Fire in the Water

The Rio Tinto River, in Spain, is one of the most colorful places on our planet. The unique red and orange color of its water is the result of highly toxic and acidic chemical mixes that include important levels of iron. This area has a lot of ore, sulfide deposits and other minerals. It has been a mining site for 5000 years. The intriguing colors of the water inspired me to create abstract photographs using close-ups of the stream. I decided to go near the source of the river, where the minerals have the highest concentration in the water. This allowed me to capture more variations in the intensity of the colors, from deep red to lighter orange. Capturing the scene vertically without a tripod was a challenge to avoid falling in the toxic water.