Iceland Photography
Into the Glacier
Sometime taking the road less traveled can be cliché, other times it can take you to the base of an enormous glacier.
Icelandic Sunrise
A gorgeous golden sunrise greeted me during my first few minutes in Iceland, so I pulled over at the first side road I could find and took this beautiful shot of Kálfatjarnarkirkja Church basked in a golden glow.
Gullfoss at Sunset
Gullfoss is by far the most famous of Iceland's hundreds of incredible waterfalls, largely due to its location on the tourist-friendly "Golden Circle," which is a 300km loop of some of Iceland's most dramatic sites in an easy day trip from Reykjavik. In Icelandic, 'gull' means golden and 'foss' means falls, which is an appropriate name for this gorgeous natural wonder in the glow of the late evening sun.
The glacier Hofsjökull (and largest active volcano in Iceland) rises in the background. You can also see a bit of the mist rainbow to the left of the falls.gullfossicelandgolden fallsgolden circlesunsethdrreykjavikhofsjokullglaciermountainvolcanoHofsjökull
Blowing Off Steam
The geyser 'Strokkur' begins to erupt in the Geysir area of central Iceland on its way to an eventual 30m height. Not to be confused with the Great Geysir (or just "Geysir"), Strokkur erupts far more often--usually every 4-8 minutes.
Seljalandsfoss Up High
The gorgeous Seljalandsfoss waterfall in West Iceland. The rock outcropping behind the falls lets you walk all the way around it, though you'll get pretty wet in the process. The storm clouds made for an ominous, but beautiful, shot (blue skies are the enemy of good photography, as they say).
Stealing Kisses
A cow stretches out to plant a big wet kiss on her friend in a ridiculously gorgeous pasture in East Iceland, with the dramtic backdrop of Vatnajökull ice cap riding on the horizon.
Balancing Act
One of the thousands of cairns, or stacks of rocks you'll find throughout Iceland. Dating back a thousand years, Icelanders have been creating these stacks as both geographic markers as well as pillars to honor the heroes of the country's famous sagas.
Jokulsarlon at Sunrise
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon is a large glacial lake formed at the base of Breiðamerkurjökull glacier. As chunks of the glacier break off, they float through the lake and out to the Atlantic Ocean, creating an incredible natural wonder in the process.
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Black Ice
A chunk of ice washed ashore on the black sand beach at Jokulsarlon Glacier Lagoon.
Glacial Landscape
An otherworldly view of the landscape in front of the Breiðamerkurjökull glacier as it feeds icebergs into the Atlantic Ocean via Jokulsarlon glacier lagoon.
Dramatic Iceland
The best word to describe 90% of the landscapes in Iceland is 'dramatic.' Nothing is ever simply calm and peaceful. You either have enormous waterfalls crashing off volcanos, steam pouring out of geothermal pockets, or dramatic clouds rolling off of glacier packed mountainsides. In this shot, a glacier fed stream cuts its way through the otherworldly yellow landscape on its way towards the Atlantic Ocean.
Reynisdrangar Sunrise
The Reynisdrangar sea stacks at Vik, Iceland. Legend holds that the basalt stacks were formed when two trolls misjudged sunrise while terrorizing a ship, turning them to stone needles for eternity.
Dusk Upon the Sun Voyager
Reykjavik's amazing Sun Voyager sculpture.
Kirkjufell Sunrise
Kirkjufell and Kirkjufellfoss at Sunset, West Iceland. I camped out at the top of the falls for about 2 hours prior to sunset, a bit unsure if the clouds or angle of the sun would give me anything to work with. In Icelandic fashion, some high layered clouds started rolling in right as the sun set behind the mountains behind me, creating an incredible colorful and memorable sunset at the most beautiful place in Iceland. One of my favorite shots of all time, but then Iceland has the tendency to make it easy to take those.
Hvítserkur
The massive rock formation Hvítserkur off of Iceland's Northwest coast.
Aurora over Iceland
The Aurora Borealis streaks vividly across the sky over Kirkjufellfoss on Iceland's stunning Snæfellsnes Peninsula on a crisp September night. The opportunity to see, and photography, the Aurora is an incredible and exhilarating feeling that leaves you in absolute awe at the forces of nature lighting up the sky above your head.
Without question, this night was my top experience as a photographer and is my favorite photograph I've ever taken.
Hvítserkur by Sea
The majestic Hvítserkur rock formation stands tall as the tide begins to rise in Northwestern Iceland on the Vatnsnes Peninsula.
Hallgrímskirkja at Sunset
Reykjavik's largest church rises dramatically above the city with its signature architecture.
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Aurora Over Kirkjufell
The Northern Lights fill the sky during their peak (I know this because I was up the entire night watching them) over Kirkjufell moutnain in West Iceland.
