Photographer Robbie Shone adventures in the deepest caves around the world to teach us to not fear where we came from
Forty-thousand years ago, we lived in caves – they were our homes. As evolution developed, we found safe refuge in caves, yet for some reason, in today’s world, we fear them,’ says professional cave photographer Robbie Shone. ‘I’m puzzled by it, because I’m fortunate to have explored so many caves and seen so many beautiful things. So part of my quest and my journey in life is to transform them, to change that view that we all have of them.’
And yet, of course, getting spectacular images of some of the world’s largest and most impressive caves is no easy task. Since joining a caving society during his university days, Shone has spent two decades travelling the world, honing both his climbing and his photographic skills – and even then, things can go wrong. ‘Even with experience, you can’t predict what the weather might do,’ he says. ‘Especially in today’s world, when we’re living with these freak weather systems in parts of the world. I was unfortunate to experience one of those freak weather patterns when I was at the bottom of the deepest known cave in the world. It brought down a tremendous amount of water and it flooded the cave, raising the water table by 130 metres in the space of a few hours. And that’s frightening. Absolutely frightening.’
But, despite the danger, Shone maintains a deep fascination for these hidden realms, a fascination helped in huge part by his relationship with his fiancée, cave researcher Gina Mosely, with whom he has a young daughter. Mosely’s work – which involves seeking clues to past and future climate change in some of Greenland’s most inaccessible and unexplored caves – has given Shone a new view of these spaces. ‘Caves are like time machines,’ he says. ‘They’re one of the very few places, if not the last places on Earth, where you’re transported to the world as it was when it was being formed hundreds of thousands of years ago. I find that absolutely fascinating.
‘When I first started this, it was all about adventure and I was making photographs with no understanding of the importance of what science can teach us,’ he continues. ‘But since meeting Gina and meeting her sphere of colleagues and working with them, I’ve come to realise and appreciate that caves are more than just a playground.’
Robbie’s first book, Hidden Worlds, published by Kozu Books, is available now. www.shonephotography.com
