Mar '06 in Iceland...we were in Iceland for 5 nights in early March - we blogged about our trip at atypical travelblogue and we have posted some images at flickr - for more images of Iceland, visit joePhotos

31st March 2006

pew Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm

the interior of the cathedral in Reykjavik is plain. There is only one stained glass window. The light caught the wooden ends of the pews quite beautifully.

30th March 2006

glacier Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

we were told this is the southern tongue of the Langjokull glacier - one of the small (!) glaciers on Iceland. The largest, Vatnajokull is the size of Yorkshire.

28th March 2006

ash wednesday Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm

On Ash Wednesday there is a tradition in Iceland that youngsters have the day off school, dress up - some of them in costumes like those we usually see at Hallowe'en, visit all the shops and sing a song. In exchange they get some sweets.

25th March 2006

small island Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm

At Thingvellir - the rift valley created by the 2 plates moving apart is made up of lots of tiny islands and pools and canyons. This is a little patch of grass that has become separated from the bank. It is hard to tell how big it is - it could be a large island - it's a really clear example of self-similarity in nature. Take a look at more images that confirm this phenomenon at our flickr page.

21st March 2006

Hallgrimskirkja Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @19mm, 5 sec exposure, with manual flashes from the right of the statue

...and Leifur Eiriksson (who "discovered" America/Vinland around 500 years before Columbus). Construction of the church started just after World War II but wasn't completed until quite recently - opinion is divided amongst Icelanders about the architectural merits of the church - we liked it...

20th March 2006

walkway Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm

at Þingvellir/Thingvellir - into the early morning sun - but oh for a bit more dynamic range. One of the ways in which digital is significantly less good than film, is digital sensor's failure to record both the brightest, and the darkest regions of an image, effectively. This image provided a very significant challenge for the sensor, looking as it does both directly into the sun, and regions of deep shadow....

19th March 2006

brightness Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 20mm

...a side street in the older part of Reykjavik. Many buildings are painted in vibrant colours. The weather was beautiful for the whole time we were in Iceland (apparently it had been lousy for weeks prior to our visit), and despite the fact that we were there relatively early in the year the daylight length was already longer than in the UK (although the sun stayed low in the sky). Such beautiful light made capturing the colours easy-peasy...

15th March 2006

Skalholt Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

...the view from the church - Skalholt is the site of a much earlier wooden cathedral - sadly long gone. The current church was restored in 1963 and has a very attractive mosaic behind the alter. Alongside the church is a recently excavated area which has revealed a wealth of historical information in the archaeology.

14th March 2006

Gullfoss Nikon D70, Nikkor 70-300mm @ 95mm

the vast, partially frozen waterfall on the river Hvita - the people down by water risked life and limb to get there - the spray from the falls coated everything downwind with a thick layer of ice - the path down to the falls was particularly perilous...

11th March 2006

the mighty Strokkur Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

At Geysir, the original geysir that all other geysir's in the world are named after, rarely spouts. Strokkur shown here is very active, erupting every 3-7 minutes. For a series of pictures of an eruption see the geysir gallery.

10th March 2006

the mighty organ Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

in Hallgrimskirkja, the Lutheran cathedral. We were lucky to hear the organ being played - although we thought one of the stops sounded a bit flat (picky buggers that we are). The organist carried on playing undistracted, despite at one point the church being overwhelmed by a large, noisy and irreverent tour party, one of whom stepped up onto the organ surround and peered short-sightedly over the shoulder of the organist at his music.
This image is a bit noisy because the camera was set to 1600ISO - I don't like popping off flash in places like churches.

9th March 2006

Tjornin Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm

the small lake in the centre of Reykjavik old town, taken from the top of the tower of Hallgrimskirkja, the Lutheran cathedral

9th March 2006

Þingvellirkjerka Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

the church at Thingvellir

8th March 2006

street scene, Reykjavik Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24mm @ 12mm

taken in the late afternoon in the old part of Reykjavik town - Tone particularly likes this picture of his, as it reminds him of the work of one of his photographic heroes Harry Gruyaert

7th March 2006

Þingvallavatn Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm @ 35mm

...the lake at Thingvellir - a landscape carved by plate techtonics, vulcanism, ice, water and plants - site of the earliest Parliament (the Alþingi/Althingi) in the world - founded around 930 AD.
This is the place at which the European and North American tectonic plates join - and they are moving apart from one-another at a rate of ~2cm a year.

6th March 2006

dilemma Nikon D70, Nikkor 18-70mm @ 70mm

...a whale watching trip boat moored in Reykjavik.
Iceland has a complex relationship with whales and whaling - it was for many years an active whaling nation, but following international pressure (including direct action from Greenpeace) they effectively suspended whaling in the late eighties - however the Alþingi (Althing - the Icelandic parliament) voted overwhelmingly in 1999 to resume whaling. And there matters have stuck - there are four whaling vessels in Reykjavik harbour nominally undergoing refitting (in reality they could have been ready years ago) - Iceland's main markets for fish (it's only significant export) are all countries strongly opposed to whaling - and it's rapidly growing tourist industry attracts mainly those with environmental interests - all of which are powerful arguments to not resume....

5th March 2006

aurora Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24 @ 24mm, 52sec exposure @ 1600ISO - taken on 28th Feb 2006 23:31

from Ulfarsfell on the north-eastern edge of Reykjavik, Iceland. This was a very challenging shot to get - mostly because it was very cold and windy - the wind-chill must have been in excess of minus 10 deg C - it was also very dark - not ideal conditions for fiddling with camera settings.
There had not been aurora seen in the Reykjavik area between the end of December 2005 and 27th February - we were incredibly lucky to get some of the best viewing conditions for months.
Thanks to David our intrepid driver - who took us to the best places to view the aurora.

5th March 2006

aurora Nikon D70, Sigma 12-24 @ 20mm, 212sec exposure @ 200ISO - taken on 28th Feb 2006 - 22:35

from Bygggardstaangi (probably) on the western edge of Reykjavik, Iceland. The aurora developed over time - this is an early-ish shot, at which time there was a single arc in the northern sky - later (see above) the aurora filled two-thirds of the sky. The light coloured dashes are caused by the movement of stars during the almost four minute exposure (actually it's the earth's rotation causing the apparent motion of the stars)

more Iceland images -
south shore
more south shore
architecture
geysir
gulfoss
route 429