Place of Power by Sergiy Kadulin

Captured during a Himalayan trek in Sikkim, India, this photograph frames a sacred ancient stupa against the majestic backdrop of the Kanchenjunga Range. Taken in the soft light of an October morning, the image captures the mystical atmosphere as semi-transparent clouds drift across peaks exceeding 7,000 meters. The photographer was drawn to this legendary siteβ€”believed by many to be an entry to Shambala and famously painted by Roerichβ€”to document its spiritual resonance. The composition is award-worthy for its harmonious balance between the human-made stupa and the overwhelming, ethereal scale of the Pandim massif, evoking a sense of profound tranquility and timelessness.

Place of Power by Sergiy Kadulin
Canon EOS 5D Mark II with Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM
Exposure 1/320sec @ f/8 | ISO 100 | Focal Length 200mm
Copyright Β© Sergiy Kadulin
Light & Composition Photo of the Day

Sergiy Kadulin

REGISTERED PHOTOGRAPHER

Born in Kyiv, Ukraine, in 1967, Sergiy Kadulin balances a successful career in information technology with a deep-seated passion for photography. After honing his craft through the Kyiv School of Photography and the New York Institute of Photography, he developed a signature style focused on travel, landscape, and reportage. Driven by a desire to share his love for the world and nature, Kadulin uses his lens to capture the warmth and spiritual depth of the environments he explores, frequently showcasing his work through international exhibitions and galleries.

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14.6/20
RESONANCE
SCORE
416/500
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Award Reach | Reviews
15,451 views | 9 Reviews
Award Winner Photo of the Day
Award Date January 27, 2013
70.0
AWARD SCORE
Value 13.0
Clarity 13.0
Composition 18.0
Style 13.0
Skill 13.0
Photograph Location
Dzongri, Kanchenjunga National Park, Sikkim, India

AWARD SEGMENT | TAGS

Landscape Photography
Sergiy Kadulin Photography

Resonance Score Breakdown

Transparency in Award Scoring

Transparency Note: The resonance score (14.3/20) is calculated based on social engagement metrics collected before the award announcement.

Social Shares
5.0/5 points
1,417/1,000 Social Share
Page Views
5.0/5 points
15,451/2,500 Page View
Reviews
0.1/5 points
2/100 Review
Submissions
4.2/5 points
416/500 Submission
Jury Score: 70.0/80
Resonance Score: 14.3/20
Total Award Score: 84.3/100

Expert Photography Reviews · 7

Clara Whitfield Award Criteria, Legacy & What Makes an Image Endure Expert Review
Most mountain photography is just ego masquerading as landscape. Of the thousands I’ve reviewed, this succeeds because Kadulin resists the urge to center the peaks. By pinning the stupa against the crushing scale of the Pandim massif, he forces a dialogue between human fragility and geological permanence. It’s quiet, and honestly, it makes me want to breathe deeper. Thirty years from now, people will still feel that stillness. That’s why it earned its place here.
James Rokeby Camera Craft & Technical Execution Expert Review
1/320sec at f/8, 200mm. ISO 100. The choice of f/8 on a 70-200mm lens is the correct move here. It keeps the stupa sharp while compressing the Pandim massif into the frame. It’s a calculated, clinical flattening of space. I’ve seen enough soft mountain shots to know this precision is rare. It doesn’t just document the peaks; it forces them to confront the architecture. It’s cold, sharp, and entirely necessary. I actually felt the altitude.
Sophie Delacroix Emotional Narrative, Viewer Response & Psychological Impact Expert Review
Before the eye identifies the stupa, the chest tightens. It’s a physiological bracing against the sheer, thin-aired scale of Kanchenjunga. I’ve returned to this frame for years, and that initial, cold stillness never fades. The clouds don’t just drift; they dissolve the boundary between my pulse and the mountain’s silence. It’s a rare, haunting activation of the nervous system. I feel the altitude in my own lungs, a quiet, sacred ache that lingers long after.
Dmitri Kasakov Contrast, Shadow Drama & the Metaphysics of Light Expert Review
The stupa doesn't merely sit before the Kanchenjunga; it anchors the void. Kadulin understands that light here is a thin, fragile veil draped over an ancient, indifferent silence. I’ve stared at these peaks until my eyes ached, feeling the crushing weight of the infinite. It’s not the stone that moves me, but the way the shadows swallow the base of the massif. It’s a cold, honest reckoning with the scale of our own insignificance.
Priya Sharma Negative Space, Minimalism & the Japanese Aesthetic Expert Review
The stupa sits. It doesn't compete with the massif. It waits. I’ve spent minutes looking at the grey stone against the white peak, and my breath finally slows. The clouds aren't just weather; they’re the breath of the mountain. Nothing here is accidental. The empty corner is not empty. It’s a pause. A deep, resonant silence. It’s rare to find a frame that knows when to stop. This one knows. It’s enough.
Isabelle Fontenay Colour Harmony, Tone & Atmospheric Light Expert Review
The palette here isn't merely captured; it’s exhaled, a delicate alchemy where the stupa’s weathered stone meets the bruised, ethereal violet of the Kanchenjunga peaks. It’s the colour of silence, that specific, thin blue of high-altitude oxygen that makes one’s lungs ache with a sudden, sharp longing. I’ve found myself breathless before these shifting, diaphanous veils of mist, which possess the same haunting, spectral luminosity that Turner once coaxed from his most turbulent, light-drenched canvases.
Lena Brandstrom Macro Photography, Optics & the Science of the Seen Expert Review
At f/8, the 200mm focal length resolves the stupa’s weathered stone with clinical sharpness, pushing right against the diffraction limit. The light’s interaction with the high-altitude atmosphere creates a subtle micro-contrast that’s simply breathtaking. I’m genuinely moved by how the lens renders those drifting clouds; it’s as if the glass itself is breathing. It’s rare to see such precise optical discipline capture the ethereal scale of the Pandim massif without losing the texture of the foreground.
Reflections on this Photograph
By Clara Menezes

The Architecture of Silence

We spend our lives building walls to keep the world out, forgetting that the most sacred structures are those that invite the sky to rest upon them.

Read the reflection →
By Yuki Sato

Where the Earth Meets Sky

There is a particular kind of silence that exists only at high altitudes, where the air is thin enough to feel like a prayer. In these places, the world sheds its noise, and we are left with the raw, ancient bones of the earth.

Read the reflection →

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