Stuck In Customs » Iceland

The Icy Stream Above the Waterfalls at Gulgoss

tratcliff — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 05:29:48 +0000

I did a precise measurement and approximately 59 seconds out of every minute was spent visualizing myself slipping and falling into the water, then washed over the waterfall forever. The other 1 second was spent partially slipping and feeling intense panic that everything visualized in the previous 59 seconds was about to come true.

The Orange Mold on the Churchyard Tombstones

tratcliff — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 16:23:25 +0000

When I driving randomly through the northern farmlands of Iceland, we (my camera and I) found this old church and leaning tombstones just as a storm was rolling in. I took a few shots before a zombie hand came out of the ground to grab my ankle…

The Approaching Ice

tratcliff — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:12:33 +0000

It’s closing in…

The Slaughterhouse

tratcliff — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 04:25:53 +0000

On the far northern plateau of Iceland, while walking through a field close to a set of imposing mountains and too close to an imposing storm, I came across this old slaughterhouse. It smelled of metallic blood as strange wind ripped around it before the rain came down.

The Quiet Geyser

tratcliff — Tue, 27 May 2008 04:00:04 +0000

In the never-ending sunsets of Iceland, there is this field of geysirs that erupts unpredictably. Unlike Yellowstone, there are no ropes or paths or anything… one wrong step and you are in the center of the earth!

Approaching the Blue Lagoon

tratcliff — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:49:43 +0000

The area around the geothermal baths of Iceland is covered with hundreds of acres of the hardcore sinew of the planet. It’s black, pockmarked, fresh and raw earth. This is the part of the mid-atlantic rift that happens to be above ground and these spontaneous geothermal pools appear in the wild. As I approached the blue lagoon, I found this glistening powder blue pond (no color added — promise!) with the steam of other vents in the distance.

Silent River and Deadly Storm

tratcliff — Wed, 07 May 2008 00:02:56 +0000

While driving back from northern Iceland, I came across this river as an evening storm was rolling in. I took some quick shots as little pellets of ice started to fall in my face.

Flickr People are the Coolest (nothing to do with this photo)

tratcliff — Thu, 01 May 2008 12:23:54 +0000

This was shot in the docks of Reykjavik in Iceland… some ropes for mooring the icebreakers and fishing boats.

BTW, regular blog readers may or may not know you can click on any picture to go to my Flickr site where you can get the ultra-large versions…

The Church in the Wilderness before an Icelandic Summer Storm

tratcliff — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 02:53:42 +0000

I drove from one end of Iceland to the other by myself, going down almost any road except the main one. I traveled down a little gravel road for a long way until I found this tiny church and graveyard. I jumped out to shoot this before the afternoon showers came down.

A Favorite from Iceland… Strokkur (and his genie brother)

tratcliff — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 03:32:26 +0000

Here is one of the first shots I took in Iceland. It’s of a geyser (only Icelandic word that made it into English, for some reason) called Strokkur. I think it is cool because it sounds like a sweet geyser and also like a rock band.

The second is another geyser that I think looks like a genie coming out of the bottle.

The trouble with Iceland is that there is none

tratcliff — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 02:52:21 +0000

This is a river fed by the high mountains of Iceland. I took a trek across a field on a hunch that the river would have some nice curves and reflections.

The Grassy Roof in the Central Icelandic Farms

tratcliff — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 22:00:50 +0000

While driving from one side of Iceland to the other in what was supposed to be winter, I spent a fair amount of time in the grassy inlands where some sort of heat inversion kept the ground green and fertile. I came across a few of these homes with these thick peat grassy rooftops.

The Blue Calcite Stream Near the Geothermal Event

tratcliff — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 02:22:31 +0000

Regular visitors to my stream or blog know that I do not add any colors to photos. I use all the natural light and photos that are really there. HDR certainly enhances them…

I found this spot while driving around lost in the south of Iceland while trying to find my way to the Blue Lagoon. This deep milky blue color is all over tiny streams and rivulets that bubble up everywhere across the rocky landscape.

The Fjord at Sunset with Beaming Rays Through the Valley

tratcliff — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 02:52:13 +0000

The sunsets in the northern fjords of Iceland seem to last for hours. The sun does not go straight down, but it skips across the top and through the valleys of mountains as it slowly makes a sloping descent.

Fixer Upper

tratcliff — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 20:23:57 +0000

This place is available for only a few ISK and it’s begging for some of that Scandinavian furniture with clean lines.

Icelandic Horse, Stuck in Textures

tratcliff — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 23:58:30 +0000

I’ve retouched one of my older photos from Iceland of this cool horse near a fjord. I’ve been working at night on my next tutorial, which should be complete by Saturday this week. Below is an example of a fairly heavy but moody treatment.