Autumn in the Lofoten Islands Photo Gallery

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Landscape stock photography: Reflections of autumn trees in Steinbakkvatnet lake, Hinnøya, Vesterålen, Norway

Photo gallery of Lofoten Islands in autumn: Click here

I’ve created a stock image gallery of Lofoten islands, Norway from September and October 2009.  Most of the pictures are from Moskenesøy, Flakstadøy, and Vestvågøy islands, with a couple from Vesterålen as well (such as the above photo of the lake).  I spent about 2 weeks at Stamsund, one of my favorite places in the world where I’ve returned to again and again since 2001 (I should probably just try and move there one of these days).  I rented a car for a couple days with a fellow traveler and Lofoten addict so I was able to get out to some of my favorite beaches at Utakleiv and Unstad, as well as the nearly tropical looking beach at Ramberg.  I also got to explore a few new areas, such as Gimsøy, where I had never previously been on my normal hitchhiking journeys through the islands.

My last few trips to the islands had always been in the late winter/early spring so I decided it was time for a change of scenery from endless snow to actually having some color in my photos.  Weather wasn’t always so good, hence the need to stay for 2 weeks just to get a day or two of sunlight and blue sky, but I think I had pretty good timing as far as the turning of the trees.  I think it’s always something magical to watch the snow level creep lower and lower down the mountains each night until one day the first big snow storm comes and turns the whole world white.

travel photographer: Scenic beach at Ramberg, Flakstadøy, Lofoten islands, Norway

Ramberg Beach, Flakstadøy, Lofoten islands, Norway

Travel stock photo: Snow covered rocky coastline at Stamsund, Vestvågøy, Lofoten islands, Norway

Autumn snow on rugged coast at Stamsund, Lofoten islands, Norway.

If you have any trouble seeing the below slide show, please let me know.

Badwater Rain – Death Valley

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panoramic landscape photography - Rainclouds over Badwater Basin, Death Valley, California. February 27, 2010

A stormy morning at Badwater basin in Death Valley national park, California.  At 282 feet below sea level, Badwater is the lowest place in the North America.  Normally the lake bed is bone dry with 1.9 inches of average annual rainfall in the valley, but this year has been an above average rain year so there is a fair bid of water flooding the basin at the moment.  In this photo though it actually looks dry due to the fact that the wind was quite strong and litterally ‘pushed’ the water away, while on the previous day this area had been submerged.

Two Vertically shifted photos from Nikon 24mm tilt-shift lends for the vertical panorama.

Racetrack – Death Valley

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Night photography at Devil's Racetrack playa, Death Valley national park, California

5 minute self portrait on a cold night under a nearly full moon out on the playa at the Devil’s Racetrack in Death Valley national park, California.   I took two seperate 5 minute exposures with the Nikon 24mm tilt-shift lens to get the ‘square’ format.  One upper, one lower.  No tricky Photoshop needed.

I had my stopwatch going to measure the exposure but since I was afraid to move my arm and risk putting it back in a slightly different location I had to count in my head as best I could. When I got to 5 minutes in my head I took a peak at my watch, 4:57, and quickly ran back to the camera.  Pretty good internal clock. I could have left the scene earlier, but some ghosting would have occurred as I was gone a greater percentage of the overall exposure, so I wanted to remain as close to the full 5 minutes as possible.

The Racetrack is better know for the ‘moving rock.’  Unfortunately, that section of the normally dry lake bed actually had some water, so I couldn’t go there as footprints last a long time out there…

Isle of Skye – Coire na Creiche

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Waterfall at Fairy Pools, Coire na Creiche, Isle of Skye, Scotland

River at Coire na Creiche, Glenbrittle, Isle of Skye.  Better known as the location of the ‘Fairy pools,’ a series of crystal blue pools of water and waterfalls flowing out of the rugged peaks of the Black Cuillins.  It had been raining for a week strait prior to my visit so the ‘pools’ were are bit more like rapids than normal, but at least I got lucky with a bit of sun on a short November day.

Waterfall at Fairy Pools, Coire na Creiche, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Waterfall at Fairy Pools, Coire na Creiche, Glenbrittle, Isle of Skye, Scotland

Kungsleden Photo Gallery

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Kungsleden mountain landscape, Singi, Lapland, Sweden

Kungsleden photo gallery: Click here

I’ve created a image gallery from my hike on the northern section of the Kungsleden trail in Swedish Lapland.  Weather was pretty bad – Sept 17 was the first day I was snowed on – so most of the pictures are of clouds.  When I go back again one of these years, I think I would like to be there for the beginning of September.  Though I was told that the autumn/winter came early last year and that it was colder than normal, so maybe I just had a bit of bad luck.  Still, it’s an amazing place so I would not complain about going back and wandering around for a few weeks.

Panoramic landscape stock photography: Mountain landscape, Kungsleden, Lapland, Sweden

Outdoor lifestyle photo - Solo hiker on Kungsleden trail, Lapland, Sweden

Haukland Beach – Lofoten Islands

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Haukland beach, Lofoten islands, Norway

Haukland beach, Lofoten islands, Norway

Brecon Beacons Winter Photo Gallery

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Pen Y Fan at dawn winter snow, Brecon Beacons, Wales

Brecon Beacons December 2009 photo gallery

I’ve uploaded about 40 new photos so far from the mountains after the snow in December.  I made a few trips up Corn Du and Pen Y Fan and once up Fan Fawr.  Recently added photos appear at the top of the gallery, which I’ll still be adding to during the next weeks as I get more photos processed.  There’s also a few old photos from 2006, you can tell which ones they are as there’s no snow.

Fan Fawr with winter snow, Brecon Beacons national park, Wales

Corn Du – Brecon Beacons

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Panoramic landscape photography: Corn Du hidden in clouds, Brecon Beacons, Wales

View from Pen Y Fan of Corn Du partially hidden in Clouds, Brecon Beacons, Wales.  December 21, 2009

Super cold and lots of snow, but the winds were calm. The clouds were slowly blowing over the summits creating total whiteouts with occasional moments of visibility. Would have been easy to get lost if I wasn’t familiar with the area.

Lofoten Islands – Flakstad

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Panoramic landscape photography: Flakstad beach, Lofoten islands, Norway

Flakstad, Lofoten Islands, Norway.

In summer under blue skies, this is a wonderful beach that is often crowded with people.  In early January it is a cold and windswept place – which is perfect for me because there are no footprints.

Nikon D700, 24mm tilt-shift lens.

Unstad – Lofoten

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Snow covered beach, Unstad, Lofoten islands, Norway

Unstad beach, Lofoten islands, Norway.

An unrelenting storm had been hanging over the islands all day, but the weather on the islands can be quite localized, so I took a gamble that the north side might have some better weather, and indeed it did.  Emerging from the tunnel to Unstad, the snow had stopped and been divereted around the mountains that surround the village.  I wish I had arrived earlier as the day was already late and darkness – and more snow – was soon to come.