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Friday Photo #24 – Bunes Beach Mountain Reflection

Mountain peaks rise above Bunes beach in spring twilight light, Moskenesoy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Mountain reflection on Bunes Beach, Moskenesøya, Lofoten Islands.  Apri 29, 2013.  22:33

After only a few days on Lofoten with my my Aussie travel companions Adam and Rod, I had received the friendly nickname of ‘Captain Wetfoot,’ based upon my proven abilities to almost always end up in the water somehow.  This night shooting on Bunes beach would be no exception.

Shooting with at 24mm tilt-shift lens to end up with a square crop means I need to shoot at least 2 photos.  And with each photo having a 60 second exposure (+noise reduction) means I need to stand in the same place for at least 4 minutes.  The trick is to find the balance point where the highest tide will just barely reach you.  Too far from the sea and the foreground might be a bit dull.  Too close to the sea, and you’ll end up named Captain Wetfoot.

The wet feat I can deal with, especially with the size of the campfire I would build on my return.  But since I generally only carry a light tripod, any incoming waves will tend to shake the tripod or sink the legs into the sand ever so slightly, which is often enough to add blur to the scene.  Thus I sit there anxiously as the seconds tick by on my watch, hoping the water gets close, but not too close.  If the wave is small, no problem.  But if I’m sent running halfway through the second shot, it means I have to start all over again.  So 4 minutes easily turns into a half hour or more for a single photo.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24mm f/3.5 tilt-shift
24mm
ISO 100
f 11
61 sec
WB Daylight
2 images – top/bottom

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Friday Photo #23 – Storsandnes Beach Sunset

Colorful sunset from Storsandnes Beach, Flakstadoy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Storsandnes beach sunset.  May 8, 2013.  22:39

After nearly two weeks of spring on Lofoten, including some days of fine and settled weather, this was the first night in which any color arrived.  But unfortunately for me, this was also my last night on the islands for this trip.

Overall, the spring had been on the cold side, but there was a good amount of days with fairly settled weather. Unfortunately though, there seemed to be a perpetual bank of cloud that hung on the northwest horizon, so no matter how much potential for nice light the evening might give, the color would eventually fade away into some dull blueish gray tones as the sun neared the horizon.  Frustrating to say the least.

But finally on my last night on the islands, conditions aligned themselves for a bit of color.  Now I’m not really a ‘sunset’ shooter, that is to say I prefer other, more subtle lighting conditions (usually something dramatic and stormy), but I do appreciate a bit of colour and and then.  And so what seems to be something of a common occurrence for me on Lofoten, the last day always offers me something special.  Perhaps so I leave the islands on a high point and with an eagerness to return; which of course I will, no doubt…

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24mm f/3.5 tilt-shift
24mm
ISO 50
f 11
20 sec
WB Daylight
2 images – top/bottom

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Friday Photo #22 – Bunes Beach Camping

campfire at Bunes Beach, Moskenesoy, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Driftwood campfire at Bunes Beach, Moskenesøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  April 30, 2013.  01:46

As the twilight nights of late April and early May arrive on Lofoten, exhaustion and insomnia become constant companions for the landscape photographer.  And if you’re wanting a few hours around a campfire, it needs to wait for the few hours between sunrise and sunset, an all to late in my opinion.  But after an afternoon of scouring the beach for driftwood, and then shooting until well past midnight, an hour or so by a fire is a welcomed reward.

I’ve written before that Spring, in the normal meaning of the word doesn’t really exist on Lofoten.  It is more of a ‘brown period,’ between the melting of the snow on the lower elevations and the return of green, in mid May.  But over these few weeks, the nights disappear in their entirety and suddenly you will find yourself surrounded by Summer.

With a couple Australian landscape photographers as my companions (I’ll write more on this later), I took the opportunity of a stable weather forecast to head out to Bunes beach and camp for a night.  I was still exhausted from my nearly 40 hours of travel to the islands, having arrived just a few days prior, so I think I slept most of the afternoon away as well, but as the evening came, it was time to head out for some photography.

