Don't no, alright?Originally Posted by TheAnimus
And more seriously - apologies for a thread resurrection but would iceland be ok for a winter mini-break? Aim - getting away from it all. Enjoying nature. Taking our cameras properly out and about. Seeing the northern lights, cosying up to mrs ik9000 in log cabins that kind of thing. We're run in and I think she needs some time out. Could also solve the Christmas present conundrum!
Last edited by ik9000; 19-11-2015 at 03:40 PM.
Also how long should we allow? Is a few days enough?
I'm going next august, all this talk of expensive beer has got me worried haha
Prepare to redefine your understanding of expensive.
Haha amazing, now I feel even worse
National Dyslexic Association...
Ok so you are thinking of going in the winter, and wanting to see the lights if possible, you can see the activity forecast http://en.vedur.is/weather/forecasts/aurora/ here!
If standing still outside staring at the stars isn't something you've done before, forget everything you know about being cold. Standing still in the wind, at night. It just gets to you faster than anything I've known before. So layers are a good idea and a few heaty thingies if you can find them suitability cheaply will make it a lot more pleasant. A thermos too!
To take a photo you will need a tripod, I'd recommend using a remote shutter too and make sure you can use your camera with your gloves on. I used my under gloves only as my outer gloves made camera use impossible. One important thing to consider is protection for your camera. If you have non weather sealed equipment be very careful, as I said in this thread before I saw a cheap Canon break it's own shutter because of the cold. I'd pick up some plastic bag protectors or similar too. A good wide angle lens will be your best friend too. I just wish I'd had my Astrotracer back then.
The classic dressing in layers will be an important thought, so pack plenty! I'd highly recommend doing a bicycle tour of Reykjavik too, I used these people: http://www.icelandbike.com/ but that was many years ago now! They provided warm outer clothing too.
There is a lot to see and do, if you want to learn to ride a snowmobile, that's good fun too. There is an area called the golden circle, it's worth getting out and exploring, unless you've lots and lots of off road experience, don't try this yourself. As one of the photos shows, we got dug in and that was with an experienced icelandic driver. In the end he had to radio for help, as we couldn't dig our way out in the winds.
Everything is super expensive. Even for a Londoner.
As for how long, it depends what you want to do? I'd say 3 days is enough to explore the city and spend only one day outside. But if you want to really explore you need a bit longer. If you enjoy outdoor things, then I'd happily spend longer. If you don't enjoy such things, then really you don't want to much longer. Nothing like lounging in one of the many large hot pools after a bit of exercise!
One thing I often do anyway, but went down really well, was to bring a bottle of spirit. I alternate between my favourite every day priced whiskey or my favourite gin. As spirits cost so much you can find a lot of friends with such things.
throw new ArgumentException (String, String, Exception)
ik9000 (21-11-2015)
I have a canon 60d which I think is weather sealed body but I would need to get a better lens, probably L series to get the whole thing sealed. wife camera is only eos-M do not sure if that's sealed or not.
flights dictate a 5 night stay so sounds like it could work though it starts not becoming so cheap that it might not be affordable
So a good bit of preparation will help you out, and don't change your lens... The one I saw break I'm fairly sure had allowed moisture to get inside, then as it was -15°C outside, and about -5°C in the jeep it froze, expanded some place and broke the shutter mechanism.
Rainsleves like this work fairly well at a quick search on ebay and amazon will find them for around £2, you want the thickest possible kind. Another thing is to be considerate to the camera. Iceland has an abundance of geothermal energy, the cost is connecting the place, so don't be surprised to find that there are no thermostats, people just open the window when it's too warm. This means you'll go from the street at say 3°C, to a shop that is at 25°C. For many materials this is hard. A good bag will insulate against rapid changes in temp, so I'd recommend that too. You don't really need to splurge on a new lens if you've got those accessories. If you've not got those accessories you'll need them to keep your new lens safe!
The other thing is a cable remote is good because you might find it windy and need to have the tripod in short height mode close to the ground. You don't want to be bending your back as well! If you've got a flash gun, you can do some work with trailing shutter sync mode too. I've a nice picture of an ex looking up at the green skies!
throw new ArgumentException (String, String, Exception)
ik9000 (22-11-2015)
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