The Best of Iceland in the Summer

After landing at Keflavik International Airport, take the FlyBus to your hotel of
stay in central Reykjavik. Over dinner we‘ll get to know each other and go over the
itinerary of the photography adventure awaiting you. We’ll spend the night at our
Reykjavik hotel.

On day two, our adventure starts with gusto. We will leave Reykjavík for the
South Coast, a stretch lined with many of the features that make this country so
iconic. Our first subjects will be two beautiful waterfalls. First up is Seljalandsfoss, a
narrow cascade that tumbles from a height of over sixty metres. What is particularly unique about this feature is that it falls off of a concave cliff, meaning it is possible to walk behind it for some breathtaking perspectives. Its neighbour, Skógafoss, is less unusual, but equally as mesmerising; it has a very classic form, falls from the same height as Seljalandsfoss, and is much wider – up to twenty metres across after a heavy rain. If the sun is shining, it is common to see many rainbows arching from the clouds of thick spray, which rises from where the waterfall thunders against the earth. A staircase beside the falls will let you approach it from a unique angle. After spending enough time at each site composing the perfect image, we will continue on towards the village of Vík, where we will retire for the night. Before we do, however, you will have plenty of opportunities to enjoy a shooting session at Reynisfjara beach under the midnight sun. Reynisfjara, once voted one of the most beautiful non-tropical beaches in the world, is an eerie and spectacular place.
The endless stretches of black sands are haunting, the power of the Atlantic ocean
dramatic, and the surrounding geology fascinating. Particularly of note are the Reynisdrangar sea-stacks, which rise tall from the surface of the sea, said to be ancient trolls petrified by the rising sun. They make for excellent subjects; just remember to keep a good distance from the water’s edge, as the sneaker waves here are dangerous even in still weather.

On our third day of this summer photography workshop, we will return to shoot Reynisfjara and Reynisdrangar under different light. Following that, we will head to the Dyrhólaey cliffs and rock arch for some incredible landscape and wildlife photography opportunities. From a distance, the scale and shape of the arch make for a very impressive site, especially considering the seascapes and surrounding black sands. Up close, however, you will find just as many potential images to capture, as the geology here is particularly unique. You
can find, for example, hexagonal basalt columns against the cliff; these rare feats of nature are so perfectly formed they seem like they must have been chiseled by hand, and are only found in a few places around the world. Considering that this is a summer photography workshop in Iceland, you will no doubt be hoping for a moment where you can shoot puffins, and at Dyrhólaey, you will find plenty. These adorable little birds nest here in the
thousands and are surprisingly unafraid of people. They will allow us to get close enough to capture their charming faces and clumsy, endearing behaviour, and are perfect practice for the aspiring wildlife photographer. We will also have an opportunity to photograph Vík, a beautiful, quiet village surrounded by nature, including seemingly endless stretches of purple lupine fields. With our memory cards no doubt much fuller than it was in the morning, we will retire in comfortable accommodation here at the end of the day.

Today, we will head to two of the most spectacular sites in all of Iceland, located right beside each other on the eastern side of the South Coast, both within the Vatnajökull National Park: the Skaftafell Nature Reserve, and the Jökulsárón glacier lagoon. Skaftafell is often deemed a hiker’s paradise, though it has just as much to offer the avid photographer. Many of the landscapes and features that make Iceland internationally famous as a natural
haven can be found within its borders. Glacier tongues, lagoons, waterfalls, forests, rivers, volcanoes and lava landscapes will all present themselves to us, one subject after another.
We will spend a considerable amount of the day here, before continuing onto Jökulsárlón to photograph the massive icebergs that fill the great lake under the midnight sun. The opportunities to capture great images here are endless; each berg is different, each ray of light will change the composition of your pictures, and the ice is ever on the move. It is not just landscape photographers who will find this site a delight; wildlife photographers
will, more than likely, have plenty of chances to capture the lagoon’s resident seals. We will also head to the Diamond Beach, a stretch of black-sand coastline adjacent to Jökulsárlón where the bergs wash ashore after finally reaching the ocean. The contrasts between the blue ice, white surf, dark sands and vivid summer sky will make for some excellent additions to your portfolio. We will retire in a hotel in the surrounding area.

