The Glow: 1/2

For those that may be tuning in for the first time, I am Joe shutter: a blogger, photographer and photo guide based in Reykjavik, Iceland. I always go the extra mile to get the shots and get off the beaten track to my special off the map spots. Ice cream comes as standard in all tours.  If you are interested in a photo workshop/tutorial whilst in Iceland, get in touch!

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This is a story of one sunset and one sunrise, and the magical light that never ceased to fall that glorious day. I was on my way to the ice cream shop (late night snack, ice cream shops close here in Iceland at 23:00 usually, and it was 22:30) and I was strolling along the shore when I noticed some steam coming from the beach, that I had never noticed before. I thought this was really odd: I have lived in this particular part of town for almost two years now and never noticed it.

It turned out to be a geothermal, hot water effluent of cleat water running straight out into the sea. It was really warm! Iceland has be one of the few places on earth that can afford such a luxury. Its these tiny reminders that keep me here, along with many other things. The warm water nourished the moss, making it an exuberant, vibrant green. There were old rail tracks, I can't imagine how old they must be, but they were probably used to move cargo in and out of boats more easily.  Vestiges of a simpler time.

This is to say nothing of the light: magical things happen when warm summer sunlight refracts through rising steam.

And then I met a gentlemen named Alejandro. He took the portrait of me seen here in the series. He came to admire the steam too: I never saw him again, but it was a nice moment that we spent together.

Anyway, here are the shots.

Photography by Joe Shutter and Alejandro.

For your enjoyment,

Joe Shutter

Little Person

This is the story of two photographers, more geothermal pawer, and one yellow raincoat. I met up with Icelandic Explorer and we took one of the roads that recently became more passable with the thawing snow. This road takes you around the back of Thingvellir National Park and around to same really cool spots, like Nesjavellir geothermal power plant. As you can see, we love our "long range telephoto little people shots", as I like to call them.

Much love to Route 1 Car Rental for getting us out and around there. The Suzuki Grand Vitara 4x4 (pictured) we got from them is such a great little runner, perfect for the unpaved roads up in the highlands too. 

Anyway, here are the shots, and here is the visual story.

Photography by Joe Shutter and Icelandic Explorer

For your enjoyment,

Joe Shutter

Sunsets

For those that may be tuning in for the first time, I am Joe shutter: a blogger, photographer and photo guide based in Reykjavik, Iceland. 

I always go the extra mile to get the shots and get off the beaten track to my special off the map spots. Ice cream comes as standard in all tours.  If you are interested in a photo workshop/tutorial whilst in Iceland, get in touch!

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This is the story of two photographers who turned a virtual meeting into a real one, and the light that followed us there.

Who doesn't love a sunset? Just about nobody, which is to say everyone loves them! On this gorgeous, warm (read 10 degrees C), I met up with fellow Instagrammer @turquoisegirlx out on the lighthouse of Grotta on the western peninsula of Seltjanarnes.

Just when I thought I had met my favourite shooting partner in Reykjavik, she goes and gets whisked off her feet on a sailing adventure to Greenland by @ollyhicksadventures. Its been so much fun keeping up with her adventure, I strongly recommend anyone who is reading this to keep track as well. She is a great photographer on a great mission. We also foutnd lots of ducklings and an immaculate Rolls Royce Silver Cloud parked by the lighthosue. Wow!

Here are the shots from our short, one-evening story. After it was all said and done, I went down to the old harbour in the centre of town to grab a few shots of the boats, and threw those in for good measure!

Photography by Joe Shutter and Emma Hall 

For your enjoyment,

Joe Shutter

Off the Map

For those that may be tuning in for the first time, I am Joe shutter: a blogger, photographer and photo guide based in Reykjavik, Iceland. I always go the extra mile to get the shots and get off the beaten track to my special off the map spots. Ice cream comes as standard in all tours.

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There is nothing I love more in Iceland than a special, little-known spot. As so many of the well-known begin to feel like "theme park Iceland", it is nice to be reminded/to discover that some things are still sacred. So it was that Icelandic_explorer and I set off to spend some quality time with a beautiful falls on the south coast. The weather was great which helped so much: its a magical thing when light and water meet. Earthly delights.

We explored, we danced, we rejoiced, we even had lunch! For one shot, I even had to take my shoes off and and cross the fast-flawing (but shallow) stream. The legs cramp immediately, and as long as you are safe, the ends justify the means.

On the way down, we also met some horses (they always like company) and found some old turf houses. Its amazing to think that for centuries, Icelanders lived in these very basic settlements, struggling against the elements all day, every day. Its amazing to consider how much easier life in this country is now today in relation to in the past. The houses are a humbling reminder.

We also found some lambs. cuteness overload. When they nurse from their mother, the tails wag really fast. I stopped the camera down about as far as it would go to get the shutter speed down to capture the motion blur. Worked out nicely.

Photography by Joe Shutter and  Icelandic_explorer 

For your enjoyment,

Joe Shutter

Chasing Waterfalls

For those that may be tuning in for the first time, I am Joe shutter: a blogger and photographer based in Iceland. 

I pass on what I learn out here through my tailor-made photo workshops and tutorials: I always go the extra ten miles (or ten hours) to get the shots and get off the beaten track to me secret locations. 

If you are interested in a photo workshop/tutorial whilst in Iceland, get in touch through my email ( joeshutter101@gmail.com ) or through my Instagram handle @joe_shutter . 

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One glorious day, a gentleman named Michael Dexter reached out to me via Instagram DM, with the charge of running some strong long exposure waterfall game for a day tutorial. 

His lovely wife Kelly was good enough to pose for us  for some situational portrait photography, but the focus was primarily landscape photography, although I did grab some candid snaps of them both too.

I went slightly mad and had a Gollum moment.  Michael Helped out that one.

Here are the results of day together.

Photography by Joe Shutter and Michael Dexter

For your enjoyment,

Joe Shutter