Northern Light-House
The Aurora Borealis streaks behind Malarrif Light on the Snaefelsness Peninsula in Western Iceland.
Autumn at Hraunfossar
Iceland's Hraunfossar (lava falls), in which a series of watefalls are formed as water travels under a large lava field and out the side into the Hvita River. Truly a spectaculy sight to see in person.
Solitude
There's nothing as strangely peaceful as listening to the deafening roar of a waterfall drown out everything else around you. Alone time with the majestic Skogarfoss in off season is an incredible experience.
Adventure Awaits
While so many people are currently spending their days and nights taking in the view of store parking lots and Black Friday lines, get out there and treat yourself to a real adventure. You won't have to wait in a line and the reward is far greater. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Magic Trail
The landscape of Iceland is like nothing you've ever seen. Soft green vegetation covers much of the ground, with myriad colorful plants mixed in.
Rising Above
Iceland's Ring Road crosses one of thousands of small streams flowing from glacier to ocean, as it meanders towards the towering mountains in the distance, while clouds roll over their peaks.
Icelandic Sunset
The sun sets beyond the sea grasses of the Reykjavik coast on a perfect fall day in western Iceland. The frequency of dramatic clouds results in stunning sunrises and sunsets each day,
Sunrise Voyager
Another shot of Reykjavik's famous Sun Voyager sculpture, shot a handful of hours after the sunset version. I was worried that the otherwise dreary day would make for poor shooting conditions, but the stunning burst of orange through the thin gap between clouds and horizon made for an incredible morning display.
Icelandic Horse
One of the friendliest and most majestic animals you'll meet, the Icelandic Horse is a huge source of pride across Iceland, and gives the already amazing landscapes an even more surreal feel. Snaefelssjokull volcano & glacier rises subtly in the background.
Hidden Falls
I only found out about this gorgeous Icelandic waterfall when grabbing lunch at an empty restaurant, and talking to the owner's son about the sights in the area. He gave me some detailed directions down a few old farm roads, and sure enough, there was this awesome, and fairly large, waterfall spewing out of the Earth in the middle of what looked to be just a farm field. This country never ceases to amaze.
Astronomer's Dream
I was revisiting my Iceland Aurora shots tonight, and came across this awesome landscape I had overlooked on my first pass. The combination of the fishing town lights, the aurora reflecting off the bay, the full moon, and the double moon halo is just over the top.
Land of Enchantment
“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he has come to see.” ― G.K. Chesterton
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Edge of the World
A view from the end of Dyrholaey rock formation near Vik, Iceland. The dramatic rock peninsula extends 120m into the Atlantic Ocean with two rock arches allowing the swirling ocean to crash through it.
Red Hat
The setting sun fades behind the nearby mountains, leaving only a sliver to illuminate Iceland's famous Kirkjufell mountain, creating a 'red hat' at its peak.
Icelandic Lights || Malariff Light, Iceland
An amazing display of the aurora and the Milky Way all around Malariff Light on Iceland's beautiful Snæfellsnes Peninsula. After spotting some bright bursts of the Northern Lights above our hotel in Stykkishólmur, I raced South across the peninsula to capture this awesome backdrop.
AstrophotographyIcelandLighthouseMilky Wayauroraaurora borealismalariff lightnorthern lightssnaefellsnesssnaefellsness peninsulasnæfellsnes peninsula
Introspection || Stokksnes, Iceland
A dramatic aurora burst above Iceland's Vestrahorn mountain on the Stokksnes peninsula. Views like this really make you stop and think about your (tiny) place in the universe. I was but one speck of light under a canopy of millions of stars and an explosion of electromagnetic energy. Humbling to say the least.
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Moonbow over Godafoss
A rare moonbow arcs from beginning to end in the mist over Godafoss waterfall in Northern Iceland. Due to the clouds and it being Iceland, my view was pretty much pitch black save for the occasional sliver of moonlight sneaking between the clouds and setting up the stunning refraction over the falls.
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Mælifell Mountain || Snæfellsnes Peninsula, Iceland
One of my favorite shots from Iceland, but not because of the typical things you associate with the island like a crazy behind-the-waterfall shot or a double moonbow beneath the northern lights. Instead, the massive scale of the dormant volcano is put into scale by the tiny farmhouse beneath it and the impressive 260 ft high Bjarnarfoss waterfall dropping partway down the side. Further realizing this was shot over 2 miles away from the mountain among its moss covered lava flows helps set the scene. And those green patches down the mountain under the waterfall? Well that's this particular landowner's attempt at re-introducing a forest to the island after the Vikings cut them all down over 1,000 years ago.
