Iceberg Reflections GL6153
Had a rare opportunity to tag along on a dog-sled expedition in northern Greenland and we camped on the melting edge of the Arctic Ocean's ice shelf near t...
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Had a rare opportunity to tag along on a dog-sled expedition in northern Greenland and we camped on the melting edge of the Arctic Ocean's ice shelf near this behemoth beauty. The water was so calm, clean and pure that it reflected everything around it with it's deep blue hue mirror.
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Apr, 2017Views
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Behind The Lens
Location
While I was stationed in northern Greenland with the Air Force, I had a rare opportunity to join several Inuit hunters on their search for food and materials. We traveled via dogsled for a couple days to the point where the thick ice blanket over the Arctic Ocean became a serene mirror of open water. We "parked" near this massive iceberg, where we setup camp. I grabbed the camera when I saw the wonderful reflections off the still water.Time
I don't recall now what time of day it was, as it was late Spring, and we already experiencing 24 hours of daylight.Lighting
I circled around the iceberg, getting a number of shots from different lighting vantage points. In some cases, the shadow offered a gloomy, yet cool effect; but ultimately I went with the sunnier side, which yielded more reflections on the surface of the water.Equipment
I was still in the early stages of learning photography (and honestly, in this environment, I had not much else to do, so boy did I learn!), so I had an early model digital Fuji FinePix, which offered rudimentary manual options to experiment with. I had my tripod, and luckily also had spare batteries (the cold weather kept killing them off after 20-30 minutes; though after having them tucked in my inner jacket for a while, they regained some charge to help me continue with the shots!).Inspiration
The inspiration presented itself by chance - we could have ended up anywhere else along the ocean's open waterfront, but we wound up here, and I'm glad we did! I have another photo somewhere showing the immensity of the iceberg using a friend as a point of reference standing near it. It truly was awesome to behold!Editing
For this image in particular, I took 3 shots to achieve a panoramic view, and later "stitched" them together. My first attempts with older software didn't come out as well, but with today's technology, you can't even tell there were separate images. In addition to the stitching, I adjusted the highlights a bit (taking the overexposed face of the iceberg down a couple notches to allow the cracks to pull forward a bit), and slid up the dehaze a tad to bring out the water and sky.In my camera bag
These days, I typically carry a full-range lens (18-300mm) as my go-to, but also a wide-angle, and macro lens. I always have my tripod in the car, and usually carry it with me on hikes if I know there will be an opportunity for long exposures (waterfalls!). In addition, I always have spare batteries, filters, and a microfiber cleaning cloth.Feedback
Only way to get something like this, really, is to visit one of the Poles. I highly recommend it - the air is so fresh, and even drinking melted ice water is invigorating! That said, bring your tripod! :-) And Happy Shooting!
