Promontory is a very uncommon English word! Literally, a promontory is a part of the land that goes out into the water. You can see a picture here: http://images.vliz.be/resized/4336_il-karraba-promontory-with-ghajn-tuffieha-bay-in-the-foreground-and-gnejna-bay-in-the-background.jpg A promontory can also be a part of the land that sticks out above lower land. Here is a picture of this kind of promontory: http://classconnection.s3.amazonaws.com/8/flashcards/2496008/jpeg/images1357413721258.jpeg In this paragraph, it is not clear whether the author means the kind that sticks out into the water or the kind that sticks out over land. It is important to understand that the author is using the word promontory to make you feel an emotion while reading this passage. Notice that he uses a lot of figurative language, such as: "The earth rose" -- The earth cannot really rise on its own. Literally, the ground is sloped. "The mountain was covered" -- We know that the mountain was not completely covered by trees trunk-to-trunk. Literally, there are many trees. "the rays of light that settled down" -- Rays of light cannot literally settle. The author is means that when the character looks at the photo, he sees a gentle, natural scene. Please read the following comment for the rest of the explanation.

You have got the spelling wrong in your title - but it's right in the quote. A promontory is normally some land that sticks out into water - like a peninsula. Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promontory says it is overlooking water. Either way - it is referring to some high ground or a hill behind them - presumably near some water.