Vestvågøya | 68 North

Friday Photo #201 – November Aurora

Photo: Northern lights over cod racks, Ballstad, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. November 10, 2016. 16:52

I was on my way to Ballstad in the late afternoon yesterday to drop off a friend after some hiking and a bit of shopping in Leknes. The sun is setting early these days, but the sky was still relatively bright; additionally with the full moon only a few days away. Casually looking out my window at the countryside, I noticed a streak of green in the sky, it was barely past 16:30. So early!

Luckily, since I had been hiking earlier, I happened to have my camera with me, the previous day I missed a fantastic sunset while heading to the climbing gym without my camera. Though I’m unfamiliar with Ballstad, and would have preferred to be at a beach or mountain location, I knew the nearby cod racks could make a decent foreground element and more importantly, help hide some of the surrounding city lights.

I photographed a few different compositions that I liked, and several featuring the moon. Yet, pure luck let the aurora to almost perfectly align with the cod racks for a few moments for an image that looks like I put more more effort into than I actually did. After a few minutes the clouds rolled in and the show was mostly over.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
14mm
ISO 2000
f 3.5
5 seconds
WB Daylight

November 11, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #174 – Uttakleiv Winter Twilight

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

May 6, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #171 – Vågakallen Winter Reflection

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

April 15, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #165 – Mannen in Winter

Photo: Climber descending from Mannen in winter, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 23, 2015. 13:50

On a cold winter day in February my friend Till and I headed up to the summit of Mannen via a direct route on the south face. After some time on the summit, the winds were picking up at it was time to head down. Figuring the route we ascended wouldn’t be too fun to head down, we took the normal tourist trail down from the summit. Although it winter, it is a bit more adventurous that the easy walk of summer.

As I remained on the summit, packing my gear, Till began the descent. Appearing as a lone figure on the ridge, with clouds seeming to radiate from Himmeltindan in the background, I quickly pulled out my camera for a few more images.

Not the best light, but this scene illustrates typical winter conditions in the mountains of Lofoten.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
15mm
ISO 200
f 8
1/400 second
WB Daylight

March 4, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

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

February 12, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #156 – Offersøykammen Winter Sun

Photo: Low winter sun from Offersøykammen, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. January 20, 2015; 12:31

Happy 2016! I’m not quite sure where 2015 went, probably because I spent most of my time behind the computer writing 3 ebooks on Lofoten, but the new year is here. I have some big plans for the year, which if I can manage, should result in some pretty cool stuff happening on this site and beyond.

Next, this image marks 3 years of Friday Photos! I’m not quite sure how I have done it, and on a few occasions it was sometime late in the night before I thought, ‘Oh crap! it’s Friday!” And then quickly tried to write something. Lately, it has been a bit of a struggle as I put most of my focus on ebooks; I’m not a natural writer, and some weeks I only have so many words in my head, which once used up, I struggle to produce anything more. But I’ll still continue along as best as I can.

For anyone who has purchased one of my ebooks in the last year, thank you! Without your support, I’m not sure what the future of this site might be. I must admit, there are times when I wonder if keeping this site going is still worth it, especially as there are so many new places in the world to discover. It really is hard work to provide so much information…

Now to the photo. A rare, sunny and calm winter day in early 2015. One of the last good days before the weather more or less turned into one endless storm for pretty much the whole of February. Having been dropped off in Leknes and then hitchhiking to Stamsund to pickup my rental car, I had something of a late start to the day. Offersøykammen seemed like the easiest destination to get some decent images without too much effort.

I think it can be written, that the sun barely rises above the horizon in January, but sometimes that is hard to translate visually. A big reason of these Friday Photo posts is to show you what it really looks like. So this is just about as high as the sun reached on January 20, with pink light shining across the snow covered landscape. The day is one long sunrise – sunset. Absolutely fantastic!

