There are opportunities for photography of different subjects or genres in Iceland, but the dominant ones, in my experience, are landscapes and seascapes such as of:  dramatic waterfalls and rivers;  unusual rock formations and gorges or canyons created thousands of years ago by volcanic eruptions or epic flooding from a glacial ice dam that suddenly broke;  ruptures in the earth where tectonic plates from two continents are separating;  picturesque hamlets and settlements, many times with protected harbors;  erupting geysers;  mountains and cliffs, sometimes with eye-catching colors and shapes;  lush promontories, where birds nest, sticking into the sea;  fjords;  and, if you are as lucky as we were, volcanoes that are actively spewing ash and molten lava high into the air.

The photos in this gallery were taken during two days of driving around the “Golden Circle” and while on an 11-day 1,300 mile circumnavigation, on a small ship, of the perimeter of Iceland.  The circumnavigation included: daily excursions on land that probably covered hundreds of miles in vehicles;  numerous walks/hikes that covered dozens of miles; and, relatively short trips in zodiacs in bays and other usually protected waters.   Thus, there were opportunities to take interesting photos of many subjects and places.

The places where I was able to photograph include:

·      Pingvelir National Park

·      Gulfoss waterfalls

·      Geysir and Strokkur active geysers

·      Kerio Volcano Crater (lake in crater of 6,500-year-old volcano)

·      Selfoss (town)

·      Hverageroi (hot springs, village)

·      Reykjavik (only major city in Iceland)

·      Flatey Islands Hamlet and Latrabjarg Cliffs

·      Westfjords Region, Dynjandlsvogur (“Thundering Waterfalls”)

·      Djupavik (old settlement with abandoned huge herring processing factory)

·      Husavik, Waterfalls, Volcanic Formations, Asbyrgi Canyon

·      Grimsey, Arctic Circle Monument (“Orbus et Globus”)

·      Borgarfjordur Fjord, Bakkageroi

·      Djuplvogur, Fossardalur Valley (Vindasfloss and Mulafoss waterfalls), Merry Bay

·      Southeastern Coast

·      Reykjanes Peninsula (erupting volcanic fissures)

By far the most challenging sight to photograph was the lava erupting from the volcanic fissures on the Reykjanes Peninsula, which took place in the dark of night during strong chilly winds.   To get the best vantage point, I climbed up to the top of a small dirt hill while carrying lots of camera gear. 

The challenges included the following.  As seasoned photographers know, it is difficult for even a sophisticated camera to adequately capture the wide range of light between very bright and dark spots in a scene, such as bright lava in an otherwise pitch-dark landscape.  Second, telephotos with focal lengths long enough (e.g., 400 and 900 mm full-frame equivalents) to capture activities a mile or so away, allow in less light than ideal as they have relatively small apertures.  Third, in a dark setting using a telephoto, even the slightest movement of camera and lens will ruin a photo.  Likewise, a quickly moving subject, such as lava shooting up hundreds of feet, will be a blur without a high enough shutter speed. 

Thus, the camera had to be set with an ISO just high enough, but no higher than necessary, to achieve a shutter speed fast enough to get sharp, vibration-free (even using a tripod) photos of the lava.  (Setting the ISO very high is a problem as high ISO introduces electronic “noise” that degrades an image.)  Lastly, in the darkness it was difficult to find, and get my fingers on, the right levers, etc. to make the preferred camera settings.  

In any event, seeing and photographing the volcanic eruptions - and the other scenes in Iceland - was a pleasure.