I am delighted that my work has been recognised by Wildlife Photographer of the Year. In this article, I share the background, techniques and story behind the photo.

The photo was taken in early March in a small forest near Elkenroth in the Westerwald. It was one of those special mornings when the air is clear, the ground is still cool from the night and the first rays of sunshine shine through the trees. A carpet of snowflakes (Leucojum vernum) covered the forest floor – fragile, almost glowing in the dim light.

As I stood there, I was drawn to the contrast between the dense flowers below and the bright, opening canopy above. Instead of choosing one perspective, I wanted to capture both – the quiet details of the ground and the airy ones of the forest.

To do this, I used a long exposure time and tilted the camera during the shot so that the two visual planes merged into one coherent image. My aim was not abstraction for its own sake, but to express the mood of the scene.

No artificial light was used – only the soft, directional morning light. The composition and movement were planned on site, and the exposure was balanced to preserve both the highlights and the shadow structure.

What I love about this image is that it contains two realities at once: the silence of the forest floor and the awakening energy of the morning light. It is not so much a documentary as a memory – a kind of moment that lasts only seconds but remains in the memory much longer. The image poses questions to the viewer and thus invites dialogue.

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