ICELAND
Iceland’s position between two continents, Europe and North America, makes it an interesting location for bird photographers.
In Europe, Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Harlequin Ducks, and Common Loons breed only in Iceland. Many other interesting species are relatively easy to see in Iceland, and many of them can be photographed, such as Red-necked Phalaropes, Red Phalaropes, Black-tailed Godwits, Pink-footed Geese, Greater Scaups, Great Skuas, Northern Fulmars, Northern Gannets, Gyrfalcons, and in winter, Iceland Gulls. At least for Gyrfalcons and Red Phalaropes, you must have a license to photograph at their breeding grounds.
It’s not just the fascinating species; with its expansive, nearly treeless landscapes, snow-capped mountains, and glacier lakes, Iceland is a spectacular setting for your images. The northern edge of Iceland is in the Arctic Circle, meaning that at the end of June there is light almost throughout the whole night, and because it comes from a very low angle, the quality is beautiful. June is the best time to photograph birds in Iceland—because of the light, and because of the birds. For example, at the end of June the dashing Harlequin Ducks leave their breeding grounds in the Mývatn area and head for the sea, where they are difficult to photograph.
A good road, about 1,300 km (808 mi) long, circles Iceland, and accommodation can easily be found almost anywhere. The best strategy for traveling is to fly to Reykjavík, rent a car, and go explore.
In this chapter I will highlight three areas that I have found especially good for bird photography: Lake Mývatn with its many birds, Langanes in the northeast, and in the southeast the area between the glacier Vatnajökull and the sea, particularly the glacier lake Jökulsárlón.
Driving eastbound from Reykjavík, the distance to Lake Mývatn is about 500 km (311 mi). Count on taking 8 to 10 hours for the drive so you can travel at a relaxed pace and stop to photograph whatever comes your way. Common Snipes and Black-tailed Godwits perching on fence posts along the road can prove irresistible. During the last 100 km (62 mi) before reaching Mývatn, you should see Red-necked Phalaropes on little ponds by the road, and on some of the bigger lakes you’ll probably spot the first Common Loons.
In Iceland, the Common Snipe is very common indeed (Gallinago gallinago)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 1.4x extender, 1/500 second, f/7.1, ISO 500, one-shot focus with a central focusing point, beanbag, car as a blind. Iceland, June 2006.
Lake Mývatn is famous for its waterbirds; it has 14 breeding species, and some in great numbers. Mývatn is a big lake (37 km²/14.3 mi²), but it’s only 2 m (6.6 ft) deep in the middle. The lake is also famous for its midges, which are a great source of food for many birds and a royal pain for a photographer. I recommend investing in a midge-net hat.
Some 300 Barrow’s Goldeneye and Harlequin Duck pairs, plus a couple of Common Loon pairs, breed in the area. The Harlequin Ducks prefer fast-flowing water and favor the River Laxá in particular. When you follow the river you are bound to bump into Harlequin Ducks. They are used to people fishing in the area and are actually quite trusting, so blinds aren’t necessary even for closeups.
It’s easy to see the great numbers of birds on the main lake, but it’s not so easy to photograph them. Luckily there are quite a few smaller ponds close to the main lake, and they draw a lot of birds too. Setting up a blind on the shore of a small pond is the best way to get good images, and by getting in the blind late in the afternoon and photographing through the evening and the night, until the quality of light turns hard again in the morning, you’ll get the best light conditions. You should see at least Barrow’s Goldeneyes, Common Scoters, Greater Scaups, Long-tailed Ducks, and Gadwalls. In mid-June many are still on display, so you can expect quite a few courtship rituals and battling males.
The colorful Harlequin Ducks gather together in small flocks at the end of June and move from the Mývatn area out to the ocean (Histrionicus histrionicus)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 1.4x extender, 1/1000 second, f/5.6, ISO 400, one-shot focus with a central focusing point, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Iceland, June 2006.
Harlequin Ducks aren’t afraid of the turbulent streams; they ride the surf with ease from one calm spot to another (Histrionicus histrionicus)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/1000 second, f/10.0, ISO 500, continuous focus with a central focusing point, handheld camera. Mývatn, Iceland, June 2006.
A Barrow’s Goldeneye pair in display (Bucephala islandica)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 2.0x extender, 1/250 second, f/8.0, ISO 400, one-shot focus with a central focusing point, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head, blind. Mývatn, Iceland, June 2006.
A male Greater Scaup taking off (Aythya marila)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 1.4x extender, 1/1250 second, f/5.6, ISO 800, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head, blind. Mývatn, Iceland, June 2006.
Red-necked Phalarope hunting midges (Phalaropus lobatus)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/2000 second, f/5.6, ISO 800, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Mývatn, Iceland, June 2006.
The Common Loon is quite confident with people (Gavia immer)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 1.4x extender, 1/640 second, f/7.1, ISO 800, continuous focus with a central focusing point, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Iceland, June 2006.
