mattbnet

I'd go with two bodies, one wide and one telephoto (not too long if you are going to be close) mounted so you don't have to swap lenses.

Maybe a speedlight if you want more people shots. I sometimes do a timelapse or long exposure from a tripod for these kind of things too.

I was an art major watercolorist in college and used photography to capture landscapes I could then paint from in the studio. Eventually I liked the photography process more than painting and phased out painting.

I've done it (way back in the film days) reasonably successfully by being in a dark room and adding an off-camera strobe either from above or from one side.

The big lens hood is a good idea or you can just use a jacket or blanket over your head and the front of the talk to block reflections.

I like to shoot wide when there's a great sky and foreground interest like an old tree or some flowing water or something like that. If you shoot wide and compose like a longer lens everything will look too small and far away in your shot. You need to have foreground interest up close and it will dominate the image and then you'll also get all that context with the other stuff (mountains, sky, etc) that winds up in the frame.

You need to be careful with your composition because it's easy to wind up with distractions in the frame that you may not notice until later.

Here's a recent(ish) wide shot (20mm on medium format) I took that I think illustrates this reasonably well.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mattbnet/53200596930/in/dateposted-public/

Landscape for sure

Get a local business to let you hang some work (bar, coffee shop, etc).

Book and hang a show at the local arts center if there is one.

Social media although it pretty saturated (no pun intended). Everyone expects a modern photographer to have a social presence.

As for you gear, generally no. You do not need the best (and there is no consensus on what the best is). You need gear you can operate confidently that is appropriate (enough) for your genre. If you must have the best, get a Phase One.

I like shadows on snow a lot. Also the way ice forms on moving water and how water and ice reflect light differently. Also shooting skiing (Alpine, Nordic, or Alpine Touring) is fun and again the shadows can be interesting.