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
20mm
f 16
ISO 200
1/60 second
WB Daylight

PS: There are still a few places available on my winter photo workshop in February, if you’re interested in trying to get to places like this… 🙂

January 1, 2016/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #153 – Haukland Beach Winter

Photo: Winter view over Haukland beach from Mannen, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 23, 2015; 13:24

A few weeks earlier I tried to take the normal trail to the summit of Mannen, but beneath the deep snow, I took a wrong turn. Once my friend Till arrived on Lofoten from Germany, we took a look at the mountain and decided to take the ‘direct route.’ An hour plus of climbing the steep hillside, traversing thin passages of snow, and a final scramble up the rocky ridge, we arrived at the summit.

The weather was grim, with a strong wind blowing from the west, flying snow filling the air over Uttakleiv. But a few parts of the mountain remained sheltered enough to keep my tripod steady as I took in the view over the snow covered Haukland beach.

While this location is better known for its summer view, I think I like the winter version better.

You can find a (summer) hiking guide to Mannen HERE.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
21mm
ISO 200
f 8
1/320 second
WB Daylight

Photo: Winter ascent of Mannen, Vestvagøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway.February 23, 2015

December 11, 2015/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Summer, Vestvågøya, Winter

Friday Photo #147 – Haukland Beach

Photo: Haukland beach summer and winter, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 23, 2015; 13:24 – June 3, 2015; 14:43

I thought I’d show something a little different this week. This images is more of a happy accident than something I intentionally planned; I stood on top of Mannen two times this year and took the same picture twice: once in winter, once in summer.

I thought this would be a cool way to show how different the same location can look just a few months apart. I have been receiving a lot of emails lately asking for the ‘best’ time to go, and this is something I struggle to answer. Is winter better than summer? I don’t know. If you want to hike, enjoy the midnight sun, camp at Kvalvika, etc, then summer is better. If you want bleak, abstract landscapes, chances of northern lights, and short, atmospheric days, then winter is better. I guess in a round about way, and the way my journey has taken me, you just have to see the islands at every time of year; every season is different and unique in its own way.

So which view do you like better: summer or winter?

Camera Info: winter
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
21mm
f 8
ISO 200
1/320 second
WB Daylight

October 30, 2015/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Summer, Vestvågøya

Friday Photo #145 – Unstad Summer

Photo: Summer over Unstad, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. June 5, 2015. 22:00

It is always hard to decide how long to wait around the mountains. The light of the midnight sun is on of the main draws of summer on Lofoten, but a relatively cloudy horizon such as this day, you might not end up getting any light as the sun hovers over the sea. So, if you’re wanting better odds of sunlight on your scene, you need to head up a bit early. In this case, I left the car around 19:00 – with plans not to return until 02:00 at the earliest.

It was a 1 hour hike up the ridge towards Nonstind (see hiking guide HERE) to get to this view point. By the time I arrived, there was still enough gaps in clouds to allow brief moments of golden light to shine across the beach and valley below. Soon enough though, the clouds thickened and Unstad was left in shadow for the remainder of the night.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
17mm
ISO 160
f 8
1/320 second
WB Daylight

October 16, 2015/0 Comments/by Cody

Friday Photo, Summer, Vestvågøya

Friday Photo #137 – Uttakleiv midnight sun

Photo: Midnight over Uttakleiv beach, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. June 5, 2015. 23:55

My second day on Lofoten and I found myself wandering around the mountains at midnight. My main priority had been to photograph Unstad beach, but as time passed the midnight sun sank into the clouds and the light faded from Unstad.

Not content to descend the ridge I was on, I continued further towards the summit of Nonstind (See hiking guide HERE). The temperature was quite cold – good I brought an extra jacket, and I could see snow flurries approaching from out at sea. But there was a wonderful soft light over Uttakleiv beach – one of lofoten’s most iconic locations, yet rarely seen from this view.

The clouds thickened as time passed and I set up my Fuji xt-1 to shoot a time lapse of the changing lights. I stayed up on the mountain until almost 02:00 before heading back to the car. It was a wonderful night under the 24 hour light of summer on Lofoten.

Camera Info:
Nikon D810
Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
70mm
ISO 200
f 10
1/25 second
WB Daylight

August 21, 2015/0 Comments/by Cody

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