Photography Guide to Iceland in Winter

Home to the largest glacier in Europe and with regular eruptions from the more active of its 130 volcanoes, Iceland truly is the land of fire and ice. And Iceland in winter is a truly special time to visit this incredible country.

The country’s rugged volcanic scenery is arguably one of the world’s finest places for landscape photography at any time of year. Visiting in winter offers the chance of a blanket of snow working its minimal magic on the landscape and weather conditions as dramatic as the scenery.

The appeal isn’t just the wintry weather. In the middle of winter, the sun only rises a few degrees above the horizon, so dawn and dusk seem to stretch for hours, and golden-hour light can last for most of the day.

Sunrise is at a much more civilised hour as well, making it hard to ignore the appeal of getting up and having a leisurely breakfast before heading out!

The weather isn’t as cold as Iceland’s name might suggest either. The Gulf Stream flows along the south and west of Iceland, keeping the winter temperatures to an average of 0°C. The wind chill can easily bring that temperature down by 10°C, though, so good winter layers are essential.

Be sure to bring wool or synthetic base layers, wool or fleece mid-layers, and windproof down or synthetic outer layers.

The biggest challenge for photographers is keeping hands warm while still being able to take photographs.

I find liner gloves thin enough to allow me to operate the camera, covered by insulated mittens (preferably the kind that fold back to reveal the fingers and thumb), to be the best combination, with some hand warmers in a pocket just in case.

Winter also has its logistical challenges. In heavy snow, some areas may be impossible to reach. Roads can be icy, weather conditions can change very quickly, and high winds can be especially hazardous.

An organised workshop may be the better option if you aren’t confident driving in wintry conditions.

Take a few sensible precautions, though, and it is still a perfectly safe time to visit. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Ensure you hire a 4WD vehicle with studded winter tyres, and make sure you have warm clothing, food and water, and a snow shovel on board in case of emergencies.
• Iceland has excellent websites for keeping up to date with conditions, so be sure to consult safetravel.is and road.is before travelling and follow the advice.
• It also has excellent mobile phone coverage, so download the apps to stay up to date.

Top Tip: One final word of warning – in high winds, always park facing into the wind so you can return your hire car with all of its doors still attached!

Now, let’s look at some of the best winter photography locations in this outstanding winter photography destination!

Read more: How to Use Cameras in Extremely Cold Temperatures

Vestrahorn

The jagged twin peaks of Vestrahorn rising steeply from the black sand beach at Stokksnes are one of Iceland’s most iconic sights. The mountain is particularly impressive when covered in snow, but it is the abundance of potential compositions that makes it so special.

The black sand dunes topped with contrasting golden grasses are a great place to start. From the highest dunes, there are wonderful sweeping views over the beach, while exploring lower down reveals pools and patterns in the sand and simpler compositions.

Head down to the wide black sand beach, and it is possible to capture perfect reflections of the mountains in the wet sand. A wide-angle lens will be needed to fit everything in, and a low angle helps deepen the reflections.

The best reflections are usually found towards the middle of the beach, but it is also worth visiting the rocks on the far side of the beach, which make a great foreground with the water swirling between them.

If there is time, the dunes on the west side of the road are worth exploring for views northwest towards Vatnajökull or back towards Vestrahorn.

Vestrahorn is in the east of Iceland, far enough from Reykjavík to be free of coach parties of day-trippers. Heading east on the ring road, the turning to Stokksnes is about 6 km past the town of Höfn on the right, just before you reach the tunnel.

Follow the gravel track for around 4.5 km to the café, where you will need to buy a ticket to use the private road to reach the beach. There is a ticket machine for when the café is closed, but if it is open, it’s a good excuse for cake and hot chocolate.

Once through the barrier, park at the end of the gravel road beside the fence around the NATO radar station.

Read more: Simple Landscape Composition Ideas with Sand Dunes

Fjallsárlón

Tucked away out of sight of the ring road, Fjallsárlón glacial lake is much smaller and quieter than its famous neighbour, Jökulsárlón, but no less impressive.

What Fjallsárlón lacks in size, it makes up for in intimacy. The glacier feels much closer here, making it a great place to use a telephoto lens for detailed shots of the ice.

With a backdrop of dramatic jagged peaks rising from the cool blue ice of the Fjalljökull glacier, the wider views are no less impressive.

In winter, the lake is often partially or completely frozen, so try looking for interestingly shaped ice along the shore or slivers of reflections for foreground interest.

Fjallsárlón is in the south of Iceland, close to the ring road, 10 km west of Jökulsárlón. Take the turning signposted Fjallsárlón, and there is a car park and café at the end of the road.

Follow the track to the left of the buildings up the hill, where the lagoon will become visible, as will the path down to the shore.

Read more: How to Improve Your Lake Photography

Diamond Beach

The almost surreal sight of gleaming ice scattered across a black sand beach, like diamonds on black velvet, is high on most people’s wish lists for a visit to Iceland, and for good reason.

There are so many possibilities for images here, from big views to details of ice textures. Using a slow shutter speed to either add a sense of movement to water rushing around the ice or to blur it into a minimal mist works well here.

As well as experimenting with different shutter speeds, it is also worth trying different focal lengths. A telephoto lens is great for isolating interesting blocks of ice against the crashing waves while getting close to the ice with a wide-angle lens can add drama and impact.

The beach is popular with tourists and photographers alike, but at dawn, it is usually quiet, and even at busier times, you don’t have to wander far along the beach to find a quiet spot.

