BEYOND THE GEAR: ALESSANDRO SGRO

- 2022-10-12

The Carpathian Mountains hold a special allure for wildlife photographer Alessandro Sgro. The German/Italian wildlife photographer has dedicated his life to bringing nature closer to people through his imagery and the iconic mountain wilderness of Poland is where he gets some of his best images.

“It is one of the few really wild places left where you as a human feel tiny and fragile,” he begins, adding that you don’t get to see many people out there while hiking through the beautiful woods. “The number of different animal species you can find is simply amazing. From my favorite – the Eurasian wolf – to European brown bear, Eurasian lynx, European bison, Red deer, and many different bird species, including owls…The list goes on.”

“I traveled roughly 12.000 kilometers throughout the past 12 months or so,” he says, explaining how he worked for three months for the Lupus Institute in Eastern Germany monitoring and photographing wild wolves, before undertaking a trip through Norway with his girlfriend photographing musk oxen and Arctic foxes among other animals. “In Autumn it was finally time for the highlight of the year, the long-awaited Find Anywhere project where my buddy Max and I went in search of the wild souls of the Carpathian Mountains.”

As a wildlife photographer and conservationist, Alessandro is highly in tune with his surroundings. He knows that you have to be very patient to get results and that nothing is for sure. “Many times you come home without a picture on the SD Card,” he says. “But time spent in such a remote area surrounded by beautiful nature is always worth it. I hope through my pictures that the viewer gets some sense of just how beautiful and diverse this wonderful area is, but also how important it is to protect our remaining wild places.”

When the terrain is as diverse and demanding as the Carpathian Mountains, high-quality, versatile gear is the only option. Alessandro used a range of Front Runner gear to help him get to the best spots and be self-sustaining while out there.

For the Find Anywhere shoot deep into Poland, Alessandro made use of the Slimline II roof rack system, as well as our Roof Top Tent. “I have one old Wolf Pack and two of the amazing new Wolf Pack Pros! I love them as I can carry food, equipment, and other stuff easily,” he says. “The roof top tent was invaluable on this trip. It is simply so cozy and gives me such flexibility which is important in my search for wildlife.” In addition, he used the Expander Camping Chair and Pro Stainless Steel Camp Table. “To transport my clothes I only use the Typhoon Bag which saves me so much space inside the Landy as I carry it on the Roof Rack. For cooking and BBQ I have the Camp Kitchen Utensil Set, the Spare Tire BBQ Grate and to open bottles the Bottle Opener mounted to my Rack.”

To make sure he was never left in the dark, he also used the 40“ LED Light Bar. “It is so helpful when driving on dark forest- and gravel roads on early mornings when I have to wake up before dawn to photograph wildlife.”