Friday Photo #571 – Afternoon Blue Hour

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Photo: December moon shines over Storsandnes beach, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. December 7, 2022. 14:26

A nice bright moon shines over Storsandnes beach at blue hour. It looks like sometime in the evening, but on the Lofoten Islands in December, the is 14:26 is the afternoon. This image is taken one hour after last week’s image (Friday Photo #570), and there is quite a difference. Looking at the images for this article, I actually thought they had been taken on different days, not merely an hour apart.

Now a week into the polar night, if I were to shoot this image on today’s date, December 15, I would need to do so about a half hour earlier, so around 14:00. The polar night will continue to deepen for another week until the winter solstice next Friday, and which point the sun will have reached its lowest point below the (midday) southern horizon. The next time the day will have this equivalent light again is January 6, just as the sun crosses the horizon again. That’s enough numbers and dates for today.

I always like this blue hour light during winter. Even without the moon, on clear and cold days, there is a period where it seems as if the mountains are glowing from within. It is hard to photograph correctly, but if you are on Lofoten, it can seem as if the mountains get brighter as the light fades. I guess this technically just has to due with relative contrast of the white mountains against the deep blue sky, but it feels like a special light when it happens.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon z8
Nikon 14-30mm f/4
25mm
ISO 100
f 11
1/5 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #563 – Light And Cloud

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Photo: Rays of light shine over the distant mountains of Moskenesøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. October 4, 2023. 16:25

While every landscape photographer dreams of colourful sunrises and sunsets during their travels, the weather often works against us. Even more so on Lofoten this autumn with a near constant layer of low clouds and rain covering the islands for weeks on end. When the horizon is fully enveloped in the next waves of rain swept in by a cold north wind, it is time to look for other options.

Fortunately, other options exist on Lofoten. The dynamic light of backlit clouds actually requires the stormy and rainy weather which is often present in autumn. With the quickly moving in the variable weather, the trick is attempting to predict where you want the light to fall, and then waiting for the right moment to hopefully arrive – which is still not guaranteed. But on rainy days like this cold and blustery day in early October, there is a high chance of such conditions.

It is important not to wait too late in the day, because as the sun gets lower on the horizon, it is more likely to become fully concealed behind the clouds. You will often have better looking shooting towards a more distant background, as this gives you a better chance of having the backlit rainy clouds pass between you and your intended background. The closer your intended subject, the more exact the passing of the rain and gaps in the clouds must be, making a higher miss rate – although for a potentially more dramatic image should conditions come together perfectly. But on a day like this and out with a group, I knew there was a pretty good chance for some interesting light if we positioned ourselves near Vareid while looking towards the distant mountains of Moskenesøy rising over Fredvang.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon z8
Nikon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6
165mmmm
ISO 100
f 5.6
1/400 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #560 – Autumn Storms

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Photo: Waves crash over the rocks at Nesland in September autumn storm, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. September 22, 2021. 15:15

Another storm has passed Lofoten this week with canceled ferries and my house shaking in the wind, making sounds I haven’t heard since the end of winter. It is evident that this year’s warm and dry summer is over and the September storms are making up for lost time and the lack of rain. No one knows what next week will bring, but it looks like there is storm after storm lined up across the north Atlantic, with the eventual destination of the Norwegian coast and Lofoten. Earlier in the month I had been over in Sweden for my usual autumn hiking, but even the wet weather reached across the border so I gave up my plans after just 40km – no point walking in the rain with a heavy backpack for 2 weeks if I can’t even see the mountain tops. I flew south to Spain instead.

As stormy as the sea in Lofoten often is, one thing the landscape here is missing is a good set of sea cliffs. Cliffs where the winter swells pound into a wall of rock, sending the sea high into the air – and often completely soaking my if I’m out photographing. Scotland, or even Spain is better for this, and I have much more impressive stormy seascape images from these countries. On Lofoten, the coastline is slightly sloping for the most part – at least the easily accessible areas. And so while there are plenty of days where the waves are crashing over the rocks and high up the shoreline, it doesn’t quite have the same dramatic affect of a huge open ocean swell running into a vertical wall of rock. But I guess one location can’t have everything!

If you are traveling to Lofoten from now until the springtime, it is always a good idea to check the weather on any travel days, as ferries, planes, buses, bridges, and roads can be canceled or closed whenever the wind blows a little too much.

For more information on road safety, you can see my article: Winter Driving

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 24-200 f/4-6.3
27mm
ISO 31
f 14
1 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #558 – Aurora Light Pollution

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Photo: Northern lights shine over low clouds and light pollution from nearby village, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. September 4, 2021. 01:01

In the image from a couple weeks ago (Friday Photo #556) I spoke about the still bright northern horizon of late August in the early part of the aurora season. This week’s photo is another type of light pollution typically found during the rest of the aurora season – low clouds and city light pollution. Personally, I prefer a clear sky and glowing horizon like in the previous image, vs. the image here today, which I just find frustrating.

