Advice needed for shooting in Iceland!

Am going on a trip to Iceland in Feb, looking for some advice on how to shoot white landscapes, along with the Aurora Borealis! The white balance will be out, not sure what to do in these situations.

The equipment available to me is in my sig, but I also have some old filters, including red, blue, skylight, polarizing and a UV filter, along with some macro ones (no use here)

I posted here as shooting the Northern Lights may be different to landscapes so I wasn't sure whether it would belong there.

Thanks for your help!

No experience in Iceland, but I suggest you bring a tripod and shoot RAW. You can always adjust WB in post.

I won't be able to take a tripod with me as I don't have enough room in my bag! But I am going to get a "Green Pod" (google for info) which should stabilise my shots, well I'm hoping it will anyway.

You're definitely going to need something to stabilize your shots for the Aurora Borealis. Make sure whatever you put that Green Pod on is sufficiently stable, this is a rare opportunity (I assume) and you don't want blurry shots. There are tutorials and instructions out there, so read and view them, and take them with you if need be. Practice some night shooting so you know what you're doing.

So effectively, I could get a white piece of paper/card and just shoot an image with that in, then edit the RAW's in PS to have the same? How would I do that?

I will definitely do that, got plenty of white paper lying around the house!

I know, getting blurry photos of that will be very frustrating! Unfortunately, after going through all the small tripods (I needed one that was below 26cm when folded up, there are just none available that I can actually afford). What I'm hoping for is a nice rock to perch the green pod on and shoot!

I'm going to practise some night shoots soon, since I'm in the UK it is very rare to get a clear sky where the stars are visible, so it may be a bit of a struggle.

You can buy a card, I use one from Whibal and it is actually grey, you then use custom white balance and the eyedropper that way you won't have some shots blue, some green, some grey and some white. I think I paid like $20 for mine from Amazon.

Mineores said:

So effectively, I could get a white piece of paper/card and just shoot an image with that in, then edit the RAW's in PS to have the same? How would I do that?

I will definitely do that, got plenty of white paper lying around the house!

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Using Photoshop's Levels adjustment tool you can quickly correct both white balance and overall color balance in a snap. I learned to do this without a grey card and prefer this technique for that reason.

Here's how I learned to use this tool: Fix Tone and Color with Levels In Photoshop

Courtesy of Photoshop Essentials (dot) com

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Horoscope Fish said:

Using Photoshop's Levels adjustment tool you can quickly correct both white balance and overall color balance in a snap. I learned to do this without a grey card and prefer this technique for that reason.

Here's how I learned to use this tool: Fix Tone and Color with Levels In Photoshop

Courtesy of Photoshop Essentials (dot) com

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I'll just stick to the card, I can see using levels if I have one image and don't know what neutral is but if this guy is gonna shoot a lot of landscapes isn't a simple card a lot less time consuming?

WJYPhoto said:

I'll just stick to the card, I can see using levels if I have one image and don't know what neutral is but if this guy is gonna shoot a lot of landscapes isn't a simple card a lot less time consuming?

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Well if we assume the exposure is identical in a large batch of photos as they would be in a studio setting then yes, the gray card technique is going to be faster because you can batch process off the one shot that has the gray card.

That being said, I've never had a large batch of shots taken in natural light that lend themselves to batch processing because the light tends to change rapidly. I also reeeeeally pare down the number of photos I'm going to be working with as "Step One" of my overall workflow because the shots I am going to work with are going to be getting "The Full Treatment", and that means I plan on processing them individually. It's a matter of how one wants to work with their photos I guess. I mean, I'd love to be able to batch-process more, but I don't think natural light really allows for it generally speaking, certainly not like it would in a studio setting with controlled, consistent lighting. JMO...

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Aurora needs long exposures so a sturdy tripod a must. I like 6sec exposures best (shows stars but not too much star movement) but you'll need to experiment and try it out. I've used fence posts, tables etc but never happy, it looks good on LCD screen but there is always movement and even a tiny bit of movement turns beautiful aurora to blurred disappointment. A sec isn't long until you are trying to stay perfectly still in cold and 6 secs seems like forever.
I don't know your camera but I use a remote shutter to help stop camera movement. Make sure VR is off on the lens and set to manual focus. Shoot RAW for Aurora so you can adjust when home and warm. NOAA POES Auroral Activity will let you know if looking to the skies will pay off.
A GOOD CPOL filter will help with glare on glittery snow/ice and make your blue skies nice. Remember that your camera won't know what to do with so much white and will tend to underexpose and turn your whites grey. If using A, P, or S use +/- and tell camera to overexpose a bit. Turn on your highlights warning on LCD so you know if you are too far over. I shoot M and just slightly overexpose and check. Winter lighting changes quickly and you'll have to keep checking and adjusting. Snow is an excellent reflector so you can leave those at home

