Iceland Travel Photography Guide

Logistics

Getting There

In this guide I will cover the basics of food, lodging and transportation in Iceland as well as location specific photography advice. Most international flights go to the capital of Reykjavik on the southwest coast though there are two other airports in the north and east of the country.

When to Go

Iceland has every season you would expect and there are different things to do and see depending on when you go. In the summer, for example, you won’t get to see snow but you can access the Highlands which is the rugged interior of the country with many hikes and interesting things to see like the colorful hillsides and geothermal hotspots. You’ll also experience very long days and the Midnight Sun which is when the sun barely sets. In the fall you’ll get classic autumn colors and the beginning of aurora season which is end of September to March. Winters can be beautiful but harsh because snow is added to the general unpredictability of the weather and the days are very short getting to the point of 24 hours of dark in the winter solstice. If you visit in the winter it’s recommended you go at the beginning such as November or towards the end in February. Spring can be nice though you are somewhat caught between the snow melt and the greening of the landscape so the landscapes might not look strongly like either season and I would recommend either early summer or late winter instead.

Driving

Getting around Iceland is quite easy as there are paved roads that circumvent the entire outside of the island which are the inhabited regions. My recommended method would be to rent a 4x4 vehicle or camper van as opposed to taking bus tours because it will dramatically increase the flexibility of time and scheduling if you plan to shoot these locations at early or odd hours. Cars are cheapest at the airport and although most people can get by with the rental car insurance offered by their credit card company in regular countries, in Iceland it is required to get one of two levels of insurance covering gravel and dirt damage as well as wind. Iceland is a land of extremes weather and depending how far off the main roads you venture it might be a good idea to err on the side of caution. In the non winter months you probably won’t need a 4x4 for heavily snowed roads but you might want to visit the Highlands (which I haven’t done yet) and that definitely requires a heavy vehicle or taking a special lifted off road capable bus. The roads are relatively easy to drive during most of the year with the exception of winter. Ring Road somewhat circles the entire island excluding some of the east and West Fjords and Snaefellsnes Peninsula. Theoretically one could drive it in about 16 hours but that’s of course without making any stops. The most popular route taken by tourists is The Golden Circle which leaves Reykjavik and passes by a few National parks as well as the Geysir and the Gullfoss waterfall. When I was in Iceland I personally based out of a hostel in Reykjavik for a few days as I drove out to the locations in the south then moved to a hostel on the Snaefellsnes Peninsula for the next few days while I visited that area as well as a trip up to the Westfjords. Your one uncontrollable expense will be gas which runs about 7 to 8 dollars a gallon so planning the most efficient route is key although when you’re trying to make a certain location in time for an epic aurora forecast any thoughts of gas prices can be quickly forgotten. A side note here if you plan to drive around the whole island is that before deciding if you want to go clockwise or counter clockwise based on what you want to see first take a look at the weather forecast for each region in the next few days. Cloud cover varies regionally and I made the mistake of going counter clockwise by default and ended up getting caught in a storm and having to skip ahead of my itinerary just to escape the weather.

Lodging

For lodging there are options for every budget but I settled for booking hostels the first time which I ended up regretting because we had to make the drive back to base at the end of each day. The second time around I decided to rent an SUV with a roof tent and so I was able to drive around the island one and a half times staying at campgrounds along the way. As long as it isn’t too cold or windy the roof tent works great but if you decide to go more in the winter I would suggest a enclosed campervan. Campgrounds are $20-30 a day, require no reservation, and have all the facilities you need. If you plan to circumvent the entire country this is what I strongly suggest doing and it can be done in about a week making frequent stops to see the many beautiful locations. Technically you’re required to stay in a campground by law rather than stopping and camping anywhere but if you get caught in some bad weather or a long drive and there isn’t a campground nearby it’s pretty unlikely you’ll get stopped and given a ticket for rogue camping.

Food

Food is also prohibitively expensive even when eating at the gas station diners where a sandwich and soup or a slice of pizza can run you at least $15. I tend to lean to more budget oriented methods when it comes to my travels so my food habits comprised of batch cooking at the hostel combined with heating up canned and packaged food with my portable burner. Additionally I ate an obscene amount of home made sandwiches while out and about. Even with this method groceries are on the expensive side but this is still definitely the cheapest option. Now, on with the locations:

Geysir

The geyser known simply as “Geysir” is an hour and a half drive from Reykjavik. Being a rather open area this is a great spot for sunrise photos. Some classic shots include getting the sun behind the spray as the geyser explodes as well as close up shots with a fast shutter to catch the water bubbling upwards. Technically the geyser that erupts is called Strokkur and it does so every 5 to 7 minutes so you have plenty of opportunities to grab a shot. Drones are prohibited here and there are signs warning against flying. 

