I started climbing in the 1960s. A half weight nylon rope tied around my waist with a bowline. A belay formed from the climbing rope. Abseiling by wrapping the rope around your body. The best running belay was a carabiner on a sling hooked on a rock spike. No harness. No belay device. I got lots of rope burns. When a friend of mine died trying to rescue someone from a fall into the sea, I went skiing. Up and down for many years. I always loved being in the mountains. Many years later I returned to climbing (rock and ice) and found a new world. Climbing gyms. Figure of 8 knots. Protection every two metres. Building elaborate 3 point belays. But now I am retired - too old, fat and stiff. I take pictures of my old and new friends in the Israeli climbing community.
Good climbing photos integrate three elements:
Drama - the excitement of the climber, positioned impossibly in space.
Harmony - the integration of the climber with the rock or climbing wall.
Focus - the intense zen-like concentration of the climber's moment.
All elements are present in these pictures, but usually one dominates. Hence the three different galleries.