His Alpine pictures inspired millions yet many of never heard of the man behind them.
Vittorio Sella laboured to capture some of the earliest images of mountains which have gone on to shape high altitude photography.
“Somebody handed me a photograph on a previous project and said, ‘this is the first photograph of Everest’ and because I have an interest in photography and particularly analogue photography, it just kind of blew my mind!’ Kendal-based film maker Dom Bush told Business Crack.
“And then it’s been this amazing journey of learning and understanding who he was.”
At the turn of the century photographers were still using specialist plates and unwieldy equipment not suited to the rigours of mountaineering.
Yet by using modified pack saddles and rucksacks Vittorio was able to transport his equipment which enabled him to capture the kind of images that, 100 years on, are still rated as technically perfect.
It was this dedication that inspired Dom and fellow Cumbrian collaborator Matt Sharman to embark on a fascinating journey to produce a short film about Sella’s achievements which, even now, are sometimes hard to comprehend.
“It started with a winning pitch at Kendal Mountain Festival 2023 to make a short film, and grew into a two year journey that took our team from the Lake District to London, to the Scottish Highlands, Northern Italy and on to the Himalayas,” Dom recalls.
Speaking to Business Crack Steve Scott, director of Kendal Mountain Festival, said the commission would doubtless be a highlight of the festival.
So how hard was it to document the story of a creative pioneer?
“One of the unexpected joys of this whole process has been a function of that research and just revealing who Vittoria was,” Matt said. “Like Dom, I knew very little but you set off on this journey, dive deeper, understand the man better. And what an inspirational chap he turned out to be, not just a photographer, but an amazing Alpinist, a chemist, a painter, explorer, a real sort of Renaissance man in all sorts of respects.”
Using contacts the pair already had in the mountaineering world by opening up conversations put them in touch with the Sella Foundation run by Vittorio’s family.
“There was no one better to tell us accurately what the deal was and some of the films prior to this that Dom and I have been involved in have worked alongside and quite closely with mountaineering historians,” Matt said.
“The Sella Foundation was a really key contact to establish and we were rewarded with some really revealing information, fascinating interviews with direct descendants of Vittorio and access to the photographs.”
Their work not only developed contacts in Italy but a fluke conversation led them on a very different tangent.
“I wrote to a pal of mine in northern Italy, where Sella’s from asking if she knew anything about him and while she didn’t she put me in touch a neurosurgeon based in New York.
“Apparently, he’s the spine specialist for the New York Jets who it turns out, collects Sella’s work and has published a book on Vittorio Sella and Wilfred Tessinger.”
This chance connection turned out to be vital in filling in some of the jigsaw of Sella’s story and even supported the project financially and will be at the Kendal Mountain Festival to see the premiere.
The two-year process was not without it’s challenging moments.
A team member had to be evacuated on an expedition in Nepal, about halfway through the trip. He’s now recovered but it was a reminder that even with the technology that exists today, the mountains demand respect.
As well as the feature length documentary at Kendal Mountain Festival which begins this week a headline photography exhibition will also be held at the Brewery Arts Centre.
The more Matt and Dom delved into Vittorio’s life, the more impressed they were with the achievements of the creative pioneer. Students at the University of Cumbria have enjoyed an early insight into the resulting work and the painstaking process to get there.
“I’ve been practising traditional film analogue photography for quite a few years, and revisiting that in my own practise so understanding how he worked in that discipline was really fascinating,” Dom said. “The fact that he was actually designing and building prototype cameras and designing special cameras to take into the mountains, forging a path forward in photography because he needed the best kit in the most challenging environments, means he was absolutely a pioneer.”
Dom and Matt are self-employed, freelance film and photographers; do they reflect on how Sella’s work decades ago has led them into a career?
“We owe a part of what we do to Vittorio Sella. And I think it’s a really nice homage to somebody who just really changed the game and progressed everything and left these indelible marks in his photographs in our mountain heritage and culture.”
- A Thousand Words, the pioneer who captured the first images of Mount Everest 125 years ago will be screened on Friday, November 21 at 9pm The Box, Kendal.
