The difficult process of creating this artwork tested my willpower and served as a declaration of defiance against the COVID-19 pandemic. The pursuit of creation is the lifelong ambition of every professional photographer.

In early 2023, the global pandemic finally came to an end after three years. In mid-March, I led the Zhongyi Creative Team from Dali, Yunnan, through the Nujiang Grand Canyon and the perilous Bingzhongluo-Tsachungla Road into the Nyingchi and Bomi regions of Tibet. Along the way, we hurriedly captured the breathtaking scenery of snow-capped mountains and the Peach Blossom Valley.

At the end of March, we arrived in the holy city of Lhasa. After a two-day rest, we continued north to the Nagqu region to pay homage to the sacred mountain of Sapukong. The road to Sapukong Mountain was challenging and arduous. Perhaps due to the lingering effects of COVID-19, my heart and lung function were not as strong as before. Upon reaching the mountain, I experienced severe altitude sickness. Although the sacred mountain was close at hand, I felt weak and had to take deep breaths while photographing. Due to my poor physical condition, I didn't dare stay at the high, altitude shooting location for long and decided to return to the campsite before sunset. During the descent, I suddenly spotted a solitary golden yak standing proudly on a hillside, with the majestic Sapukong Mountain in the background, bathed in the warm light of the setting sun. At that moment, I felt as though the mountain itself had blessed me, presenting an almost perfect scene before my eyes.

I used a Nikon D500 for this photo. Since it is a non-full-frame camera, I am accustomed to precise composition during shooting to avoid cropping the image in post-processing and losing quality.

I meticulously reviewed the raw Nikon image on a BenQ SW272U monitor. To handle the pervasive gray tones typical of such scenes, I needed to make extensive local adjustments. To highlight the texture of the golden yak and to enhance the mysterious atmosphere of the evening wind, I used Lightroom's linear-gradient, subject selection, background selection, and radial gradient masking tools. After six local adjustments and one final overall adjustment, I achieved the visual effect I was aiming for.

In the early stages of film and digital photography, people relied on various accessories to achieve certain techniques, such as filters and special effects lenses. However, as digital technology has advanced, post-processing software has become increasingly powerful. The idea of relying on accessories to achieve vision is now outdated. Abandoning these attachments in favor of software has been the biggest shift in my photography philosophy.

In the transition from the film era to the digital era in modern photography, digital photography has comprehensively surpassed film in just over a decade, and digital post-processing has played an indispensable role in this rapid advancement.

During the film era, photographers mainly used black and white negative film, color negative film, and color reversal film for shooting. Photographers using negative film paid more attention to the early stages of shooting, especially in landscape photography, emphasizing the importance of timing, location, and people. The art of photography in the film era is also often summarized as consisting of seventy percent of shooting and thirty percent of post-processing (darkroom production). Professional photographers who exclusively shoot reversal films, on the other hand, need to seamlessly integrate composition, lighting, and capturing moments without any post-processing, which tests the photographer's basic skills.

In the digital era, darkroom operations have been replaced by computer operations, and people rely on powerful software and professional displays to complete post-processing.

As a professional photographer transitioning from film to digital photography, I am constantly changing my mindset. The early and later stages of photography are complementary. The creation of an excellent photographic work that stands the test of time and resonates with people's thoughts cannot be achieved without precise early-stage shooting and meticulous post-processing.