Last updated on March 23rd, 2016
Iceland is a tiny island between the North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. Its topography comprises of volcanic lava fields, mountains, glaciers, waterfalls and black sand beaches. It is a photographer’s dream and nightmare all in one. It is so incredible to the point where there is too much to photograph, and if you are not disciplined you will stop every five minutes to take a picture.
I recently spent six nights exploring and photographing Iceland with my photography workshop partner, Vincent Croos (www.croos.ca). We had a very basic plan that allowed for a lot of deviation, should it be required. We made a lot of images, met a lot of interesting people and had an amazing time in the land of the midnight sun.
Should you be considering a photography trip to Iceland during the summer, here are my tips for a successful trip:
1. Have a rough plan.
Itineraries are not for everybody, myself included. However, having a basic idea of places you want to see and photograph will help your journey unfold.
Six nights is long enough to complete the 1332km Icelandic ring road, however would also mean more driving and less image making.
I knew from the start, I wanted to get from the Capitol City, Reykjavik as far South East as the Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon. This would allow long stops in places of interest, allow hikes and generally not feel rushed to make images, and should the weather not be favourable, we could stop again in the return leg of the journey.
What better way to plan a trip. Google, maps, coffee and a blueberry muffin
2. Make a basic image list.
Even with a very basic itinerary, having a rough idea of the kind of images you want to make will help your journey. For example I had laid out some of the following:
- Specific Waterfalls
Seljalandsfoss Waterfall. A must see, and it’s location is very surprising
- Landmarks within a city
Hallgrimskirkja is the landmark church in Reykjavik. It is visible from everywhere and is spectacular.
- Wild animals such as Icelandic Horses
The horses are beautiful, especially with a good sunset(ish) backdrop
- Black sand beaches and the glacier lagoon
Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon. The furthest destination on this trip. It was worth the drive.
3. Hostels and hotels are nice BUT how about a camper van.
As a travel photographer, I like to be free to explore at my leisure. A camper van would allow freedom to drive and explore whatever photographic opportunities presented themselves, at whatever time of day, rather than keeping to the check in and out times of hostels (10am is far too early, thank you) or hotels. We could also stop and sleep pretty much wherever we wanted too.
During your trip, it is nice to book a hostel or hotel every now and again to freshen up, meet people and take advantage of free wifi, parking and breakfast.
You can stop anywhere to take a picture, and sleep if need be.
4. Travel with a like-minded individual.
Initially, I was going on this trip alone. I was planning on setting up points whereby I could keep in contact with people to let them know that I was ok. However, travelling a country with limited cell phone service, it worked out great that Vincent was able to join me.
Vincent and I host photography workshops in the Toronto area (http://www.meetup.com/Toronto-Travel-Blogging-Photography-Lifelong-Travellers/ ) and so we knew that our portfolio would benefit from this trip.
It helped to share the costs, the driving, have different music and different image ideas. It also meant that after the trip, there will be pictures of me, which is something I rarely have.
Vincent, making his way back across the river after he made his images.
A rare image of me – Image by Vincent Croos www.croos.ca
5. Take warm clothes and wet weather gear.
Make sure you pack long johns, base layers, waterproofs and a hat.
We were there in June, the height of summer. This meant 24 hours of sunshine and yet it still gets cold, especially at nighttime. Also, wind is not conveyed in images, and it does get very windy. When renting a vehicle, they stress that you have to open doors carefully because the wind has damaged a lot of rental cars through catching open doors.
It does rain a lot, so make sure you take wet weather gear for you and your camera equipment. This will also come in handy when exploring all the beautiful waterfalls, you and your equipment will get wet, but being prepared helps and it’s worth it.
Vincent took his GoPro everywhere and was not afraid of getting wet because he was prepared.
6. Shop duty free.
Iceland is notoriously expensive, especially in the main city of Reykjavík. A little duty free experience before arrival can make the purchase of alcohol a little more tolerable. Averaging around $10 for a small beer, can find your money disappearing fast. For our trip, Vincent found a special Explorers Edition of Johnny Walker. It was perfect to warm us up after a long day of exploring.
Delicious – For Explorers everywhere
7. Take lots of memory cards, batteries and a rocket blower.
Make sure you can make and store your images. Memory is cheap these days so carry plenty of cards, and external hard disks for back ups. Go for whatever size and speed you can afford. Back them up to your computer at the end of the day and file the card. Use a fresh card each day to help you keep everything in order.
Keep spare batteries in your jacket to keep them warm, and easily accessible. There is nothing worse than finding the right frame, and the red light to come on and you do not have a spare battery with you.
Make sure your camera / equipment are water sealed and can stand up to the elements. When shooting outside (most of my time) I always keep my rocket blower in my pocket. A rocket blower can blow water debris off your lens instead of breathing on it and fogging up your lens.
The rain spots ruin this image, however if I was to blow them off, the breath would fog up the lens. A rocket blower allows me to blow off the drops and keep shooting.
8. Go to the Blue Lagoon.
Iceland produces more and more epic sceneries and photographic opportunities, but take a moment to relax. Remember, this is your vacation time, and so you should take a moment to relax and do nothing. I really enjoyed every moment of Iceland’s number one tourist destination. It is a beautiful spot and the water is glorious. We spent three hours floating, drinking and mingling with people. It really was the most relaxing part of the trip and comes highly recommended.
Surprisingly, cameras are welcome and encouraged (except in the changing rooms, of course) so Vincent and I took our GoPro cameras and left the big camera’s at home that day, and it worked out fine.
DCIM100GOPRO
9. Utilize social media
Instagram is my favourite tool in social media. I prefer the simplicity of just photographs. Looking at the different hashtags, showed me different places and enabled me to pick and choose photographic spots on my way.
The hashtags we use cross all platforms of social media, and I used three specific hashtags so that people could follow the journey:
- #paulies365 – I am currently in the middle of posting one picture a day and this is the hashtag that I use
- #explorewithpaul – I post this after every image as I want people to explore through my images
- #vincentandpaulexplore – When Vincent and myself are on a trip or hosting a workshop, we post with this hastag.
There were a variety of Iceland specific hashtags we saw and utilized on our adventure such as @icelandair #mystopover to highlight the social media project by Iceland Air that is running right now.
10. Fly with Iceland Air
I really enjoyed my time with Iceland Air. On my first leg of the journey, I sat in my window seat and the lights went out. They then have an Aurora Borealis light show in the ceiling for the duration of the journey. It was very soothing. There is a charge for food and alcohol, but they do allow TWO checked bags, so it does allow you to take both regular and warm clothes (I line my bags with tripods).
Iceland Air are currently offering up to seven nights stopover free of charge, and I would highly recommend using them.
I hope you find these tips helpful. There are a lot more pointers, such as photography gear etc, but this is a basic list to get you out there and having fun.
If you have any questions, let me know.
Paul
http://www.paulkporterphotography.com
And remember to follow my journey 🙂
#paulies365 #explorewithpaul #paulkporterphotography #vincentandpaulexplore
Facebook: paulkporterphotography
Travel Photographer currently based out of Toronto.
