Photography
Autumn may not be on your mind now that spring is just around the corner here in the north, but I find this time of year a bit dull; the light is harsh and the snow looks grey and dirty. I just needed a splash of color.
Back again after being more or less offline for various reasons over the past week. Here is an image I shot last summer. I enjoy the winter season and the light we get around mid winter, but I have to admit that I am looking forward to the summer season now.
A few more straws which caught my eye. I really like the textures and patterns created by the criss-crossing straws.
Winter can be very nice, but I needed a little hint of summer. I shot this image last summer. I was setting up the tripod and the camera when I noticed the bumble bee lifting from the flowers on the left. What I wanted was to have the bee on the flowers or near them. But after waiting for quite some time I gave up and settled for this one.
This is one of shots from the final day of the PhaseOne PODAS workshop in Iceland. We stopped to shoot a waterfall, but I found this scene more interesting. Near the top of the mountain ridge basalt columns, the ever present sign of volcanic activity, form amazing patterns. To me this is the cliché of the rural part of Iceland I have visited - mans presence dwarfed by the overwhelming nature, shaped by volcanic activity and worn down by the forces of the weather.
PhaseOne 645DF, IQ160, Schneider Kreuznach LS 80mm f/2.8 - f/10 at 1/80s
“I photograph to see what the world looks like in photographs”
Hóf is a small community east of Skaftafell on the southern side of Vatnajökull. The church's construction is a bit special. Two of the walls are made from chunks of peat, and the other two from planks; while peat was a cheap, readily available building material, wood was quite the oposite. According to my guide book the, church was built in 1883 and churches like this used to be quite common in Iceland. Today there are only a few left.
M8, Summicron 35mm, f/5.6 at 1/750s, IR filter and lens flare
Here is an image from a couple of years back. It was bitterly cold and ice crystals form from a fog that rolled in. The ice crystals covered the ground like a dry powder which reflected the sunlight in a fascinating way.
Here is another shot from the Iceland PODAS workshop. I posted an image of Vik church on 6 December last year. It was taken from a different angle and with an 80mm lens. This is taken with a 300mm lens, and the impression is quite different. The narrow angle of view of the telephoto lens "compresses" the image; most of the hillside behind the church can also be seen in the image I posted on 6 December.
PhaseOne 645DF, IQ180 and a 300mm (curtesy of Peter Eastway) - f/5.6 at 1/320s