Greetings From Iceland, A Nature Photographers Paradise
July 18th, 2012
Amazing! What else can I say about this place. Being my first trip to the Island, I was not entirely sure what to expect. So far, I have been blow away by not only the sheer beauty of the Island, but also the culture and the Icelanders I have had the pleasure of meeting along the way.
Arriving at the airport in Keflavik, after a sleepless overnight flight, I taxied to Reykjavík and checked into my hotel at 8am. I was exhausted, but too excited to sleep. Having a day and a half before having to meet my partner Richard Bernabe and our tour group, I rented a car and drove north to the Stykkisholmur peninsula. After a two-hour drive, I arrived on location and began scouting possible sunset spots and exploring waterfalls in the region. After spending several hours shooting and scouting, I had dinner at a local restaurant and enjoyed a few pints of the Icelandic stout while enjoying the amazing scenery.
As sunset approached near to 11:45pm, I positioned myself below Kirkjufell Mountain and under a set of amazing falls. As the light sunk lower in the sky the light began to glow and glow and it glowed in radiant sunset light for close to three hours that night. The light was so good and lasted for so long that I managed to come away with at least four or five portfolio images from just this one shoot, visiting various locations in the area all night. This is one of my favorites from the evening.
After finishing up shooting a 3am, I drove back to Reykjavík arriving a 5am and hit the sack for a few hours of sleep. I was exhausted after being up for over 48 hours straight, but was so stoked after the shoot that I could hardly sleep.
Right now I am in the interior at Gulfoss. It is raining, as it often does here, but we are scheduled to shoot several locations tonight and are hoping the light will break. I will be posting another report in the next day or two, so stay tuned and thanks for visiting the blog!
Joseph Rossbach has been photographing the landscape for over fifteen years. Joe’s photographs and articles have appeared in a number of books, calendars and magazines including Outdoor Photographer, The Nature Conservancy, Digital Photo, Photo Techniques, Popular Photography, Blue Ridge Country, Mountain Connections and many more. Joe is also a staff course instructor for Nature Photographers Magazine, and writes a regular blog column for Outdoor Photographer Magazine online edition. Joe is also a co-author and contributing photographer two print books, The Ultimate Guide to Digital Nature Photography (Mountain Trail Press) and 50 Amazing Things You Must See and Do in the Greater D.C. Area, The Ultimate Adventure Guide. Joe continues to travel extensively producing new and exciting images of the natural world as well as leading several photography workshops and photo tours each year.
Amazing,indeed!
It’s on my list,but who knows when?!
I’m waiting for the other images.
Wow! this is truly breathtaking!
Joe,
Stunning site! Good thing you were there to do it justice!
Lovely image. I’m ready for a 3 hour sunset.
Given the subject locale of your post, thought I’d share the Iceland portfolio of B&W photographer Josef Hoflehner – awesome stuff that you might find inspiring while you’re there.
Thanks for sharing the location as well as this amazing photo! Although I didn’t make it to this particular peninsula, I was blessed to spend 8 weeks in Iceland a few years back and this brings back some of the best memories of my life. I agree with you totally about the amazing scenery and people there.