I visit the High Tatras every summer to enjoy hikes, runs, and road bike trips with plenty of elevation gain. I always bring my camera to capture photos and videos of various locations.
This year’s biggest surprise was encountering several chamois (“kamzík”) at distances of just 3 to 15 meters. They were remarkably calm — no signs of fear or concern about my presence. I had only a wide-angle lens with me, but thanks to high resolution, I was able to crop in nicely. These encounters happened on the route from Zelené pleso back to Sedlo pod Svišťovkou and Skalnaté pleso.
I also had a few personal firsts this year — like hiking from Popradské pleso all the way up to Ostrva, and from Skalnaté pleso to Zelené pleso via Huncovský štít. The views were entirely new to me and absolutely breathtaking.
The sound of flowing water in the video comes directly from the camera. Other parts of the background audio were recorded at Štrbské pleso using the Zoom F3 and EARSIGHT The One — chosen purely for artistic atmosphere.
*Location:*
SK: Štrbské pleso, Popradské pleso, Skalnaté pleso, Malá Studená dolina, Zelené pleso, Vysoké Tatry, Slovensko
EN: Štrbské Mountain Lake, Popradské Mountain Lake, Skalnaté Mountain Lake, Green Mountain Lake, Malá Studená Valley, High Tatras, Slovakia
*Gear:*
– GFX 100 II
– GF 23mm F4 R LM WR
– Zoom F3
– EARSIGHT The One, immersive soundscapes: https://immersivesoundscapes.com/earsight-the-one-for-zoom-f3
*Tools:*
– Audacity
– Darktable
– DaVinci Resolve