We’re going to chase the Northern Lights, Waterfalls, and the Highlands.
We call this our, go to Iceland trip. Available in the fall, we chase the weather and adjust our itineraries based on what mother nature provides. Our ultimate goal is to get a few clear nights to shoot the Northern Lights. But regardless, you’ll leave with stories and photos that are some of the best that Iceland has to offer.
We will visit Landmannalaugar to see its evergreen moss beds. Haifoss and Skogafoss for their picturesque waterfalls. Thorsmörk and its glacier surrounding vistas of hills and rivers. Vik and Dyrholaey with their black beaches and stunning rock formations. Iceland’s diversity offers the perfect base for an extensive photography adventure.
Within the most beautiful parts of the world, we’ll discover new ways to create the perfect photo. From waking up early for sunrise golden light to sleeping under a blanket of stars to capture the infamous Aurora Borealis, we’ll uncover fresh perspectives to hone in on your craft. Learn better post-processing techniques, tighten your visual production, and exercise the art of savoring each moment behind your lens.
By traveling in small groups, there will be enough time for individual attention to focus on the things you want to personally learn and experience. Though, besides all the wonderful skills you’ll acquire — the main goal of the journey will be to enjoy the breathtaking and unearthly natural wonders that South Iceland has to offer.
We’ll meet in Reykjavik before we leave on our journey. We’ll introduce ourselves and then we’ll undertake the trip to the Haífoss waterfall; a massive area that serves for the perfect photography subject. This is the perfect start to familiarize yourself with both the Icelandic conditions, as well as your camera equipment and settings. In the afternoon we will drive to Landmannalaugar, the entrance of the mighty Highlands, with several scenic and otherworldly stops included.
Accommodation: Hrauneyjar
Food: packed lunch, dinner in hotel Hrauneyjar
We’ll continue our explorations in Landmannalaugar — a beautiful, rugged mountain landscape with colorful mountains. Completely submerged in the Icelandic highlands, we will have plenty of photography opportunities along the way. One of the gorgeous place(s) we will stop at is a grand volcanic crater filled with bright blue (toxic) water. We’ll have various options for exploring the surroundings and hiking to beautiful viewpoints. After a long yet rewarding day, we will have time to relax in the natural hot springs.
Accommodation: Landmannalaugar mountain hut
Food: Breakfast buffet, packed lunch. Dinner will be prepared by the guides in the mountain hut
Going even further into the highlands we’ll discover various unique and hidden features in the landscape. Hiking combined with photography lessons in a wonderful and hidden valley full of photographic opportunities. In the afternoon we’ll drive towards the coast and we spend the night in a cozy guesthouse, situated near the famous Skógafoss.
Accommodation: Guesthouse Reynir or Drangshlid
Food: Breakfast buffet, packed lunch, dinner in restaurant in Vik
After breakfast, we’ll experience walking on the pristine Solheimajokull glacier. You’ll be amazed by the surreal structures and beautiful palette of colors — photographs lie in every corner. Since we have a small group and our own glacier guide, we will be able to go off the beaten path and find interesting places on the glacier which we have all for ourselves. We’ll then snack on lunch and make our way towards Vík. We’ll stroll along the beach, listen to the birds chirp along the coastline, and marvel at the ocean. During the evening, we’ll escape for a sunset session at the Dyrholaey lighthouse; a bird paradise and beautiful vantage point
Accommodation: Guesthouse Reynir or Drangshlid
Food: Breakfast buffet, packed lunch, dinner in restaurant in Vik or Skógar
Today we get to experience the beauty that Thor’s valley has to offer. A long, yet gorgeous road brings us through multiple river crossings before we arrive at the Basar Huts in Thorsmörk — a cozy base for our explorations. We’ll have multiple photo opportunities, as Thorsmörk is a valley surrounded by glaciers consisting of many types of gorgeous vegetation. Afterwards, we’ll hike to the ‘home mountain’ of Thorsmörk alongside the slow descending sun to bathe in that gorgeous evening light. We’ll end with a well-deserved dinner in the huts with an evening editing class
Accommodation: Básar
Food: Breakfast buffet, packed lunch. Dinner will be prepared by the guides in the mountain hut
Like Game of Thrones? Today is for you. After a hearty breakfast, we’ll head out to explore a beautiful canyon and climb feet first into this wondrous landmark. Fun fact: parts of Game of Thrones were filmed here; you’ll understand why when we arrive. We’ll slowly make our way through the route to photograph the path’s interesting compositions. After lunch at the entrance of the canyon, we’ll make our way to one of the more iconic spots of Southern Iceland: the Skogafoss waterfall. We’ll be getting a PRIVATE view of this place, too. Back at the accommodation, we’ll end with an evening dinner and editing session to make some time for a night photography lesson for those interested. Fingers crossed for the Northern Lights!
Accommodation: not included
Food: Breakfast + packed lunch is provided. Ask for dinner recommendations in Reykjavik
Please note extra charges for room upgrades can accrue after the booking as the availability of accommodation is very limited.
Iceland is home to some of the most beautiful landscapes in the world. Against this backdrop, you will learn how to shoot its natural beauty, people against scale, and to capture the natural colors of the land. You’ll receive group and 1:1 feedback during the trip with plenty of editing sessions to turn a solid photo into an iconic one.
What factors do you have to take into consideration when you’re working with landscape or adventure photography? The weather is forever changing and each type of scenery adds new challenges — how do we adapt to these situations? We’ll capture stunning yet freezing glaciers, cross rivers to snap a long exposure, arise early for sunrise light, and challenge ourselves by creating original angles for iconic destinations.
How will you make your photos more compelling as a visual storyboard? How do we successfully integrate the Icelandic beauty as a background for our photo series?
Excellent composition and light are the secret sauce to taking the perfect photo. We’ll look at the light during various conditions and work on our compositions with different scenery. Iceland is known for heavy wind, rain and fog — but how do we get the weather to work in our favor and make more unique photos because of it? The ecological diversity of the Southern landscape offers a multitude of different opportunities for interesting results.
If the weather allows for it, we will try our hands on Northern Light photography. How do we prepare for shots taken at night? We’ll dive deep in the technical settings as well as practical details it takes to operate in the cold and dark.
We’ll run multiple editing sessions to perfect our photos even more. We’ll learn Lightroom/Capture One and how to balance colors, lights, and contrast to take your images to the next level.
We’ll be working, laughing, creating, and cultivating community in a photographer’s playground. We’ll wake up early to explore nearby destinations and have hours upon hours of practice with our camera. We learn by experience — by doing. We’ll immerse ourselves into our environments and capture stunning results you won’t be able to replicate anywhere else.
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