Photo: Twilight view over Unstad beach, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. March 3, 2017. 17:45

The original plan had been to head to another mountain on skis, but as we approached the route, there was far to little snow, so we headed for plan b, Kleivheia. The sun was already sinking into the horizon as we were halfway up the steep couloir, slowed by deep snow and some issues with my knee, which I injured skiing a couple weeks earlier. But the weather was too good to stay out of the mountains and rest, as I probably should have!

Arriving at the summit plateau, a fresh breeze was blowing and the sky was now filled with a beautiful winter twilight. Perfect! I stayed around and shot some images as the sky darkened and the village lights below became more prominent.

Then it was off to find a flat place for camp, not that easy of a task! And begin the wait for aurora, which would be filling the sky a few hours later.

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
19mm
ISO 100
f 10
.5 second
WB Daylight

Photo: Full moon illuminates winter landscape at Uttakleiv, Vestvågøy, Lofoten Islands, Norway. February 22, 2016. 19:38

This isn’t the image I wanted to take on this night.

With a perfect weather forecast coinciding with a nearly full moon, I decided to head up Mannen in hopes of shooting northern lights over Haukland or Uttakleiv or anywhere else they might show up. Getting a late start I raced the falling sun to try and catch some light over Haukland beach, just barely making it to a decent viewpoint before the sun fell behind the mountains.

As twilight arrived in continued to the summit of Mannen to begin my wait until darkness, and fingers crossed, northern lights! Not wanting to let any decent light go to waste, I continued shooting from twilight and into the evening. As the moon began to rise these clouds stared to form over Skolmen in the distance, traveling straight for me. Having already shot numerous images with clear sky this night, I though the movement of the clouds would add a nice element to the scene.

Keeping the same exposure, I shot two images at 14mm, one for the foreground and one to capture the clouds and the sky. I had originally tried with my 24mm tilt-shift lens, but it wasn’t wide enough for what the scene required.

I shot a couple more images after this, but was pretty much done by 20:00 as the clouds were no longer as interesting looking. And so I sat down and waiting for some aurora. By midnight the sky was still silent and I was finally beginning to get cold from all the hours of sitting in the open. And so under the bright moonlight I headed down the mountain.

I will try again for an aurora photo this winter, but I’m sure several more attempts will be needed until luck works out on my side…

Camera Info:
Nikon D800
Nikon 14-24mm f/2.8
14mm
ISO 100
f 5.6
92 seconds
WB Daylight
2 images – top, bottom

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

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