I should also add- have everything ready and totally set up every night! Aurora is completely unpredictable it shows up when it wants and ends when it wants with absolutely no predictability at all so have everything ready. My tripod is always ready at my door and my quick release on my camera. I know the night it isn't ready the lights will show up it never fails. Landscape makes the capture so much better so have a plan of where you want to shoot from. A flashlight in your pocket in case you need to see to make adjustments instead of fumbling in the dark trying to see.
Something I have twice missed now and I'm kicking myself still is ice pillars. Never heard of it until I saw it and thought it really strange aurora but then did some research. It happens in very cold temps and twice I've seen it about 20mins or so before sunrise and both times it faded before I could get dressed warmly and camera set up outside but it was magical to see

nikonpup said:

buy a wired release cable and get a cheap tripod when you get to iceland. Hang a weight from the tripod for stability. Take the cp filter.

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Just had a look on eBay, will get the wired release cable as they're only a couple of quid.

Which one is the "CP filter' (sound newbie here)

Thanks

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snaphappy said:

Aurora needs long exposures so a sturdy tripod a must. I like 6sec exposures best (shows stars but not too much star movement) but you'll need to experiment and try it out. I've used fence posts, tables etc but never happy, it looks good on LCD screen but there is always movement and even a tiny bit of movement turns beautiful aurora to blurred disappointment. A sec isn't long until you are trying to stay perfectly still in cold and 6 secs seems like forever.
I don't know your camera but I use a remote shutter to help stop camera movement. Make sure VR is off on the lens and set to manual focus. Shoot RAW for Aurora so you can adjust when home and warm. NOAA POES Auroral Activity will let you know if looking to the skies will pay off.
A GOOD CPOL filter will help with glare on glittery snow/ice and make your blue skies nice. Remember that your camera won't know what to do with so much white and will tend to underexpose and turn your whites grey. If using A, P, or S use +/- and tell camera to overexpose a bit. Turn on your highlights warning on LCD so you know if you are too far over. I shoot M and just slightly overexpose and check. Winter lighting changes quickly and you'll have to keep checking and adjusting. Snow is an excellent reflector so you can leave those at home

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I'm going to have another search for a tripod small enough that'll fit in my camera bag, maybe I'll find one!

I will note these tips down so I can use them in the field.

It may sound silly, but will be it be better to shoot with the kit lens or the telescopic?



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Ahh, the CP filter, going to have to search for that one. It's a very old filter, I believe it was bought in the 70's and I think it only fits my kit lens, but I'll try anyway.

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CP is same as CPOL- circular polarizing filter

Pick up a small tripod or do some research and see where you can pick one up while there maybe you'll get lucky and find a camera store that rents them but its a must or you'll be disappointed.

Widest lens with lowest "F" value. I prefer to use my 35mm F1.8G because at F1.8 I can keep my ISO down. You can do it with kit lens I have. You'll probably have to do longer shutter speeds or higher ISO. You'll need to adjust as you go so check your LCD between each shot and zoom in to check it so you can adjust if needed. Aurora when its at its best is everywhere, it moves, fades and gets strong again. There is no rhyme or rhythm to it which is what makes it so magical. You'll have to look where the next light show is getting started and frame your shot hoping you chose the best place to turn your lens. Even at 18mm I usually can't capture even a quarter of what I can see with my eyes. Know your camera well, know your tripod so you can adjust quickly and dress warm so you can stay out there enjoying it all. Iceland seems to have much bigger better light shows than we get here so you should be in for a fantastic show Lots of websites on the topic so do some research and know your camera really well so you are ready Have a great trip and share some photos when you come back

Mineores said:

I know, getting blurry photos of that will be very frustrating! Unfortunately, after going through all the small tripods (I needed one that was below 26cm when folded up, there are just none available that I can actually afford). What I'm hoping for is a nice rock to perch the green pod on and shoot!

I'm going to practise some night shoots soon, since I'm in the UK it is very rare to get a clear sky where the stars are visible, so it may be a bit of a struggle.

Click to expand...

What is your budget? HAve you checked these out? JOBY GorillaPod Ballhead - Ballhead stabalizes your camera and it allows it to take pictures at any angle