Skogafoss

Moving on to the southern coast of the country we find some of the most well known and visited locations. Skogafoss is an almost 200 foot tall magnificent waterfall. It lies about 2 hours from Reykjavik and is a great spot to hit at sunrise before the crowds arrive. There are some shots to be made at the base of the waterfall as well as at the top. Some classic angles are a wide shot with the rainbow as the sun reflects in the spray and also using a lens with a long focal length to shoot yourself at the base of the waterfall with the water filling the entire frame. I also found a nice composition low to the ground using the rocks and stream to lead up to the waterfall. Drones are prohibited here unfortunately. There is also another hidden waterfall nearby called Kvernufoss. Next to the museum there is a small path that leads to a river which can be followed all the way up to Kvernufoss. I’ve seen creative compositions made here using the river as a leading line but when I made the hike the wind was so strong it could practically blow you off your feet. The cool feature of this waterfall is the ability to take a photo from behind the water. Depending on the time of year I’ve seen shots of the sun setting and the golden light shining through.

Seljalandsfoss

On the way to Skogafoss are a couple of other famous waterfalls worth seeing. Seljalandsfoss is a large waterfall that you can also walk behind. It’s a little more wet than Kvernufoss so taking photos is tricky and a weather sealed camera is definitely necessary. Here you can get a similar shot with the sun setting through the waterfall depending on the time of year. A short walk away is Gljufrabui, a hidden waterfall that I must admit I missed thee first time but I visited it on my second trip. From the outside you can’t really see it but there is a trail that wades through the water to reach the base of the waterfall. If you going during midday there’s usually a line of people waiting to take a photo and when you make it in be sure to bring lens clothes and a weather sealed camera because it’s soaking wet in the canyon with all the water vapor. While driving to Diamond Beach at night I noticed that Seljalandsfoss has a large light shining on it and with the proper exposure one can get a perfectly lit nighttime waterfall shot with reasonable exposure settings.

DC3 Plane Wreck

Continuing along the main road eastwards the next iconic location is the DC3 Plane Wreck also known as Solheimasandur. This is definitely something you might have seen on instagram. You will see a small parking lot with a path leading off into the distance. Depending on how many vehicles in the parking lot one can gauge how busy the site will be. When the tour buses pull up you can guarantee that getting a clean shot of the plane sitting alone will be difficult. It is obviously busier during the day but makes for a great photo at sunrise, sunset or during the auroras. Keep in mind that the walk can take up to one hour even if you try to run it which I did in order to make sunset. You won’t be able to see anything in the distance until you are upon it. If you are arriving before dawn or leaving after sunset there are reflective markers along the path to guide you. Climbing on top of the plane is allowed but I believe it’s just a matter of time before someone hurts themselves and it becomes prohibited.

Reynisfjara

Reynisfjara is also known as Black Sand Beach due to the fact it has black volcanic sand. This beach is right before the town of Vik and has two sides to it separated by a cliff face that can sometimes be crossed if the tide is low and the waves not too powerful. Key features here are the sea stacks slightly off shore, a cave, and the beautiful basalt cliffs. On windy days this can be a challenging location to shoot as the wind will send stinging sand flying and it can be quite painful not to mention damaging to camera gear. There are opportunities for great sunset and sunrise shots here as well as drone footage. As you’re driving in you’ll pass one of the many classic Icelandic churches and while the weather wasn’t the best when I went on my second trip I got a decent moody shot. On the side of the beach next to Vik there will be mostly sharp cliff faces however there is a beach at Vik from where the sea stacks are visible. On this beach are some interesting compositions to be found using the grass that grows along the water as foreground elements.