The Diamond Beach is in the south of Iceland, 55 km east of Skaftafell. Just after crossing a large bridge, there will be a turning on the left for Jökulsárlón, and the turning for Diamond Beach is on the right.

There is a car park near the road, from which it is a short walk to the beach. There is another beach and car park on the other side of the bridge.

Read more: How to Take Long Exposure Landscape Photos

Kirkjufell

The distinctively shaped peak of Kirkjufell (Church Mountain) is perhaps the most recognisable and most photographed landmark in Iceland. Winter, with the mountain stark against a white and minimal snowy landscape, is the best time to capture it.

The classic view of Kirkjufell is from beside the Kirkjufellsfoss waterfalls, with the mountain as a backdrop. The small waterfalls fall in two layers, and both make excellent foregrounds for wide-angle shots.

Further along the path is a lagoon where, on calm days, there will be opportunities to capture reflections of the mountain or, if it is frozen, often cracked ice that makes a fabulous foreground. Try shooting in portrait orientation to really make the most of it.

Kirkjufell is on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula, just west of Grundarfjörður. There is a car park just off Route 54 opposite the mountain. The waterfalls are a short walk along the track from the car park. Just after the small bridge, a path descends alongside the stream.

The mountain is also visible from a small road to the west, and there are many views of it to the east. It looks very different from these angles, so it is worth exploring alternate viewpoints.

Read more: 6 Tips for Photographing Waterfalls

Búðakirkja

The church at Búðir isn’t the only black church in Iceland, but sitting as it does in such a solitary location on a remote lava field with a mountain backdrop, and dwarfed by the Snæfellsjökull glacier, it is surely the most photogenic.

It is another Icelandic icon that is especially good in winter, the tiny black church standing out starkly against a snow-covered landscape. It is also another spot with endless possibilities for photography.

The most obvious and easiest shot is from the car park, where the church can be positioned against the sea and a big sky, an excellent angle for winter sunrises.

Perhaps my favourite views are from the path which heads south around the churchyard and across the lava fields towards the beach. From here, it’s possible to show the scale of the church in its dramatic setting.

The path makes a great leading line, or try using rocks or grasses as foreground interest, but I would advise against using a wide-angle lens to avoid the church becoming too small.

Búðir Church is on the south coast of the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. Heading west on Route 54, turn left onto Route 574 towards Arnarstapi, and then shortly afterwards take the small left turning to Búðir. There is a car park beside the church at the end of the road.

Icelandic Horses

The stocky and hardy Icelandic horse is one of the purest breeds in the world. For over 1,000 years, no foreign horses have been imported into the country, and no horses sold abroad are allowed to return.

In winter, Icelandic horses can make a beautiful subject as part of a snowy landscape or lit by low winter light, and they can be found throughout Iceland all year round.

Photographing them is difficult to plan, as it is really a case of stopping where you see some. The challenge is their tendency to come to the fence as soon as visitors arrive!

With a moving subject, you will need a fast shutter speed to freeze any movement, so use a larger aperture than you usually would for landscapes and be prepared to raise the ISO to keep the shutter speed up.

Shooting handheld is best so you can respond faster, but don’t be afraid to experiment with slow shutter speeds to blur blowing manes, for example.

Try a variety of focal lengths and angles: a telephoto lens for portraits of individual or groups of horses, a mid-range lens for horses in the landscape, or get closer and lower with a wider lens for dramatic angles.

Please note: There will be plenty of opportunities, so only stop and park where it is safe to do so—not on the road or private property. Respect private land, and don’t feed or touch the horses, as they are valuable livestock.

Read more: 6 Essential Camera Settings for Wildlife Photographers

Photographing the northern lights

With long, dark nights, winter is an excellent time to photograph the Aurora Borealis in Iceland.

To see the northern lights, you need just three things: clear skies, no light pollution, and solar activity. Away from the few towns, Iceland has very dark skies, and the Icelandic Met Office website (en.vedur.is) has excellent cloud cover maps and a simple aurora forecast using the KP scale.

The KP scale isn’t the most accurate guide, so serious aurora hunters will check the space weather forecasts, but it is beyond the scope of this article to go into that sort of detail! If skies are clear and the KP scale shows activity, it is always worth heading out anyway.

Top tips for photographing the aurora in Iceland:

• Wrap up warm and take hand warmers – you might be out in the cold for long periods;
• Once you are in position, avoid using a torch and let your eyes adjust to the darkness;
• Use a wide lens; prime lenses are ideal as they tend to have faster apertures than zooms (at least f/2.8 is recommended);
• Focus on infinity; this is best done by manually focusing on a bright star or even on a distant object during the day, as on most lenses, the infinity symbol is often slightly out;
• Use your largest aperture (ideally f/2.8 or wider, but no smaller than f/4);
• Choose your shutter speed to suit the aurora. If it is an arc that isn’t moving, then 15–30 seconds is fine, but for dancing lights, 1–15 seconds will keep more definition in the sky;
• Finally, use the ISO to control the brightness. I usually start with ISO 1600 and adjust as necessary;
• With slow shutter speeds, a tripod is essential;
• Don’t overlook the composition. For a good aurora image, try to find a strong but simple foreground with good views to the north. With the exception of Diamond Beach (which faces south), all of the locations in this article are excellent for photographing the northern lights, as is anywhere with clear, dark skies looking north.

In conclusion

Iceland really is a paradise for photographers, and this article is obviously just a taster of what is on offer.

There are plenty of well-known locations to visit, but perhaps the real appeal of Iceland is that, with stunning views waiting to be discovered around almost every corner, there is still so much potential for original images.

With the notoriously fickle weather, these can come and go with the changing light.