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Tech cam or XF outfit - Iceland end of june

daf

Member
I though the xf was better sealed than the leica .... so might be that you get more pleasure using your M ;)


I'm still here in Iceland.

For the curious, I brought XF IQ3100 and 35LS, 75-150 D and 240LS. Mostly have shot with my Leica M10 and 16-21, 35FLE and 90/2.8 Elmarit-M due to pretty wet & windy conditions.
 

Jack

Sr. Administrator
Staff member
I'm still here in Iceland.

For the curious, I brought XF IQ3100 and 35LS, 75-150 D and 240LS. Mostly have shot with my Leica M10 and 16-21, 35FLE and 90/2.8 Elmarit-M due to pretty wet & windy conditions.
You chose wisely :)
 

bab

Active member
I live here and you just make do with what you have. I have been shooting mostly 4x5 for the last year or so, a lot of it at night in the winter with flash. Sometimes the wind blows the camera around. Sometimes it rains. Sometimes the rain gets on the camera. Life goes on. I know you are already here, but I would bring the camera you feel most comfortable with and something to cover it with or a bag for when the sideways rain starts. MJR is right that usually the photos look nicer when the weather is a little off. I think they are better when it is drifting in and out of rain, more than when it is torrential. The main thing is to be flexible. If the wind is blowing a gale and the rain is going sideways, you can either shoot from inside a car or house etc, or just wait. You have to be flexible here, as the weather can truly affect plans, particularly in the highlands. You might be just fine in whatever town you are in, but as soon as you gain a few hundred meters and get further from the sea, all bets are off. That said, late June is about as tame as we get, so I doubt you will have any big problems aside from wind or rain.
Stuart
So how is the end of August for shooting:
would you consider it ify weather and is that the month of a changing season where as the weather could hang in and be good or fall could start and is usually bad?
 

TimG

Member
I just spent 4 days driving around with my Cambo WRS setup, I went with 3 days notice as the weather looked pretty good - and it was well worth it... I'll be going back in a 4x4 camper for a longer trip later in the year when it's colder,

I'd say take your best kit, and use good judgement - chances are if it's sideways hail and rain, anything you use will get wrecked :p

One of mine, didn't get that much - but I tried to make the most of it when it happened,

WRS, IQ260, Rodie 32, 2x shot stitch (10mm horitizontal movement)

 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Very nice - I had one good light day for MF at Kirkjufellfoss and I'll post once I've removed all of the new white path cables. Boy was that place crowded at sunset although luckily 2:30am was much quieter.
 

TimG

Member
Very nice - I had one good light day for MF at Kirkjufellfoss and I'll post once I've removed all of the new white path cables. Boy was that place crowded at sunset although luckily 2:30am was much quieter.
Yeah, I'm going back in September/October for for around 10 days, I imagine the hotspots will be a bit quieter then - but June at sunset is almost impossible, I went down to Reynisfjara Beach and got plagued to death by Chinese tourists, drones, people doing cartwheels in front of me, I lasted about 2 minutes before I went back to the car :banghead:

I went right out into central Iceland on the F roads into the northern regions, there's so much to shoot out there it's beyond words, and absolutely nobody around, next time I don't think I'll bother with any hot spots, except maybe the iceberg lagoon because it's so cool. Only problem is - the larger mountain landscapes require longer lenses, so I might need to invest in a Digaron 70 or 90 before I go back, as the 32 - despite being an amazing lens is a bit wide for that type of shooting.
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
Stuart
So how is the end of August for shooting:
would you consider it ify weather and is that the month of a changing season where as the weather could hang in and be good or fall could start and is usually bad?
The end of August is a good time. You have a longer night, so the best light is at more reasonable hours, but it is still bright for a very long time. The harsher weather does not usually start until later in September, but of course, being Iceland, it could be bad in August.


"Yeah, I'm going back in September/October for for around 10 days, I imagine the hotspots will be a bit quieter then - but June at sunset is almost impossible, I went down to Reynisfjara Beach and got plagued to death by Chinese tourists, drones, people doing cartwheels in front of me, I lasted about 2 minutes before I went back to the car

I went right out into central Iceland on the F roads into the northern regions, there's so much to shoot out there it's beyond words, and absolutely nobody around, next time I don't think I'll bother with any hot spots, except maybe the iceberg lagoon because it's so cool."