Jökulsárlón and the Diamond Beach, as noted above, are ever-changing, particularly under different light and conditions, so there is no doubt you will be very grateful to return to shoot them on day five. The beauty of this corner of Iceland could warrant days of shooting,
but there is more to see in the region, and after a few hours, you will head over to the next subject that requires your attention. Mount Vestrahorn is an ominous peak, even under the midnight sun. Jagged, barren and grey, it is one of the few gabbro mountains in Iceland, and stands out dramatically because of it. It can be pictured against the surrounding black sands, over dunes, or with epic seascapes, so we will spend a chunk of your day travelling around the Stokksnes Peninsula, finding the perfect spot to capture it from. Before retiring for our fifth night, you will have another opportunity to photograph Jökulsárlón and the Diamond Beach.

Day six will be our final day in Iceland’s south-east, and we will use it to return to any sites your group wants to photograph better. No doubt this will still include Jökulsárlón and the Diamond Beach, as the opportunities here are so many and so unique. Our local guides will also use today to take us to lesser-known spots only they and very few others know about.
These will largely be in Vatnajökull National Park, and tailored to allow us capture unbelievable panoramas of South Iceland and of the largest glacier in all of Europe.

On our seventh day, we will leave the south-east of Iceland, and head North. This journey will take us through the littletravelled, breathtaking East Fjords, where we will stop for many photo opportunities to capture its beautiful seascapes, its peaceful villages, and its abundant wildlife. After all, seabirds, seals and even reindeer can all be found in this region. Early in our journey, you’ll have another shoot at Vestrahorn but will otherwise capture what inspires us en route. The drive will be rather long, but the surrounding scenery will be ever-changing and ever impressive, and our destination, Lake Mývatn, is well worth the hours on the road. The Mývatn region has a wealth of incredible sites for you to photograph
beneath the midnight sun; there are geothermal areas, geological wonders, notorious volcanoes and beautiful stretches of water, to name a few, but worry not that we won’t be able to get through them all this evening; we will have all day here tomorrow as well.

Day eight will be spent better exploring all of the wonders that the Mývatn region has to offer. The lake itself is both serene and unusual; basalt pillars rise tall from its waters, and we never need to look far before finding a new geological subject to shoot, making for some unique landscape photographs. Wildlife photographers will also find themselves catered for, as dozens of bird species frequent the lake in summer. Pseudo-craters and lava fields dot the landscape, as do impressive structures of lava, none greater than those at the Dimmuborgir fortress. This dramatic site was used in the HBO Series Game of Thrones, and it has quite the same appeal to photographers as cinematographers. Also in the show was the hot-spring cave Grjótagjá, a beautiful little sanctuary hidden beneath the earth.
Not far from the lake, we will find the steaming geothermal areas of the Námaskar› Pass, and shoot the churning mud pools, seething fumaroles and colourful contrasts in the earth. There are also many incredible waterfalls in the surrounding area, such as the historic
Go›afoss and the tumultuous Dettifoss, he most powerful falls in all of Europe. Today will be packed with shoots beneath the midnight sun, and no doubt by this time in the workshop, you will be noticing a marked development in the quality of your photographs.

On your penultimate day of this midnight sun photography workshop in Iceland, we will get to visit a region few have the chance to in their time here: the Highlands. Iceland’s interior is vast, barren, dramatic and awe-inspiring, and the images we capture here will no doubt
be fantastic additions to your portfolio. We will leave Mývatn after an early shoot, and head down the Kjölur Highland Road. The scenery surrounding us as we travel will be more lunar than earthly, and thankfully, you will have opportunities to capture its haunting mystery.
Our main subjects in this region, however, will be the mountains of Kerlingarfjöll. These peaks are made of rhyolite, and their colouration is vivid; yellows, greens, oranges, blues and blacks fade seamlessly in with each other, and the land is cut with rivers and hot spring areas, allowing us to take some incredible images that reflect the beautiful effects of Iceland’s volcanism. After making the most of the unique and dramatic sights of the Icelandic Highlands, we will slowly make your way back to your hotel Reykjavík, no doubt exhausted but invigorated by the events of the last week.

Sadly, this will be our final day in Iceland. If we have time in the morning, we could use it to utilise your new skills with some urban landscape photography; Reykjavík has a fascinating culture, a long history, and unique architecture, so we will find many last subjects to fill whatever is left on our memory cards. When it is time, you will take the Flybus back to the airport, and depart home or to your next destination, having had a once in the lifetime experience touring and capturing Iceland beneath the midnight sun.