There are 33 photos within this story of a renowned climber and National Geographic photographer who shares his incredible adventures and the early trauma that drove him to seek such heights.

After being diagnosed with bipolar disorder and dropping out of high school Richards subsumed himself into photography and climbing seeking out the farthest reaches of the world to escape the darkness. Then in the midst of his wildly successful career in adventure photography a catastrophic avalanche changed everything forcing Richards to confront the trauma of his past, evaluate his mental health and learn to rewrite his story.

The Color of Everything is a thrilling tale of risk and adventure by a man who has done it all, has stood at the top of the world, climbed imposing mountain faces alone in the dark and summited an 8000m peak in winter. Also the story of a tumultuous life, it captures the musings of an unquiet mind grappling with the meaning of success, the cost of fame and addiction and whether it is possible to outrun one’s demons. With exquisite prose and disarming candour accompanied by his stunning photographs Richards excavates the roots of his trauma and shares what it took to climb out of it.