Friday Photo #178 – Volandstind

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Volandstind, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Spring hike on Volandstind, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. May 31, 2016. 14:03

The midnight sun has arrived in the north with the snow is melting fast while the spread of green creeps higher and higher up the mountains. There have been some fantastic summer days in May thus far, and I’ve already complained of the heat on more than one occasion. Perhaps I didn’t more far enough north! 😉

But with summer just around the corner, it is now my time to head into the mountains over the next months and start gathering the data and photos for the next series of hiking guides and ebooks. And now that I’m getting more settled in to life on the islands, I’m finally beginning to realize that I don’t need to rush. There will be another sunny day and the sun won’t set for 6 more weeks.

Heading up Volandstind the other day the weather was a bit wild. Layers of cloud were spinning across the mountains and fjords – with the actual summit of Volandstind just in the cloud, unfortunately. However, the route up was mostly cloud free, which provided a spectacular overview across the surrounding, surreal looking landscape.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
28mm
ISO 100
f 7.1
1/600 seconds
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #177 – Kvalvika Beach

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Kvalvika Beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Spring light over Kvalvika beach from Ryten, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. May 19, 2016. 20:37

May is the month of melting snow and the arrival of the midnight sun over Lofoten. Yet even in the near endless days, winter doesn’t always easily give up its grip over the islands, as experienced on this cold evening on Ryten, with knee deep snow which had fallen over the previous 2-3 days across the higher elevations of the islands. A couple days later, all was gone again.

Even with the sun in the sky for 24 hours as it begins today, the sun’s location in the sky is still an important element while photographing the islands. In my Seasons on Lofoten – Winter eBook I have gone into some detail about the movement of the winter sun and its influence on when to photograph certain locations, so perhaps in the coming days of summer, I will begin to write a bit more about the midnight sun.

Kvalvika beach as viewed from Ryten is a perfect example of this. Even though the sun might not set below the horizon and this sounds like a good location to watch the midnight sun, the beach actually receives the best light, shining directly into the bay, from about 19:00 – 23:00. When the sun reaches its low point on the horizon around 01:00, the beach will be left in shadow, due to the mountains shadowing it from the north.

So, if you’re planning to head up to Ryten for ‘sunset,’ go up a few hours earlier to get the light across the beach as well.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
24mm
ISO 320
f 10
1/250 seconds
WB Daylight
5 vertical image pano

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Friday Photo #176 – Spring Aurora

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April Northern Lights - Lofoten Islands

Photo: Spring Aurora, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. April 1, 2016. 22:03

This is the final image from my 2016 northern lights season on Lofoten – though there were some displays afterwards, so it wasn’t the last of Lofoten in general.

Overall, having been on Lofoten since early February, I would call in a below average northern lights season for me. There were many clear nights this February and March, but the sky seemed to be quite, something which can be quite frustrating while waiting on top of a mountain in otherwise perfect weather. Perhaps I’m just getting a little more picky in the images I want to create – simply seeing a faint green glow on the horizon no longer excites me – I want to creating dynamic and exciting images of the lights.

With the nights no longer dark, I’ll be eagerly waiting till autumn for my next chances of camping under the dancing sky.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
16mm
ISO 1250
f 4
25 seconds
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #175 – Andenes Whale Watching

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Andenes Whale Watching

Photo: Whale watching, Andenes, Vesterålen, Norway. May 3, 2016. 19:30

Prior to the other week, I had only seen Andenes from the sea while on a sailing trip to Lofoten in 2014. So when the opportunity came up for me to go do some whale watching with Sea Safari Andenes, I hopped in the van and began the 5 hour drive north from Lofoten – It may look close on a map, but it is quite a ways up there!

I will be guiding a couple Lofoten and Andenes whale watching tours next year – some spots are still available for the January 2017 Muench Workshops tour – so I wanted to see what it was all about first.

Whales are in the area of Andenes year round, however in January and February there can be a bit more action when the killer whales are present. In the spring, it was Sperm whales, diving deep for squid a few kilometers off the coast. Despite what looked to me like a basically flat and open ocean, Marten, the guide, was able to find the first whale within about 20 minutes. And then several more were spotted in the following hours. The RIB boats are fast, and pretty fun in general, but also provide a good, low vantage point of the whale, helping to separate them from the sea as in this photo.

As I am not much of a wildlife photographer, the longest lens I have is a 79-200mm. And this image is a crop from that. I think a 200-400 would have been ideal for the trip I was on, though that won’t be in my budget anytime soon, unfortunately. However, for next winter, I’m hoping 200mm will be long enough for the faster and more active killer whales.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 70-200mm f/4
200mm
ISO 200
f 4.5
1/1600 second
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #174 – Uttakleiv Winter Twilight

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Uttakleiv Beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Uttakleiv winter twilight, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 22, 2016. 17:48

A late start after a day full of errands saw me racing up Mannen with the sun quickly nearing the horizon behind me. Luckily I managed to arrive at a decent view point before the sun disappeared from Haukland beach, before continuing on towards the summit.

I packed light, but the full moon and perfect weather brought me to the summit in hopes of some northern lights later in the evening. However, in the changing twilight, I had 360˚ views over some of Lofoten’s most popular landscapes – yet from a perspective that is rarely visited in winter.

