The magnificence of light.
Since taking up photography, I have become fascinated by light, from the soft glows that can be experienced during the golden hours after sunrise and before sunset to the dramatic moody skies that can occur as weather patterns change before and after a storm. I have also become an avid chaser of the Northern Lights, a natural phenomenon offering arguably the most spectacular displays of light in the world. Getting up early in the morning for that sunrise shot or standing in sub-zero temperatures in remote parts of Norway and Iceland waiting for the illusive Aurora to appear in the sky is not everyone’s idea of fun, but I love it! And I’ve come to realise that whilst good light makes the difference in photography, great light is simply magnificent.
Jokulsarlon, South Coast Iceland, 31 January 2020. With a forecast of low Aurora activity and cloudy skies, it was tempting to stay in the hotel that evening. But in the hope that the forecast could be wrong, I drove about 30 minutes to the Jokulsarlon Glacial Lagoon. I’d visited the lagoon earlier in the day to find a good location offering the perspective I had in mind, so knew where I was heading. After a short trek through the snow with only a head torch to guide me, I reached the edge of the lagoon. To my surprise there were no other photographers to be seen; remarkably I had the place to myself. But with heavy cloud cover and no sign of the Aurora, it made me think that perhaps the forecast was right after all. It was 6.00pm, -10C and a tad spooky as the glacial ice creaked now and again. I waited over 4 hours that night, until around 10.15 pm when gaps in the clouds started to emerge and stars appeared. Conditions were improving. And then just before 11.00 pm, the Northern Lights arrived and just got stronger and stronger, with a display that lasted nearly 30 minutes. It would be my only photograph of the Aurora on a 10 day trip but as they say, you only need one!
SCROLL THROUGH BELOW TO SEE MORE PHOTOGRAPHS
FROM THE LIGHT COLLECTION
