Fabio Cucchi is a highly respected photographer who in Valle Spluga has produced an extravagant series of images devoted to water in all its shapes and forms. It’s easy to understand the attraction. A night sky above becoming a star-crusted crown, the valley adopting the soft blur of fleecy clouds, a reflection in water of ardent, fiery hues. Lakes and peaks in Valle Spluga present sensations and inspiration which Fabio translates through his photography with the intensity of a man for whom the mountains form part of his very soul. Born in Milan. he grew up in Brianza but was a frequent visitor to Valle Spluga from early childhood. “I love it here” he relates “at 18 I became a ski instructor and spent lots of time in Madesimo. It’s very special to me. I’m back here with my family whenever I can”. Fabio’s 43 and his work as a freelance affords opportunities and time to pursue his passion. “I started off at 15 with a Nicon reflex which was a present from my parents” he recalls “and it just went on from there. With the advent of digital suddenly possibilities became almost endless and gradually I developed my cameras and technical equipment so that it all quite naturally became more professional”. Fabio reckons photography has a lot in common with angling, another activity that absorbed him for years in the shape of fly-fishing. “The biggest satisfaction is to manage to capture through a shot the very same vision of beauty and harmony that I have in mind at a given moment. A peak surrounded by clouds, a stream with a very specific light or the profile of a pristine snow-blanketed valley: then it’s a question of patience, waiting for the perfect conditions, totally unique and an absolute one-off. Observing the sky opening up after a rainstorm, or waiting for hours with your feet in freezing water until the sky has that precise shade of light as dawn breaks. Yes, it’s like fishing, you need patience and artistry to get it right”. The technical level Fabio has achieved over the years is remarkable, to such an extent that one of his images has been selected by National Geographic for their Travel section. His photos form part of competitions and find their way into any number of publications. “My dream is to spend time in those nature-orientated spots like Iceland, or Norway and to try to present a sort of photo-reportage for some magazine. Meanwhile I’ll continue to dabble and try to find that perfect image in places that I love and that I feel closest to”. Check out Fabio’s impressive work for yourself.