TimG -- when I first went to that beach, I was the only person there. There were three people at Jökulsárlón when I first went there in March 2009, and it was completely empty in the evening. That is not even that long ago. The country has been completely transformed by tourism. While it is often empty in certain spots in the highlands, you still tend to see people as you drive or hike around. Even five years ago it was unusual that you would see people at all. I remember driving one time in the highlands in September, and I went in at Geysir and drove seven hours before I saw another person or car. I got all the way back to Mosfellsbær. This March, on that same half an hour section of road between Þingvellir and town, I saw twenty-two full size tour buses driving OUT of town between 11:00 pm and 11:30pm at night. All for northern lights tours. There is no low season anymore. If you want to be alone in nature, go to northern Canada, Alaska or Russia. Iceland is rapidly turning into Disneyland.
 

TimG

Member
TimG -- when I first went to that beach, I was the only person there. There were three people at Jökulsárlón when I first went there in March 2009, and it was completely empty in the evening. That is not even that long ago. The country has been completely transformed by tourism. While it is often empty in certain spots in the highlands, you still tend to see people as you drive or hike around. Even five years ago it was unusual that you would see people at all. I remember driving one time in the highlands in September, and I went in at Geysir and drove seven hours before I saw another person or car. I got all the way back to Mosfellsbær. This March, on that same half an hour section of road between Þingvellir and town, I saw twenty-two full size tour buses driving OUT of town between 11:00 pm and 11:30pm at night. All for northern lights tours. There is no low season anymore. If you want to be alone in nature, go to northern Canada, Alaska or Russia. Iceland is rapidly turning into Disneyland.
Yes - I do get the impression that it's being transformed by tourism, good for people's bank balances - bad for the locals and bad for nature, the one thing that surprised me was the amount of new fencing that had been erected around most of the hotspots - presumable to prevent selfie taking idiots from killing themselves, to the detriment of the landscape.

I'll admit, it's hard to moan about tourism, when I myself am a tourist, as there's an obvious irony attached to it, but still - I imagine it sucks to live in such a beautiful place that gets consumed by tour coaches, and endless people having cheesy wedding photographs on top of every landmark.

Incidentally, I went to Finland in January - that was phenomenal too, and there was hardly anyone there, I'd love to go to Russia - specifically lake Baikal, but being from the UK Russia seems a bit hostile at the moment, friends I know who've been ended up being detained by police for bogus reasons, stuff I can live without :p
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
No worries Tim. I am in the same boat. I have lived here for more than ten years, but I am originally from the US, not Iceland. In that sense I am a reformed tourist, even though I came here to work. I think in that sense it has been especially hard because I chose to immigrate based on how it was at the time, and now it is being transformed so radically. It is still wonderful to live here and there are of course still areas that have not been heavily affected, but a number of my favorite places which I discovered by chance or through lots of exploring are now ubiquitous on Instagram and travel blogs, and then they are overrun. The distance one has to go to be alone in the nature has increased quite a bit. Reykjavik itself is now quite crowded with people and traffic and half the downtown area is a construction site. It was quite a calm, small city, but that is changing. When I moved into my building for example, there were three other units, all occupied by Icelanders. Now my unit is the only one that is not a full time tourist rental apartment. The beach that you mention used to be just a beach, but they built a large cafe and tourist services building there now, large parking lots for the buses, and huge signs to prevent people from venturing out near the surf with their backs turned for selfies. Several people have died there in the last few years because they got snatched away by rogue waves.

The ropes are at many of the famous sites now as much to save the land as they are to prevent people from hurting themselves. The growing season here is only a few months and the moss in particular can take decades to regrow in area where it has been damaged. Unfortunately areas where there used to be a few hundred tourists a year now get a few thousand a day, and they simply cannot take it. I agree with you that it is a drag that they are now there, but it is a compromise between protecting the land and protecting the view. Even when the ropes are there, people routinely cross them to take selfies and get better views.

I think the kind of people on GetDPI are the best kind of tourists, and I imagine that everyone here who might come has an appreciation for the nature and culture, but it is a good reminder to step lightly and consider place you are visiting. It is the sad irony that the further we go in search of wild nature and "authentic experiences", the fewer experiences and the less nature there is to go around.
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
P.S. Here is the beach you mention in 2006 vs 2015. A keen eyed observer might see how many more birds there are in the 2006 image, but also how much poorer the highlight retention was!