Jokulsarlon Lagoon/Diamond Beach

Diamond Beach is also known as Jökulsárlón and as mentioned before lies about 6 hours drive from Reykjavik. It is once you start making your way to these locations closer to the east coast of the island that it becomes more convenient to travel by campervan or find lodging nearby. This was the location I was most excited about having seen the iconic long exposure shots of the receding water on a chunk of ice at golden hour sunrise. Diamond Beach has 3 parts to it. After crossing the bridge there will be a parking lot to your left where there’s a lagoon filled with icebergs and reportedly sea lions. These icebergs break off and are washed out to sea where they break into smaller chunks and wash up on the beaches before and after the bridge. Depending on the time of year and ocean conditions you might have more luck with one verses the other but I found the beach after the bridge was less densely crowded with ice blocks and thus I was able to get my desired shot. This is definitely a sunrise location as it faces east but I made some creative shots during the aurora on the beach and over the lagoon.

Ice Caves

Various ice cave tours leave from the Jokulsarlon Lagoon parking lot at different times of the day. I was lucky that the last day of my trip coincided with the first day of ice cave season which is usually from November to February. I booked a tour with Guide to Iceland and it cost $155. I learned that the majority of the magnificent ice cave photos you’ll see on the internet are from this large famous cave known as Crystal Cave. Unfortunately due to the melting glacier access to the Crystal Cave was closed off 2 years ago and since then the larger tour companies have resorted to finding cracks in the glacier and sort of opening them up and shaping them with chainsaws. The ice then melts and makes the pitted look on the walls. You still get the full ice cave experience and the the number of ice caves you visit will depend on what time of the season you go and how many caves they have found. Additionally from what I have seen on instagram there are locals that offer special ice cave tours and they are more resourceful in looking and finding caves and you can find some quite large caves if they are lucky. The tours take you from the parking lot to the glacier in large lifted 4x4 trucks and provide you with the necessary crampons to walk on the ice. It is not allowed neither recommended that you try to find or visit ice caves on your own.

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Studlagil Canyon

This is a spot that has become popular in the last couple of years through social media. Apparently a few years before that it didn’t even exist because the water levels were higher and covered up all the canyons. A power plant was built upstream that diverted some of the water and thus revealed these beautiful basalt canyons. There are two sides to Studlagil Canyon, the east and the west bank. The west bank can be driven to the whole way by car and you simply look for signs to the farm Grund until you reach a parking lot and walk down to the high end of the canyon edge. The east side is the one I visited and you can make it all the way down to the waters edge for that classic instagram shot and it’s definitely worth the effort. To reach the east bank you follow the signs for the farm called Klaustursel, park at the parking lot and hike the trail for 2 to 2.5 hours until you reach a field and a path leading to the waters edge below. On the hike there you’ll see a small but nice basalt cliff waterfall that’s definitely photoworthy. There are a few angles at the east side if you explore up and down the water’s edge but be careful because it can sometimes be slippery. You’ll notice some of the photos online have a turquoise blue water while some have brown and this has something to with the water they’re diverting so in the summer and autumn it turns brown. Studlagil Canyon is very condusive to drone photography and video a well.

Dettifoss

Dettifoss is a large and powerful waterfall which is in fact the most voluminous waterfall in all Europe and was featured in the opening scene of the movie Prometheus. It’s located on the north of Iceland and has two sides with an hour drive to each so you’ll have to decide which one you want to shoot in advance if you’re trying to make a sunrise or sunset. The east side was the one from the movie and you can get closer to the water. I also happen to think it’s the better angle which is why I was frustrated to find out when I visited I had gone to the wrong side. It appears there’s less water vapor on that side though it might have just been the wind that day and the only downside I could tell was in shooting sunset you will be shooting into the sun but would work out great for an afterburn. The west side that I visited has opportunities for a wide shot of the massive amount of water from the bottom of the trail or a wide shot from the top of the viewing platform though in either location you will be guaranteed to get wet so have lens cloths ready. This made it frustrating for any time lapses I had set up so the only shot I took that I somewhat liked was the classic long focal length shot from the viewing platform with your subject standing near the waterfall exaggerating the size of the water for effect. I would imagine that this makes for a good sunrise and aurora location but I got unlucky with the weather and it was clouded over at night. There are a couple more waterfalls a short hike away which are part of the same river, one is called Selfoss which is accessible from the east side towards the south and Hafragilsfoss which is further up north.

This concludes my guide to epic locations in the great country of Iceland. I plan to visit at least once a year because of the variety of photos that can be shot in the different seasons. Linked below is the video version of this guide, behind the scenes vlog from both my trips, as well as the cinematic travel film and mini documentary about my expedition to shoot the northern lights.