...FREE!