It wasn’t until after 01:00 am that we were finally back at the tents and finally finished with the night.  Of course I can never let a campfire go to waste as a photo opportunity as well…

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24mm f/3.5 tilt-shift
24mm
ISO 200
f 5.6
5 sec
WB Daylight
2 images – top/bottom

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Friday Photo #21 – Driftwood Campfire

Evening campfire at Utakleiv beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Driftwood campfire, Utakleiv, Vestvågøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Aug 27, 2012.  21:44

Despite the fact that it had been as near to a perfect day as is possible on Lofoten, I was the only one to setup a tent at Utakleiv this evening.  By late summer, burnable wood can be somewhat scarce to come by, all the best driftwood having been previously scoured from the beaches over the preceding months.  But despite this, I managed to collect together an unseemly assortment of half moist logs and boards from the rocks at Utakleiv.

Even in late summer the nights are so short that a fire isn’t really necessary, but to me it’s more of a tradition while camping than anything else.  Although sitting alone by a fire still feels a bit lonely, there was no one else around to share it with.  And so I sat, on one of the few calm evenings of summer 2012, myself and my fire at Utakleiv while the sun sank below the horizon.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24+70mm f-2.8
70mm
ISO 100
f 4
.3 sec
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #20 – Rolvsfjord

Reflection of misty mountains and village, Rolvsfjord, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Rolvsfjord, Vestvågøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Sept. 29, 2011.  13:03

If you spend enough time on the islands you’ll soon come to realize that the weather changes quite literally around every corner.  Taking the southern coastal road, 815, on Vestvågøya towards Svolvaer the seas were choppy an rough.  Until I rounded a corner near Rolvsfjord and the land sat in perfect calm.

Normally I avoid images with so many buildings, but something about this scene seemed too good to pass by.  Or perhaps it was merely that I’d yet to have anything for the day to show for.  But this image feels somewhat surreal and otherworldly to me.  The contrast of the fir trees to the amber colors of Autumn and the rising clouds of a recently passed shower help give depth to the image while the almost welcoming landscape seems soft and forgiving.  Almost something Lord of the Rings like in character.

Camera Info:
Nikon D700
Nikon 24-70 f-2.8
38mm
ISO 200
f 9
1/50 sec
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #19 – Stamsund Blue

Dark weather over coast, Stamsund, Lofoten islands, Norway
Photo: Stamsund blue, Stamsund, Vestvågøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Oct. 1, 2011.  16:41

I am not sure how many hours of my life I have stood in this location, the outer coast beyond the Stamsund youth hostel, but it is probably well into a day by now.  My more or less default spot when the weather is grim and I dare not venture too far from the warm fire burning in the old Eidsfos Verk #242.

On this gloomy autumn day, this is the only place I ventured to in hopes of a few images so as not to feel the day a complete waste.

Camera Info:
Nikon D700
Nikon 24-70 f-2.8
70mm
ISO 100
f 11
61 sec
WB Daylight
2 images – top/bottom

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Friday Photo #18 – Winter Storm

Dramatic scenery at snow covered coastline, Å I Lofoten, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Approaching winter storm, Å I Lofoten, Moskenesøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Feb 12, 2012.  15:27

The last full day of my February 2012 Lofoten.  After nearly a week of positive temperatures and horrible rain, the thermostat fell below zero and snow once again fell upon the islands.  In late afternoon, I headed back to one of my favorite winter locations, the cliffs beyond Å.

It was one of those classic Lofoten winter days of snow flurries sweeping across the islands.  If you try and run from the weather on days like this, you’ll never get a shot if it’s more than a few minutes from your car.  You wait on the edge, watching as the next wave of snow heads towards you, shooting until the last minute.  Then you hide your camera under your jacket, turn your head away from the wind and wait until the snow passes, if it passes.

With luck, you only have to stand there 10-15 minutes until the clouds once again rise and a brilliant fresh layer of snow covers the land.  You try to shoot what you can as you watch the next cycle approach.  Repeat ad infinitum.  Winter on Lofoten.

