Friday Photo #162 – Haukland Beach Winter

Photo: River flowing through a snow covered Haukland beach, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 3, 2015; 08:38

The day arrived flat and grey, with textureless waves of snow passing over the islands like a curtain swept across the land.  Despite the lack of any interesting light, it is always worth taking advantage of a fresh layer of snow on one of Lofoten’s many beaches – something that is becoming more and more difficult as the islands fill with photographers and the beaches quickly become full of footprints.

With a blank canvas of white covering the land and filling the sky, I needed to find some area of contrast for the scene.  Luckily, part of the small river flowing across Haukland was still uncovered, leading nicely to the mountain in the background, making a diagonal line across the photo. Nothing dramatic, but a nice scene none-the-less.

I should also add a note of caution for days like this. Haukland often has a small pond that forms on the back of the beach.  When covered in a blank layer of snow, it can be really easy to miss the fact that you are leaving sand and beginning to walk across ice, which probably won’t support you for more than a few steps.  If you are unfamiliar with the area and have not recently seen where the pond is, proceed cautiously, otherwise you might end up to your waste in freezing water…

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 24mm f/3.5 tilt-shift
24mm
ISO 100
f 11
5 seconds
WB Daylight
2 images: top, bottom