2006:
reynisfjara-2006-1.jpg
2015:
reynisfjara-2015-1.jpg
reynisfjara-2015-2.jpg
 

TimG

Member
Quite a difference!

I did see the large restaurant at the beach, and others like it - almost certainly constructed to make a quick buck.

One of the striking things for me, was the hot springs out in the highlands - quite a famous picture, when I got there I struggled to see how people were getting the shot - to discover that they're going off the boardwalk and standing practically right on top of the spring to get the photo (you know the famous one) I could see many footprints around it, and bits that had broken off - it's only a matter of time until it gets ruined, or someone falls in and gets cooked in 10 seconds like they did in yellowstone last year..

Incidentally, I refused to go off the boardwalk and left with no images, although it was an amazing place - I just don't want to contribute to the damage, or have a 'get the shot at any cost' mentality,
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
Bus loads of selfie takers definitely had Jökulsárlón taken over and we didn't even bother to enter the full parking lot. Across the road with the black beach even that parking lot was pretty crowded with three coaches and numerous cars / campers. This doesn't really do justice for the crowds even along the beach - heck even the last time I was there in 2013 there were people who very nearly let themselves get stuck out on the sand bar and had to wade back through quickly building surf.

Iceland 2017_0354.jpg

I had a 4x4 camper van and was taking advantage of the late sunset / sunrise times to return later when hopefully the crowds had gone. I didn't bother returning to Jökulsárlón nor Þingvellir in the end. The southern tourist sites along the ring road were basically a zoo during daytime and even one of the other glacial pond sites further down. (Btw the restaurant facilities at Reynisfjara beach and Fjallsárlón lagoon were actually pretty decent :thumbs: so I'm not going to complain).

At the Kirkjufellfoss site we passed a line of probably 30-40 people walking back into town after sunset at 12:30 at night. Glad I missed them and only had to deal with the remaining five photographers.
 
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TimG

Member
I think next time I go to the iceberg lagoon, I'll do so when low-tide is well past midnight - 2-3am for sunrise instead, as despite it being busy at midnight, as soon as sunset was over I was pretty much left alone, but I'd agree - it's a no-go area in daylight hours, I think I can take it or leave it really - it's been done to death.

I think it's also worth pointing out, having read from some reputable sources, the Westfjords and Eastfjords are pretty much deserted most of the time, this was very much the case for me when I headed out past Hofn - I only encountered 1 or two people past there - which was surprising as the scenery was no less amazing, you also stand much more chance of getting something a little more original, as opposed to endless repeats of the same hotspot, it's also far less stressfull when you don't have a bunch of cretins walking right out in front of you all the time.

The problem with hotspot photography like that, is it can make you very narrow minded - you end up just driving between carparks, never getting out of the car to investigate or hike anywhere to find your own take on a subject - unfortunately this is how so many people operate - because it's too easy.
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
My experience this time was definitely that the western and eastern fjords were extremely scenic and far less "touristed" although I was subject to the funny lone photographer, middle of nowhere, shooting something so we better pull up too and flip out the iPhone behavior that I think most of us suffer anywhere. Weather was "changeable" or "robust" at times even in late June!

Most of the Snaefellness peninsula, with the one exception, wasn't a problem.

Back to the original question I posed, in the end having a mix of systems worked. Something high quality, portable and easy to use in rain/wind etc (Leica for me) and the medium format for when conditions were photographically conducive. I took the XF but actually when I consider the number of times that I used it I could just as easily used the Tech Cam outfit. It would had to be something spectacular for me to stand out in driving wind and rain with either of my MF systems. Of course my shooting companion found it much easier sticking to his D810 system for everything ... :facesmack:
 

Stuart Richardson

Active member
My experience this time was definitely that the western and eastern fjords were extremely scenic and far less "touristed" although I was subject to the funny lone photographer, middle of nowhere, shooting something so we better pull up too and flip out the iPhone behavior that I think most of us suffer anywhere. Weather was "changeable" or "robust" at times even in late June!

Most of the Snaefellness peninsula, with the one exception, wasn't a problem.

