In Norvegia alla ricerca del bue muschiato

IN NORWAY IN SEARCH OF THE MUSK OX

Photos and text by Jonathan Giovannini

The idea for this journey began with one specific animal: the musk ox. A species that seems to come from another era, having remained almost unchanged over time, and one that in Europe can only be encountered here, in Dovrefjell.

The goal was simple: to photograph it in its natural environment, without forcing anything, accepting the timing and the conditions as they came. And that is exactly what makes Dovrefjell different from so many other places: an open, elemental landscape, with no shelter, where everything is exposed. Tundra, snow and wind. Nothing else.

Walking here means adapting from the very start. The ground shifts constantly between ice and snow, while the weather can change in a matter of moments. It is not so much the distance that tests you, but the combination of conditions: the constant cold, the wind and the fatigue that gradually builds up.

In the end, the musk ox is not really something you go looking for. It is something you encounter. And when it happens, you immediately understand that you are exactly where you are meant to be.

AN ENVIRONMENT THAT NEVER LETS UP

Dovrefjell is not extreme because of its altitude, but because of what it throws against you. The wind is the dominant force: constant, powerful and at times difficult to manage.

For several days we walked in gusts of over 100 km/h, while ice lifted from the ground struck our faces like tiny needles. Even fully covered, the cold still found its way through.

Here, it is not just about low temperatures, but about constant exposure. There is no shelter and no real break from the weather. Even stopping requires attention.

Every action becomes slower: drinking, adjusting your gloves, checking your gear. Your hands grow cold within minutes, and you have to move quickly to avoid losing feeling.

It is an environment that cannot be confronted with force, only with adaptation. Nothing is under your control; you simply learn how to move within the conditions.

AN ENCOUNTER YOU CANNOT PREDICT

One of the most important things to accept, even before setting out, is that this is not a guaranteed encounter. Looking for the musk ox here is not a “shoot,” but a.

Everything depends on everything else: the weather, visibility, the animals’ movements, the condition of the ground.

You walk a great deal, often without seeing anything. You change direction, observe, wait. There is no fixed route and no certain outcome.

It is an experience that is anything but straightforward, one that requires you to make room for uncertainty. The conditions often determine more than we ever can. And that is precisely what defines it. More than the photography itself, it is everything that happens during the search that truly gives meaning to the journey.

PHOTOGRAPHING IN REAL CONDITIONS

From a photographic point of view, the key is adaptability. In Dovrefjell, light, wind and visibility are constantly changing, so decisions have to be made quickly.

The gear matters, but it is not the main factor. What matters more is understanding the subject, managing distance and reading the scene.

It does not always make sense to focus on detail. Often, it is the context that gives an image its strength: the snow, the open space, the wind. Sometimes a clean portrait works best; other times, it is the surrounding environment that truly tells the story.

The best approach is to stay flexible, without becoming attached to a rigid idea. Forcing things rarely leads to good results.

Exposure also requires care. Snow and diffused light can easily be misleading, causing detail to be lost or flattening the scene. That is why it is essential to check and adjust constantly, searching for a balance that conveys what the experience actually feels like.

THE RIGHT MOMENT

Winter is the season I find most compelling for this experience. The landscape becomes simpler, and everything feels more essential.

The snow, the low-angled light and the cold atmosphere all help create clean images that match the character of the musk ox.

At the same time, these are exactly the conditions that make everything more demanding. The cold, the wind and moving across snow-covered ground are all part of the experience and define its intensity.

It is not just about observing or photographing, but about entering into a relationship with an environment that offers very little.

The musk ox seems to belong completely to this landscape. And every image manages to convey, at least in part, that feeling of isolation, silence and coherence that you experience when you are there.

Jonathan Giovannini

"For me, being a wildlife photographer means entering into symbiosis with the natural world, respecting it, and portraying it in its purest state."