Yttersand – Lofoten Islands
Photo: Yttersand, Lofoten Islands, Norway. Oct. 2011
Despite appearances of a pleasant sunny day, it was raining 6 minutes after I too this image.
Utakleiv – Lofoten Islands
Photo: Low tide and stormy skies at Utakleiv beach, Lofoten Islands, Norway. September 2011
Utakleiv is one of the places where I can return to again and again and always find something new. The only thing that I never seem to see there is the sun. I’m sure it does shine from time to time, just not whenever I happen to be around. As much as I would like to take a photo of the bright sand and crystal blue water with a nice sky full of puffy white clouds, I think this will always remain hidden from me.
So I must be content with the dark, moody days at Utakleiv. Always watching the sky to see how much longer I can shoot until the next rain shower arrives and I’m completely soaked. Waiting for a lull in the wind so I can hopefully get a sharp image. Timing the waves so I can stand right on the edge of the sea and not walk away with wet feet (though I often do).
I think I work best under these conditions, on the edge of the elements. Bad weather makes good photos I keep telling myself, perhaps hoping that if I say it enough it will become true. And perhaps to keep my mind from wandering to a warm fire and hot cup of tea as I stand there cold and wet waiting for light that may never arrive.
Here’s a few images from a couple different days in Sept/Oct.
Lofoten Islands – Autumn 2011 Photos
Photo: Dark skies over Vestfjord, Stamsund, Lofoten Islands, Norway.
—-CLICK HERE— To go to the Lofoten autumn gallery.
It’s taken a few months, but I’m finally getting a few photos online (60 so far) from my Sept/Oct trip to the islands. I’ll keep updating things over the next weeks as well, so keep checking back!
Overall it was quite a stormy, yet warm autumn. Often there was a southwest wind which brings an awful misty rain much of the time, especially on the days I was hoping to go out camping. Overall, Norway had the warmest November in 111 years. There was one brief night of snow a week into October, but nothing like the cold I experienced in 2009. So no pics of nice snow capped mountains this year.
I found myself struggling against wind and mist or rain nearly every day, often with only brief moments of better weather. A few days into the trip a big gale arrived that cleared most of the trees of their leaves, leaving the forests mostly barren and ugly looking. This led me to have a greater focus on seascapes that I was originally intending, but that is how it goes in the north. And despite the weather, I still managed a fantastic afternoon up on Reinebringen and on my last night conditions were near perfect for shooting the best Northern Lights that I’ve seen thus far.
I often get asked for info about travel and photography on the islands. My best piece of advice is to give yourself as much time as possible, the islands need lots of it.
Photo: Hiker on Reinebringen with Kjerkfjord in background, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Germany – Frankenjura Bouldering Day 2
Photo: Bouldering, Frankenjura, Germany. Nov 2011.
…Continuing from yesterdays bouldering pics. Here’s fotos from day two. We found a cool looking boulder, that while not especially difficult (though conditions were crap), made for some good photos I think. Again, I used an off-camera flash most of the time, which on a few pics almost makes it look like a nice sunny day instead of cold and misty.
Germany – Fränkische Schweiz Bouldering
In the final days of November I found myself back in the old familiar landscape of the Fränkische Schweiz. Once my back yard, the rock towers, lonely valleys, high cherry orchards, and dark forests still remain familiar to me after the passage of the years. The days were short and cold, a heavy gloom coating the land. German Gray I once called it, and I still keep this opinion. Anyone who’s been there would agree that this is an appropriate description. More than just a color, it is a feeling that fills the land in the cold months.
I was lucky to be with a few friends and head out to shoot some bouldering sessions on a couple days. Here’s a few images from the first day, near Pottenstein. Light in the forests was pretty much non-existent, so I had to use my SB-800 as an off camera flash to add a little light to the scenes.
Northern Lights Over Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Northern lights fill sky over Lofoten Islands, Norway.
October 8, 2011. It was my final night after another two weeks on the Lofoten islands. There had been a couple minor displays of the northern lights but for the most part these nights were cloudy and stormy, blocking any aurora that would normally be visible. Finally on my last night the conditions seemed perfect; clear sky and only a calm breeze. As the hours of darkness passed I would take a look outside in hopes of aurora. 8:00, nothing. 9:00, nothing. 10:00, nothing. 10:30, a bit of something! Fingers crossed.
By 11:00 the night sky was filled with the best aurora that I’ve ever seen. Horizon to horizon, the whole sky was dancing with light for a full hour. I stood out on the edge of the sea, waves gently crashing ageist the rocks, and photographed into the night. And it was one of those moments I wished I had 20 arms and 10 cameras, as there was so much going on I didn’t know where to point my camera first. Needless to say, it was a good farewell I was given by the north.
Photo: Aurora Borealis over mountains of Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Aurora Borealis over mountains of Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Northern Lights fill sky, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Photo: Northern Lights in sky over rocky coastline at Stamsund, Lofoten Islands, Norway
Mount Rainier
Photo: Mount Rainer at dawn from Reflection Lake, Mt Rainier national park, Washington.
I know better than to show up in a national park without a campground reservation on a Friday, but I had to be back in Portland on Saturday so I didn’t have much of a choice. I thought that by arriving pretty early there might be something available, but nope, the whole place was reserved. Oh well, I guess I’d worry about sleeping options later and so I headed up to Paradise to do a bit of hiking. The perfect summer weather and seeing a few climbers coming down off the mountain made me wish I’d brought my gear with me, but without a partner there wouldn’t be much I could do anyway. So I had to content myself to wandering around with the crowds of tourists on the hiking trails.