This was a strong aurora, pushing beyond overhead and down towards the southeast part of the sky. Unfortunately, from my location at Storsandnes beach, it meant I was also looking directly towards Leknes. On clear nights, the light pollution would be fairly minimal, especially with such a strong aurora. But on this night, with low rain clouds passing over the islands, the city lights of Leknes illuminate the clouds over a wide area. It doesn’t look good.

Ideal would have been to pick a better location in this type of weather, where I could avoid looking towards any distant city lights. But that can also be easier said than done when there is significant cloud cover and you are sometimes lucky just to find a hole in the clouds anyhow. From this photo, I can see that I likely wouldn’t have seen anything had I gone to Haukland or Uttakeliv beaches, as the cloud cover looks more significant over there. So perhaps even with the light pollution from Leknes, I was at least in a decent location to see the northern lights in a mostly cloudy sky.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon D850
Sigma 14mm f/1.8
14mm
ISO 2000
f 1.8
5 Seconds
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #557 – Last Nights Of Summer

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Photo: Mountains of Vestvågøy rise into late summer twilight, Lofoten Islands, Norway. August 28, 2023. 00:02

What a summer Lofoten has had this year! Only a few days of rain and dream weather throughout August. One of these days the first autumn storm will arrive, but even with the fading twilight it feels like this summer might never end.

This night was after last week’s aurora photo (Friday Photo #556), another clear evening but no aurora. The day had been warm, over 20˚, but as the evening came the temperature dropped as normal. Until midnight, when a warm summer breeze arrived and the temperature rose to around 16-18˚c in the middle of the night. It almost felt like the Santa Ana winds of California which would warm up the autumn evenings. I thought about going down to the beach to wait for northern lights, but I opted for my backyard instead. I don’t know how many more evenings I’ll be able to sit outside this year, but this night was a nice one to do so!

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

Camera Info:
Nikon z8
Nikon 14-30mm f/4
30mm
ISO 320
f 4
20 Seconds
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #556 – Twilight Aurora

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Photo: Late August twilight and northern lights – aurora borealis, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. August 27, 2023. 00:15

After a week of mostly cloudy skies from last weeks first northern lights sighting of the year (Friday Photo #555), they were once again dancing in the sky last Saturday night. I was a warm summer evening, and so after a bbq with some neighbours I headed down to my beach to shoot a few images.

The evening sky is growing noticeably darker with each passing day, yet even in the midnight hours the glow of the sun just below the northern horizon is still quite strong. While I typically like these early/late season auroras with a twilight horizon, it is still a week or so early when shooting these images as the horizon was a little too bright – Especially if looking north towards the open sea as I was. And even with a moderately active aurora, the sky will not be sufficiently dark until around midnight, so this time of year misses all of the evenings early aurora activity.

The tide at the beach was in an awkward location, and I struggled to find a good foreground – with the the bright horizon not helping much either. At one point a small corona began dancing across the sky. I first tried to shoot it with more of a foreground, but as it passed directly to the north, I to a couple of images just pointing towards the sky and the horizon just out of frame. While a bit boring, I kinda like the abstract look of the image and the shift of warm to cool tones. It actually captures what it feels like standing out there, alone by the sea, in these last days of summer.

The image below is from when I first arrived at the beach and was still trying to work with a foreground composition to the scene. The sea was nearly flat and the rocks were perfectly in the middle of the tide line. If the tide had been a little higher, or the waves bigger, it would have been better to have the sea washing past to rock to give a little more balance to the dark sand and foreground.

It is not even September and I’ve already photographed the aurora multiple times. A good start to what will hopefully be a good aurora season!

For a bit of self promotion: there are still a few spots open on some of my winter photography workshops here on Lofoten.

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

Camera Info: Photo 1
Nikon z8
Nikon 20mm f/1.8
20mm
ISO 640
f 2.2
1.6 Second
WB Daylight

Camera Info: Photo 2
Nikon z8
Nikon 20mm f/1.8
20mm
ISO 640
f 2
2.5 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #551- New Flakstad Parking Enforcement

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Photo: View over Yttersand beach from Yttersandheia, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. July 19, 2022. 17:06

With the summer tourist season well under way on Lofoten the local newspapers have been filled with the yearly articles about the ‘tourist chaos’ and local Facebook groups are full of grumpy ramblings and pictures of motorhomes parked in poorly thought of locations – some of which were quickly closed off. And while this happens every year on Lofoten, one new thing is both Flakstad and Moskenes municipalities now have parking enforcement agents driving around and ticketing illegally parked cars. And from the looks of it, they are collecting quite a lot of money these last weeks!

Anyone who has been to Lofoten during the summer, particularly the popular hiking trails in western Lofoten, has likely seen that is no where near adequate parking to handle the summer tourism bubble. Up to this point, the chaos was generally allowed to take over, and while there were local complaints, there had been little to no actual enforcement of illegal parking. So one could park directly in front of a ‘no parking’ sign or block the road to where an ambulance could not pass through with basically no risk of getting fined.