The Mývatn area has also some waders, Whimbrels and Red-necked Phalaropes being the most common, and the latter especially is very photographer friendly. Red-necked Phalaropes are specialized in picking up insects from the surface of the water, but they can hunt them in the air too.
On my latest trip to Iceland in June 2006, I saw one Common Loon pair in the Mývatn area, but I couldn’t photograph them because they kept their distance and favored the middle of the lake. During my fortnight, I saw six pairs without searching for them, some on smaller lakes, where they could be photographed by either calmly and quietly waiting on the shore or from a blind. Common Loons are quite trusting, and some of the ones I saw swam closer, as if they were curious to see what I was up to. The population in Iceland is estimated at 300 pairs.
A Northern Fulmar above the waves kissed with the golden light of the sun (Fulmarus glacialis)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/1000 second, f/4.0, ISO 800, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, handheld camera. Langanes, Iceland, June 2006.
Langanes
A Northern Gannet gliding in the air (Morus bassanus)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/400 second, f/4.0, ISO 640, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, handheld camera. Langanes, Iceland, June 2006.
In the northeast, big seabird colonies live on the steep westerly cliffs of the Langanes Peninsula, which extends 40 km (24.9 mi) into the North Atlantic Ocean. An unpaved, rough dirt road with enough potholes to last you a lifetime leads to a lighthouse right at the tip of the peninsula. The road is best left to a four-wheel drive vehicle. About halfway to the tip is Skoruvík, with a big seabird colony on the steep cliffs reclining almost vertically into the ocean.
The site is known especially for its Northern Gannet colony, which is one of the biggest in the world. Most of the birds breed on a separate, isolated rocky column (Stórikarl), but some of them are on the mainland cliffs. This is the only Northern Gannet breeding colony on mainland Iceland, together with puffins, Common Murres, Black-legged Kittiwakes, Northern Fulmars, and the odd Thick-billed Murres and Glaucous Gulls.
With some of the birds nesting high above the sea close to the top of the cliff, it’s possible to photograph them from the edge of the peninsula. But if you want to photograph the Thick-billed Murres and the Northern Gannets, you have to descend the cliff several tens of meters to be close enough. This requires extreme caution and nerves of steel because falling means death. I secured myself to the car with a long rope from the waist.
Jökulsárlón
An Arctic Tern hovering over a glacier lake (Sterna paradisaea)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/1600 second, f/5.6, ISO 500, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Jökulsárlón, Iceland, June 2006.
A Great Skua clutching an Arctic Tern in its beak (Stercorarius skua, Sterna paradisaea)
Canon EOS-1D Mark II, 500mm f/4.0, 1/2000 second, f/6.3, ISO 500, continuous focus with 45 focusing points, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Jökulsárlón, Iceland, June 2006.
I spent two cloudless nights at the Northern Gannet cliffs. The sun dipped below the horizon only briefly, and it was a feast of fabulous, low-angle light. From where I was photographing, I could take closeups of the nesting Northern Gannets and Thick-billed Murres and also capture Northern Gannets and other seabirds directly from above as they flew past me, with the sea below as the background.
My third favorite location is a large area, hundreds of square kilometers, that lies between the sea and the glacier Vatnajökull. Arctic Tern colonies breed there, as do Great Skuas and Red-throated Loons, plus a few dozen strictly protected Red Phalaropes.
A visit to the glacier lake of Jökulsárlón is a must. The river that runs from the lake into the sea has lots of fish, and the Arctic Terns fish actively on the lake in the hundreds, posing beautifully against the huge blocks of ice floating in the water. In the dark-free nights you can take images where the ice reflects light back onto the wings of the white terns in delicate hues of blue green.
Hundreds of Great Skua pairs breed in the area, and some of them have specialized in eating the Arctic Terns. The skuas can’t catch a tern in flight, but I got to witness one skua’s strategy. The Great Skua was circling above the terns as they were fishing, waiting for a tern to dive after a fish. As it reemerged from the water, the skua caught it by surprise. It killed the tern and flew away to a more quiet place where it could pluck its catch and feed in peace.
Great Skuas are relatively easy to photograph, but anyone coming too close to their nest is chased off with merciless dive bombing.
There are plenty of small ponds where dozens of Red-throated Loon pairs breed. The Red Phalaropes that breed in the area are under protection, and photographing them requires permission from the authorities. It’s estimated that about 100–200 pairs breed in Iceland.
The range of fascinating bird species to photograph is not the only way Iceland can lure a photographer; the wonderful sights and the volcanic soil add to Iceland’s magic.
Red Phalaropes mating (Phalaropus fulicarius)
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II, 500mm f/4.0 plus 1.4x extender, 1/400 second, f/6.3, ISO 400, continuous focus with a central focusing point, Gitzo tripod, Manfrotto 501 video head. Iceland, June 2006.