Camera Info:
Nikon D700
Nikon 16-35 f-4
16mm
ISO 100
f 11
10 sec
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #17 – Reine Winter Sunrise

snow covered Olstind mountain peak glows pink in winter sunrise, Reine, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Pink dawn, Reine, Moskenesøya, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Feb 19, 2013.  08:16

This is perhaps what Winter photography on Lofoten is all about, mountains glowing pink in the low hanging sun.  In mid January, this would be your view the entire day.  However by mid February, the sun rises sufficiently high were only the first hour of the day will provide this sort of light.

Having stayed up somewhat late the previous night shooting a fantastic display of the Northern Lights I was perhaps a bit sluggish to leave my sleeping bag this morning; also aided by the fact that this was the coldest day of the entire trip.  Lucky for me, the sun moves slow in the north, leaving enough time for a lazy photographer to prepare for the day.

Having slept in the car at the parking lot in Å, not my preferred sleeping place, but all the others were covered in deep snow, I figured heading to the tourist viewpoint in Reine would probably be my best bet.  The upper view point was already crowded with others, so I headed down to the lower one, which few people seemed to visit for some reason.  I like the view from here better anyhow.  And so, I now have yet another image of Olstind, a mountain that I’ll probably never grow tired of photographing.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24-70 f-2.8
40mm
ISO 100
f 10
1/30 sec
WB Daylight

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Friday Photo #16 – Vik Beach Winter

Sea and snow meet at Vik Beach, Vik, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Winter tide, Vik Beach, Vestvagøyå, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Feb. 16, 21013.  17:19

For several days a layer of low clouds had enveloped the islands and concealed the sun.  Flat, gray light was all there was to be found over most of Lofoten.  Finally, as evening arrived I headed out towards Utakleiv, where I planned to spend the night.  I was originally going to stop at Haukland beach while on my way, but there was already a crowd of other photographers there – and for some reason, I’m a bit self-conscious about invading another photographers ‘working space.’  Nothing more annoying than composing a shot and have some dude, or usually a workshop group, as numbers bring boldness, set up a tripod in the middle of your scene.  But I digress, a rant for another day perhaps…

So I instead headed towards Vik beach, which sat empty.  I had good luck with my timing as the incoming tide was meeting the snow line on the beach, which I often find an interesting motif.  The clouds here on the north side of the island also began to show some texture as they first met with the mountain wall of Lofoten.

There seem to have been a sheep or two which had wandered up and down the beach, leaving a maze of footprints in the otherwise almost completely untouched snow.  This reduced the possibilities of including more foreground in the composition and meant I needed to keep just to the water’s edge.  But in the end, I think it worked out quite okay.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24mm f/3.5 tilt-shift
24mm
ISO 50
f 16
25 sec
WB Daylight
6 stop B+W ND filter
2 images – top/bottom

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Friday Photo # 15 – Stamsund Summer Twilight

Summer evening twilight, Stamsund, Lofoten Islands, Norway

Photo: Late Summer twilight, Stamsund, Vestvagøyå, Lofoten Islands, Norway.  Aug 24, 2012.  00:59

Even one month after the Summer’s first sunset, the northern horizon of late August still glows throughout the night.

After several days of turbulent weather, this evening, my first after arriving at the hostel in Stamsund, was eerily calm.  With clear skies, I stayed up late in hopes of an early appearance of the Northern Lights, which had appeared a few nights prior.

Finally, on one of my trips up the small hill behind the hostel I came upon this scene.  I’m not sure what in particular I was drawn to, and perhaps at some other period in my life I would have passed this photo by, just content to be an observer.  but the stillness of the night was rare for Lofoten and as I had only been on the islands for a few days, I was still eager for photos.

More effort of my behalf would have perhaps led me down to the shoreline to shoot for a few more hours, but I think a comfy bed was calling my name by this point in my travels.  Still was a night to remember.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
24mm
ISO 200
f 5.6
30 sec
WB Daylight

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