That has now changed. All the cars marked ‘x’ in this photo from July of last year would now receive 900 NOK parking tickets if having done so this year. And it seems plenty are still doing so, as this parking lot at Yttersand beach has been a good earner for Flakstad recently as people often still ignore the clear ‘no parking’ signs and park in the turning area which is needed for larger vehicles like the trash truck to turn around. A closer illustration from above shows that actual parking area is only a small section beyond the turning area, in which 14 vehicles are parked and would now be ticketed.

Unfortunately, there does not seem to be any solutions to the parking issues on Lofoten in the near horizon. The local governments are not well equipped enough or united in cooperation to run tourism economies, while the national government has been terribly slow to implement much needed funding like a tourist tax in the Lofoten region. So productive measures like shuttle busses to popular trail heads or beaches have been attempted, but ultimately failed without proper funding and promotion. With the inadequate public transport across Lofoten if attempting to leave the E10, cars will still dominate tourism on Lofoten and the popular areas will continue to have insufficient parking to fill demand. In a cynical way, this lack of parking will earn a lot of money from unsuspecting tourists returning from their hikes to find a yellow 900 NOK parking ticket on their windshield…

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
24mm
ISO 100
f 8
1/320 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #549- After Midnight

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Photo: Mid July sun hangs low over the northern horizon just after midnight, Flakstad, Lofoten Islands, Norway. July 14, 2023. 00:38

It is now the middle of July and the tourism season is still gaining momentum here on Lofoten. Yet, in another way, it feels like we are midway through summer and the long days of the midnight sun are soon behind us. I’ve been lazy thus far and have not hiked much, although this was also due to other necessary commitments keeping my otherwise occupied. But for some reason, even in the nice evening hours when the world is mostly sleeping, I’m content just observing life from my backyard most days.

Looking out my window after midnight last night, the sun has become noticeably low on the northern horizon. After 7 weeks of 24 hour sunlight, it will only last past this weekend before beginning to set into the sea again. Though, from a photography standpoint, this is good! As it means the twilight nights and multi-hour sunset-sunrises are once again here after, the dare I say, ‘boring,’ light of June with its 24 hour blue sky. The coming month is the one I’m always most excited for photographically.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon Z8
Nikon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6
100mm
ISO 100
f 6.3
1/250 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #546 – June Wildflowers

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Photo: June wildflowers overlooking Nappstraumen at midnight, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. June 22,2020. 23:53

I often see searches for the best time to visit Lofoten, which, in my opinion, is an almost impossible question to answer in that it entirely personal and there are so many variables. Even beyond the unpredictable and ever changing weather, there are a myriad of other micro elements that may make one person prefer one time and year while the next is looking for something else entirely. So there is not a one size fits all answer to when is ‘best’ to visit Lofoten.

The above being said, if there is a mood or feeling I look forwards to every year, it is walking around the lush, flower filed meadows of early summer sometime late in the evening after I’ve lost track of time, as time no longer matters. Perhaps it is merely because the long and cold winter is still a recent memory, or the fresh green has only been around a couple weeks. Or maybe it is because I know the midnight sun will shine in the sky for another month, so I know I still have many days of summer ahead to enjoy.

A nice and warm summer evening in June is one of my favorite times just the be here and and enjoy the timelessness of it all. Photographically, it is almost impossible to capture essence of it all as it is much more than a frozen moment in time. Much like I don’t think an image of the northern lights can fully capture the experience of seeing them dance overhead. A nice summer evening in the north is something that must be experienced.

So is it the best time of year? I don’t know. But for living on Lofoten, it is a necessary part of the circle of seasons and something I look forward to.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon D850
Nikon 24-70 f/2.8
45mm
ISO 100
f 5
1125 Second
WB Daylight

Friday Photo #541 – Common Gull

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Photo: Common Gull swoops in for attack, Flakstadøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. May 31, 2021. 21:53

With summer just around the corner, many of Lofoten’s migratory birds will have chosen their nesting sites and begin laying eggs. In my valley, I can already see dozens of pairs of mostly common gulls spread out across the moorland. Every once in a while when something passes through, they will scatter to the sky in a flurry of noise and commotion.

Most of the migratory bird species on Lofoten are ground nesting: the various gull types, arctic skuas, oystercatchers, curlews, geese, and more. The result is the parents can have various levels of aggression when one passes too closely – particularly the arctic skuas, which might actually physically contact you, while most of the others just do a near flyby.

If you are just passing though an area, then there is not too much to be done, but do keep an eye out of where you are walking to hopefully avoid stepping on a nest full of eggs. The most common nesting areas are in the wild, coastal heather terrain which offers plenty of cover. But not all birds are this smart, and if you’re walking around the villages in late June, its likely you’ll see fresh chicks walking around the sidewalks and harbours at times.

If you are camping however, it is best that you pay attention to any annoyed birds. Camping too close to a nest will cause the parents to keep away, which might cause the eggs never to hatch, or, allow predators like stoats to approach and eat them. I’ve seen a few abandoned nests, still with eggs, in areas where it was obvious people had been frequently camping over the summer.

Just something to keep in mind while out enjoying Lofoten’s nature.

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

Camera Info:
Nikon D850
Nikon 70-200mm f/4
135mm
ISO 400
f 4.5
1/800 Second
WB Daylight