Iceland's highland region of Landmannalaugar is notable for the spectacular rhyolite mountains, valleys and hills. It is also known for several surrounding lava fields. For photographers, these features make for spectacular subjects, but a good photograph has a good subject and great light, and Landmannalaugar is also well known for the spectacular light that can be experienced. After quite an amazing trek up Blahnukur, we explored the adjacent lava fields, and found several vistas showing both the hills and fields, but the light in this vista really took my imagination. It was simply spectacular. An all day trip to Landmannalaugar allowed time to explore, and you really need to be able to take the time and let the light conditions progress. No need to rush.
The first time I saw images of Iceland's Vestrahorn I knew that I had to visit and photograph this magnificent mountain range. It is simply one of the most spectacular ranges right on Iceland's south eastern coast. Vestrahorn is quite accessible from the nearby town of Hofn, and makes for stunning sunset photos in any (every) season. Vestrahorn requires a wide lens—this images was made with at 8mm on my m43 camera (16mm FF equivalent). Alternatively it is a great scene for a panorama. In fact, if you wanted to get any closer to the range you would need to go pano unless you have a super-wide angle lens.
Perhaps one of the most iconic mountain images in Iceland is Kirkjufell. I revisted the site on several occasions over our three days in Grundafjordur, and was rewarded with several beautiful variations. While I am sure that this is far from the best image of this icon, it is perhaps my best image of a wonderful scene. The icons are iconic for a reason, and I love the challenge of capturing an image that takes me back to the experience.
This oft-photographed tree lies on the southern outskirts of Canberra. With the city lights behind you, and a clear view to the south, this can be a great spot for shooting the Milky Way, star trails and perhaps aurora australis.
With the sun set for the day, the crowds along Darwin's shoreline had begun to go home, but some people stayed to enjoy the 'blue hour', a time when the sky provides some magical colour - if you keep an eye open for it. Or a lens….
This image is a composite of three images made while the camera was on a stable tripod, with each image being quite a long exposure, and then processed in Aurora HDR software.
The effect of the long exposures is to render a silky smoothness to what was actually a slightly choppy sea.
The blue hour is a great time for photography - different that the golden hour that occurs on the other side of the sun rise/set, and shooting both can provide some interesting variety in the space of a couple of hours.
The Tenryuji Temple in Kyoto’s Arashiyama area is a peaceful temple complex with spectacularly beautiful gardens. The ponds provide stunning reflections, and in the bright middle of the day light, I found that eliminating sky and focusing on colours and the reflections made for stunning images. This is a great complex that is worth spending time exploring and finding images that talk to you. ‘Serenity’ was that message that I took from the Tenryuji Temple and gardens, and this was the feeling I was aiming to evoke in my images.
