In November 2021 I was lucky enough to be offered a place on one of Steve Bell’s workshops in Iceland. Many people ask me about the details of Iceland and I always try to direct them to my website so they can see my images in high definition without the quality being reduced in social media posts. Two months later I thought it was about time I wrote a short blog about the trip of a lifetime in the land of Ice and Fire!
Remembering the fact this was my second time in Iceland I was keen to get off the beaten track and get away from the common tourist areas which I had seen last time. Steve did just that and eventually drove us as far east as Vestrahorn at Stokeness and its lesser known sister mountain Estrahorn.
Vestrahorn Mountain
Of course the island was still fairly quiet from the impact of covid-19 and it’s affect on the tourism industry. I felt lucky to have been able to visit during these hard times, after not going on a plane for 2 years. For some people it has been probably longer and still on going.
As expected we battled through typical Icelandic winds and rain for the first few days however we had a lucky break in the weather. One of the amazing places which Steve drove us to was the Fláajökull Glacier down a lesser known route. Even during the busy season I would say it’s probably more commonly used by the locals given that the information boards were all in Icelandic. Apart from meeting one friendly, Icelandic and experienced local (that had been exploring on the glacier with her spikes) we were the only ones here within miles. So peaceful and gave us a feeling of solitude. I remember the temperature hovering around 0 degrees Celsius but was completely calm and didn’t feel that cold. After a short 3km walk we had some perfect conditions and still water to photograph around the giant blue ice monster. I even managed to capture a piece of ice breaking off into the pool creating ripples. This had to be one of the highlights of the road trip. We spend most of the day on this particular mission!
Ice Calving at the Fláajökull Glacier
The Fláajökull Glacier is colossal and as far as I know the largest glacier in Europe. This particular lagoon was further inland and flowed into a small river system. However the Jökulsárlón Lagoon is closer to the coast. Eventually the icebergs that break off into the Lagoon end up floating out to sea and become washed up on the shore of Diamond Beach. It truly is a photographers paradise, but trickier than you think capturing a longer exposure frame of blurred waves washing around a piece of ice at sunrise. Not to mention you might be facing right into strong winds and wet gusts off the sea. Once again I feel blessed for the conditions we had that morning and this has to be highlight number 3.
Sunrise on Diamond Beach
Indeed this was my second trip to Iceland and I hadn’t witnessed or photographed the Northern Lights the first time I was here. I must admit it was in the back of my mind whether I was going to get lucky. I never admitted to the group at the time but I was a little bit worried whether it was going to happen, given the cloudy forecasts, and the Aurora activity was flat as a pancake. However as Steve would say keep trying and never give up! We persevered most nights if there was a slight chance of aurora. Out of 7 nights we had 2 potential nights. Both of them nights we stayed in Höfn and both of them nights we were successful!
The first night was partially cloudy but we captured it shinning through the clouds behind Vestahorn on camera and could see a strong glow. The second night came completely clear, after spending all day photographing some amazing landscapes in South-East Iceland such as Estrahorn and Black Sands Beach we found a composition facing north ideal for the aurora. We made an appearance that night even though the KP index remained at level 1 and the BZ was not very south.
No aurora was forecasted but by some miracle it decided to show anyway! We very nearly drove home as we didn’t expect it to do much more than show up on the back of the camera until it started to become rather visible to the eye, and it even brightly spiked high above the north west horizon. We ended up staying out till 2.30am that night. This had to be highlight number 2 of the trip!
The Aurora Borealis, Cara’s Lake
My top highlight of the trip obviously has to be a night image. Once again I had a stroke of luck the same night. I was fluky enough to capture a meteor over Vestrahorn mountain at the peak of the Taurid Meteor shower. Even though it was a weak Aurora you knew it was there and I actually quite like the affect of it glowing behind the mountain. In my mind it was a perfect composition for a large bright shooting star! I was very excited and delighted to have sold a print to a friend before I’d even had chance to do the final edits in Lightroom/Photoshop when I got home.
Taurid Meteor Shower, Vestrahorn
In conclusion I feel extremely grateful how my second trip to Iceland worked out, especially since it was a last minute decision. Given how unpredictable Icelandic weather can be from one day to the next I think we were very lucky to get the break we did. On the way back to Keflavik airport the storm returned and we spent the last night sheltering in the Lighthouse Rostin Restaurant in Gardur watching a wonderful film about the Aurora Borealis (including drone footage), made by the modest owner who deserves more credit for his work. Iceland is still number 1 photography destination for me and hope to return again one day to see its surreal and magical landscape. And its golden hour light, that literally feels like it lasts the entire day in the winter months.
A big thanks to the fantastic workshop group including Zoe and Cara with their enthusiasm, and workshop leader Steve Bell for guiding us with his great adventuring skills in the safest way possible – couldn’t have done it without him! A great photographer that I always look up to and highly recommend his workshops. This workshop gave me a new lease of life for photography but still reminds me that astrophotography is my favourite photography! Whether it be on the borders of the Artic Circle or from our own shore at Whitby, my hunt for the Aurora Borealis still continues…
all images copyright of Brinton Darnell