From the path you deviate, driven by the desire to shorten the way home. But you are not alone. Eyes of strangers aim at you from the shadows and you feel it. Because of fear, you bow your head and continue on your way with quick steps, risking to stumble over roots or being bitten by a beast hidden under the tall vegetation that grew after a rainy summer. You are brave enough to take the path of the Dark Valley, even though you thought long before proceeding. As you are half way through, you hear a rustle in front of you. You stop for a moment and hope you're wrong. Nonsense. A wraith rises from the ground. Your blood freezes at the sound of her roar. You are lucky that she is advancing slowly and therefore you have time to calm down and begin to turn back, even though you are overwhelmed by the thrills of horror. Your legs are heavy. But you are stubborn enough not to give up and you manage to get out of the valley.

It's 12th of July and I'm with Teodora, my model for this meeting. We have not collaborated so far and I am happy that we managed to, taking into account the circumstances of me leaving the country. As we are both from Sabasa, we choose to go to the end of the valley, leaving the village and looking for suitable places. I already knew about an area adjacent to the valley creek, which includes a young grove and a lot of low vegetation. I have posed there before and I always find the place attractive, so we decide to use it now as well.

It’s hard to deal with the mosquitoes and the sun also gives us headaches here and there, being a warm and sunny afternoon. But I miss photography, and Teodora helps me with some ideas that I appreciate and put into practice.

We end up the session with a few photos around a summer hut on the meadows of Sabasa, using a carafe of milk as an accessory. Some of the results can be seen in the photo section of this post.

The edited versions from the last two photo sessions held in Romania will soon appear. I have always enjoyed posing for North Raven while being home and every time I come back I will try to look for new adventures.