Back to the original question I posed, in the end having a mix of systems worked. Something high quality, portable and easy to use in rain/wind etc (Leica for me) and the medium format for when conditions were photographically conducive. I took the XF but actually when I consider the number of times that I used it I could just as easily used the Tech Cam outfit. It would had to be something spectacular for me to stand out in driving wind and rain with either of my MF systems. Of course my shooting companion found it much easier sticking to his D810 system for everything ... :facesmack:
I will admit, the weather sealing on the Leica S has been helpful in many occasions. It has also been very useful to not worry about covering the camera between shots. But for the most part I make do quite well with the Ebony and Mamiya 7 in most conditions. If it is anything more than light rain, I will not use the Ebony. I used the Mamiya once in really driving rain in October while rounding up the sheep from the mountains. It did ok when I hid it between shots and I had no electrical or sealing problems, but unfortunately there must have been water on the finder or rangefinder, and most of the photos I took turned up out of focus. All the other rolls before and after were fine, so I suspect a drop of water right in front of the finder changing the focus point. Or it could have been water in my eyes, because as I said the rain was really soaking.
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
I confess that my Mamiya 7II is probably my favorite analog MF camera. The 43mm & 65mm are awesome lenses. I never liked the longer lenses.

I still regret selling my Fuji 617 pano camera :facesmack: but my XPan II 30/45/90 keep me real from an analog perspective. Ok, TBH my F6 Nikon and AIS lenses too!! (Thank you Jack for my 50/1.2 btw!!)
 

GrahamWelland

Subscriber & Workshop Member
A sentence that sound, on one hand, very efficient, and on another, ominous...

How far should we take photography?
Luckily there was a lot of open land and it always pays to bring along a shovel for such moments. It also explains partially why I have so many camera systems and tripods as it's best not to leave any evidence behind.

:ROTFL:
 

bab

Active member
No worries Tim. I am in the same boat. I have lived here for more than ten years, but I am originally from the US, not Iceland. In that sense I am a reformed tourist, even though I came here to work. I think in that sense it has been especially hard because I chose to immigrate based on how it was at the time, and now it is being transformed so radically. It is still wonderful to live here and there are of course still areas that have not been heavily affected, but a number of my favorite places which I discovered by chance or through lots of exploring are now ubiquitous on Instagram and travel blogs, and then they are overrun. The distance one has to go to be alone in the nature has increased quite a bit. Reykjavik itself is now quite crowded with people and traffic and half the downtown area is a construction site. It was quite a calm, small city, but that is changing. When I moved into my building for example, there were three other units, all occupied by Icelanders. Now my unit is the only one that is not a full time tourist rental apartment. The beach that you mention used to be just a beach, but they built a large cafe and tourist services building there now, large parking lots for the buses, and huge signs to prevent people from venturing out near the surf with their backs turned for selfies. Several people have died there in the last few years because they got snatched away by rogue waves.

The ropes are at many of the famous sites now as much to save the land as they are to prevent people from hurting themselves. The growing season here is only a few months and the moss in particular can take decades to regrow in area where it has been damaged. Unfortunately areas where there used to be a few hundred tourists a year now get a few thousand a day, and they simply cannot take it. I agree with you that it is a drag that they are now there, but it is a compromise between protecting the land and protecting the view. Even when the ropes are there, people routinely cross them to take selfies and get better views.

I think the kind of people on GetDPI are the best kind of tourists, and I imagine that everyone here who might come has an appreciation for the nature and culture, but it is a good reminder to step lightly and consider place you are visiting. It is the sad irony that the further we go in search of wild nature and "authentic experiences", the fewer experiences and the less nature there is to go around.

This is what happened to most of the national parks in the USA these tour buses though add no real revenue to the majority of vendors they just line the pockets of a few. As Yosemite figured out slowly to allow homes for private use and to claim was not a great idea the land was made a National Park then it became over used with tourists having a low regard for the land and the animals. Now Yosemite board of directors wants to limited RETAIL and HOUSING but still they allow tons of Groups by the bus load. This only makes sense that economically a recorded message for lodging (less employees) and a dysfunctional website for housing in the VALLEY (which is always booked---because they sell out to tour groups) forcing single users to make reservations for stay outside of the park regardless how far in advance you try to book.

I remember being in Canada early morning set up and ready to make an image when two tours buses pulled up and the people ran out and jumped fencing, trotted everywhere just snap a photo and then went on their way. These people left trash, stepped all over the vegetation and some even carved their initials on trees. Most of these tours don't even go to restaurants for lunch they are provided with box lunches. again profiting just the few.

shame it is.
 
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