Sunset was boring and uneventful. And anyhow, summer is not a good time for the south side of the mountain as the sun sets too far to the north for any good light. I headed off to the overnight hiker parking to sleep in my truck for the night and hopefully not to get a ticket from a ranger. As the morning arrived I ended up at the Reflection Lakes, along with every other photographer in Washington state. My jaw kind of dropped as I pulled up alongside the 10-15 cars already there in the morning darkness, and which continued to show up for the next hour. I’m pretty unfamiliar with the Rainier area, but it looks like I must have found the place to be. Sunrise was also pretty boring and after an hour of so of getting eaten by mosquitoes it was time to head south towards Portland.
Photo: Crescent moon in Reflection lake, Mt Rainier national park, Washington.
Photo: Mt Rainier from near Paradise, Mt Rainier national park, Washington.
Bandon Beach – Oregon
Photo: Outgoing tide at dawn, Bandon Beach, Oregon.
Tuesday morning. My alarm goes off a little after 5 am. I murmur a small curse and then lay my head back on the pillow, contemplating whether to get up or not. I haven’t yet made the decision to go home or not, but checking my route the evening before, I had 830 miles to go. I figure a bit more sleep could be useful if I’m trying to go that far in one day. Then I come to my senses: don’t be lazy Cody! This is what you are here for.
The one benefit of sleeping in the back of my truck is at least I don’t have any sort of camp to take down. From the alarm going off to heading out of the campground can usually be accomplished in only a couple minutes. And so I was on the road, for the 30 minute drive to Bandon.
I’ve passed through Bandon a few times over the years, but never at any time or under any conditions for decent photos. I remember it as a cool looking place, often with crashing waves and an endless assault of lens covering sea mist sweeping across the beach. As I arrived in the predawn of tuesday things seemed calm and the intermittent blasting of the fog horn was the only disturbance to the peace. The sky was somewhat overcast but as time passed the clouds began to clear until finally a pink glow filled the sky out over the sea. I also got lucky with a low tide and a footprint-less beach.
14 hours later, I was back in Santa Barbara. Exhausted, but glad I didn’t sleep in.
Photo: Pink glow at sunrise, Bandon beach, Oregon.
Rialto Beach – Olympic National Park
Photo: Sunset at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
For the last couple weeks I’ve been on a road trip up north. Most my time was spent visiting friends in Portland, as well as a few days a bit further north in Washington. I had been to Rialto beach a few years back and I remembered it being a pretty cool place. The entire beach is covered in the most massive driftwood I have ever seen, ancient trees up to 6 feet in diameter and a hundred feet long. I can hardly imagine the power of the storms that deposited the trees there, but it must have been a sight. In summer things are a bit calmer, but I think it is still one of those places where the wind always blows and the waves always crash with a bit more fury than down here in California. I got a bit lucky with a somewhat decent sunset on my first evening. My second day was mostly thick fog, that while not especially photogenic, seems quite fitting and appropriate for a place like Rialto.
Photo: Sunset at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Photo: Sea stacks and incoming tide at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Photo: Sunset at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Photo: Sunset at Rialto Beach, Olympic National Park, Washington
Making Plans for Europe
Photo: Autumn storm over Vestfjord, Lofoten islands, Norway
For whatever reason, it’s been a pretty stagnant and boring summer (and year for that matter) for me so far. I’ve hardly been able to get out of Santa Barbara and other than a few commercial assignments, I haven’t even touched my camera in months. I’ve been trying to put something together for several months now, but I always seem to run into some sort of setback.. Finally now it seems I have somewhat of a haphazard travel plan materializing.
With Luck I should be back on the Lofoten islands around the last week of September. It’s not exactly under the conditions I had hoped, to move there with a work visa. But if I can manage to find a flat to rent, at least I’ll be able to continue with the application process. If not, it might just forever remain an unfulfilled dream. I know its a bit late in the year and I’m hoping autumn waits for me, but other engagements keep me here until then. I had also hoped to hike another section on the Kungsleden or perhaps wander around Sarek national park in Sweden, but that will have to wait another year unfortunately. So I’m looking at some other hiking options that I might be able to manage in October. Been thinking about maybe crossing the High Tatra mountains from Slovakia to Poland, or perhaps something in Austria or Switzerland. I Mainly just have to see how early the snow arrives and decide from there. Otherwise I think I’ll pay another visit to Stockholm on the way down from Lofoten and maybe Copenhagen. Then visit some friends in Germany and perhaps some old places in Czech Republic that I really like. Hopefully I’ll catch some Christmas markets before going to Wales in early December or so, where I’ll stay a few more months. As much as I seem to travel, it’s really been over 4 years since I did any proper ‘backpacking’ in the Euro sense of the word: hostels, trains, buses, hitchhiking, cities, etc. I almost feel a bit nervous about it.
Photo: Empty stockfish drying rack, Lofoten islands, Norway
Photo: Scenic beach at Ramberg, Flakstadoy, Lofoten islands, Norway
Photo: Snow covered rocky coastline at Stamsund, Vestvagoy, Lofoten islands, Norway
Seasons On Lofoten Winter eBook
Seasons On Lofoten Summer eBook