As the sky darkened the orange street lamps of Uttakleiv provided a nice contrast to the cool blues of the winter snow.  I could see the cars driving back and forth of visiting photographers, yet I sat alone at the top, surrounded by silence.

Eventually the moon rose and lit up the landscape. Despite being warmly dressed, I did begin to get cold after spending 6+ hours out in the open. The auroras up to this point in February had been relatively weak and uninspiring (compared to their potential), and by 10pm, it was evident that this night would be quiet as well.

The moon illuminated my quiet descent down to Haukland.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
15mm
ISO 80
f 14
25 seconds
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #173 – Ryten Winter Hike

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Ryten winter hike, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Descending from Ryten, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 26, 2016. 08:52

A few days after the full moon came the weather window I was looking for, and so I made plans to camp on the summit of Ryten for the night, with hopes of a sky full of northern lights above the moonlit landscape. I had attempted this same plan in January 2015, however the weather had other plans and we were chased off the mountain, so I was excited for a 2nd chance with promising conditions.

It was eerily calm on the summit and even with the tent haphazardly staked out, it didn’t budge an inch. But even on a calm, clear night, no sign of northern lights appeared. So it looks like I will have to make another attempt next year.

However, it is always important to make the best of any situation, and while I was really hoping for auroras, there was plenty of other nice light to be found during sunset and sunrise at one of Lofoten’s most scenic destinations.

If you are interested in joining me for winter or summer adventures across Lofoten, checkout my TOURS page to see what I have on offer…

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
17mm
ISO 200
f 8
1/500 second
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #172 – Ytresand Winter Sunrise

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Ytresand Beach Winter Sunrise, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Winter dawn over Ytresand beach, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 5, 2016. 07:53

My first morning waking up on Lofoten during my 2016 winter travels. Not a bad way to start a trip! And this was even after northern lights over my tent at 3:00 in the morning.

The forecast was promising, but as we were making the way up to Ytresandheia in the last hours of daylight on the previous afternoon, the weather was still moody and wind driven flurries of passing snow even made us briefly take shelter and contemplate heading back down. It’s a good think we didn’t!

The night brought continual passing waves of snow, but the wind had calmed substantially, and by dawn, the first light of day brought an almost complete silence to the landscape.  This scene is still a couple hours before the sun would rise above the distant mountains of Flakstadøy. And a productive couple of hours it was…

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
16mm
ISO 100
f 10
4 seconds
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #171 – Vågakallen Winter Reflection

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Reflection of Vågakallen mountain peak over coastline, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Vågakallen winter reflection, Nedredal, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 9, 2014. 08:22

I set out in the morning from Stamsund headed east along the south coast of Vesvågøy. Sunrises in winter occur in a very southernly direction, making the Vestfjord side of Lofoten the best area to be. Though on this particular morning, the day was slow to arrive and the sky was nearly colorless.

With February of 2014 having little to no snow across Lofoten, I was often left searching along the coast for something to use in the foreground.  A few days previous to this image I had found some really cool ice frozen into the coastal tide pools around Nedredal. Returning again on this I was hoping for a bit of better light. But as you can see, that didn’t happen.

I still spent most of my time photographing the ice, but in the calmness of the morning, there were also some nice reflections be be found.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
70mm
ISO 100
f 11
1 second
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #170 – Reinefjord Reflection

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Hammarskaftet mountain peak reflecting in Reine harbor, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Hammarskaftet rises above Reinefjord, Reine, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 24, 2015. 14:30

The weather forecast was promising enough to make me think 2 nights camping at Bunes beach would be a good idea. Standing around the pier in Reine, while waiting on the ferry departure to Vindstad, the weather looked like it might have other plans in mind.

Standing on the Pier, the harbor and fjord were almost perfectly still. As the Fjordkyss warmed up her engine, I took a couple last images.  I liked how just the peak of Hammarskafted was clear of the clouds, the rest of the ridge hidden in mist. It makes the peak look like a lone tower, rising above the village.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
24mm
ISO 125
f 10
1/25 seconds
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #169 – Helvetestind Winter Moonlight

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Night winter mountain reflection on Bunes beach, Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Helvetestind moonlight reflection, Bunes beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 25, 2015. 19:45

False aurora alarm during my second night camping at Bunes beach.  There had been a faint green glow which stirred us from the warmth of out sleeping bags to head out to the headlands beyond the beach, with better views across the sea. But alas, it would not be our night, and after an hour of waiting in the cold and wind, we decided to give up.

The moon, however, was shining bright across the snow covered land landscape.  I had taken nearly this exact same image only a few hours before at twilight, and now I decided to make a night version.

After Olstind, Helvetestind must be one of the most iconic mountains on Lofoten. A 600 meter, nearly vertical chunk of solid granite rising from the sands of Bunes beach. It is an impressive peak to stand below, with a scale that is hard to capture in an image. It’s only due to its location at Bunes beach – and hour walk from where the ferry drops you off, that it doesn’t get photographed more. Were this scene near a road, it would, no doubt, be one of Lofoten’s most photographed. Though it’s good that some places in the world at least require a minimal amount of effort to be reached.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
14mm
ISO 1600
f 4.5
20 seconds
WB Daylight

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