Photo: Midnight summer rain over mountains of Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. July 4, 2022. 00:07

So far this summer it has been one of those years with either completely clear weather or completely grey weather. And while sunset doesn’t occur during the midnight sun season from late May to mid July, so nice color can occur with the right cloud conditions. But often this year, even in the late night hours, the light has just been a bit, ‘ehhh…’ With the sun just hanging over the horizon in a semi-hazy blue sky. But finally this week there was a little bit of nice drama in the sky and the weather turned blustery and rain showers swept across the islands.

Luckily the fields by my house have escaped their summer cutting so far, by this late in the summer the grasses are already growing much higher than the flowers, giving the late a bit more of a wild and unkempt look than a few weeks previous. On my daily route to Leknes I can see the farmers have cut most of the fields already, so it won’t be long until this one is harvested as well and then the flowers will be gone for the year.

Head over to my Instagram account for (almost) daily postings of the local conditions here on Lofoten: @distant.north

Camera Info:
Nikon Z7 II
Nikon 24-200mm f/4-6.3
35mm
ISO 400
f 6.3
1/80 second
WB Daylight

Photo: Arctic Skuas under the midnight sun, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. June 18, 2022. 01:02

I am admittedly a terrible wildlife photographer and even worse when it comes to birds – probably because I don’t really have much interest in birds anyhow. But there is one coolish bird in my neighborhood – Arctic Skua.

I first encountered Great Skuas on Orkney in 2003 and then over several following trips. Last summer on Svalbard was my first encounter in Arctic Skuas. Much small than Great Skuas, they are equally aggressive when approaching too close to their nesting area and will repeatedly attack any trespassers. Given my mostly non-interest in birds, I never really noticed that they were also here on Lofoten, and a breeding pair is in my neighbourhood.

I’ve made a few attempts to photograph them, but have yet to return with anything very good. My 200-500mm lens seems too slow to focus while they are in flight – they are fast!. So I generally return with a whole card full of soft images. The surrounding mountains also make it difficult, mostly limiting my shooting direction north towards the open sea.

I’m not sure if I have to patience required for wildlife photography, but I’ll make a few more attempts over the summer months.

Head over to my Instagram account for (almost) daily postings of the local conditions here on Lofoten: @distant.north

Camera Info:
Nikon Z7 II
Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6
500mm
ISO 500
f 6.3
1/800 second
WB Daylight

Photo: Ground nest in coastal moorland of common gull, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. May 26, 2022. 16:07

With the midnight sun having arrived in the north and the landscape turning greener by the day – though the trees are still not fully green yet – it is breeding and nesting season for many of Lofoten’s migratory birds. 

Most of the birds are ground nesting, often choosing to hide their eggs in the thick and boggy heather of the coastal moorlands. But as the islands are full of birdlife, the nests are everywhere in reality. I’ve even seen young gull chicks walking around the parking lots in Leknes and Svolvær in the middle of the day. 

Most of the birds are semi-aggressive when you approach too close. The gulls and kittiwakes will scream as they fly towards you, but never get too close. The rarer, but highly aggressive arctic skua (dark brown in color) will come into near contact with your head in repeated attacks until you leave the nesting area. While others like the oystercatchers will try to distract you to get you away from their nesting site. 

If you are just walking through an area and suddenly notice aggressive bird activity, then take a little more caution to where you are walking, as you can see in the photo, the eggs are pretty well camouflaged, and easy to accidentally step on.

If you are camping, then you need to take a little more care to investigate the area and perhaps move away from a planned camping location. Continued proximity to a nesting area, such as setting up a tent for a night, may force the parents to abandon their nest for too long, and thus the chicks never hatch. So be careful to keep a great enough distance should you happen to enter into a nesting area.

Head over to my Instagram account for (almost) daily postings of the local conditions here on Lofoten: @distant.north

Camera Info:

Nikon Z7 II

Nikon 200-500mm f/5.6

450mm

ISO 500

f 5.6

1/1000 seconds

WB Daylight