p.1 #1 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
I am soon going to be a dad, which basically means that I wont have any free time for the next 18 years. That is how/why I have made a deal with my girlfriend to have a week long vacation, alone, to go anywhere I want to shoot pictures/videos.
I am located in Montreal (Canada, east coast) but I am willing to travel pretty much anywhere in the world as long as it can be reached in less than 10 hours of flight.
Anyone has a good suggestion to where I should go? My initial plan was to go to Iceland until I realized most mountain routes are closed until July... But I am open to anything, really! Wildlife, landscape, city, etc... I just want to take great pictures!
I am a fun guy and if you want to travel with me or show me your country, I am all for it! I speak French/English and I have traveled enough to be at ease any where on the globe.
p.1 #3 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Hi, Mantat,
I'm based in London and might be a fit. I wouldn't rule out Iceland at end April, as a week's drive round the perimeter road with detours for hikes, whatever, might work well. Another possibility is the Languedoc area of France (which I know somewhat) + the Tarn (which I don't know) and the Pont de Millau. Another possibility is the Scottish Highlands and Skye (which I know somewhat). Sicily? Armenia? Georgia? I'm flexible, but in principle would talk about sharing a photo-trip, just not in the 2 weeks from March 28th.
p.1 #6 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
It simply depends if our planes fly, mine from London, Alain's from Montreal/Boston. The roads are clear apart from the small area near the volcano in the south. It may be impossible to complete a circuit.
p.1 #10 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Yes, a friend pointed me toward it. Quite good and confirmed our destination choices. I wish we had the time and resources he had but we will be limiting our trip to the west and north area. Still a lot to shoot!
I am thinking about doing a travel book like he did. It is such a cool souvenir!
p.1 #11 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Good site with a sensibility for the grimness of the place. When it rains, go with the flow! The spanking new Humvee looks a little incongruous with camping. Thanks Christian.
p.1 #13 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Well it's Wednesday in London now and airports have tentatively re-opened, but there's a huge backlog. Due to fly on Friday, but no idea whether I'll get there. The skies in London have been clear as a bell and the absence of planes in the sky is pleasant. No signs of volcanic ash:
p.1 #15 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
And to think I thought parking was tough in Chicago! Remind me not to drive to Iceland, Oh, my wife says there is a lot of water between Chicago and Iceland so driving is out I guess. If I was to visit, should I get a ticket, it will be on the rental.
Hope you get there and have a great shoot. I find it interesting how Mantat chose to accept Marks offer to visit Iceland at the beginning of March and in four weeks since the scenery has changed considerably. Definitely going to be an adventure for you guys, should come home with some very unique photos/
p.1 #16 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Hilarious pictures of the vehicles Mark!
And not only is a Humvee incongruous but IMHO a poor vehicle choice in terms of cargo space and fuel requirement...there are a lot of much better suited AWD's.
From the Satellite image Mark posted I'm surprised to see how much snow cover they still have.
p.1 #17 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Alain and I had a great trip! Keflavik airport shut, so we were both routed via Glasgow to Akureyri in the north. This was much worse for him coming from Montreal, but Akureyri is a fine alternative to start from.
The big takeaway is that end April/ early May is a fantastic time to visit Iceland. The only negative is that the interior roads are impassable, but Iceland is almost all wild anyway and in 10 days we only scratched the surface. The place is empty,empty, empty. Many of my shots were just stopping the SUV in the middle of the road, turning off the engine, and bracing a long lens against the window frame. There was almost no traffic. We had wonderful locations like the basalt column cliffs of the Snaefells peninsula all to ourselves for hours on end. The light was much more than ample with 16 hour days and long twilights. There's also a chance of A. Borealis in April as shot by someone over the volcanic eruption. We didn't need to book ahead and it was significantly cheaper than in the summer.
Anyway lovely trip. Driving was a pleasure...I guess we did about 1400 miles.
I should add that I'm thinking to go back end April/early May 2011 to concentrate on the North West, ie Snaefells and the NW fjords. For fellow Britons it's worth realizing that it's only a 6 hour flight and drive to these spectacular locations. There's wi-fi in every guest house / hotel and the long days and emptiness make it relaxing. So if any photographers want to think ahead with me...
p.1 #19 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Hey guys!
Thanks for the update and the album...some superb images there, congratulations. I like the fact you've included some behind the scenes and "touristy" shots too. I particularly like the image of your "special friends" ...next best thing to keep you warm.
(Just returned from Provence last night...rained every day with generally low cloud cover, never saw a sunrise nor a sunset ...so no nice golden hour shots of mountain top villages nor nice landscapes. Nevertheless I think I've come away with some interesting shots.)
p.1 #20 · Seeking a week long adventure in March or April
Thanks, Chris.
If you go back to France I recommend the Corbieres in Languedoc. It's the sunniest part of the country, is at the foothills of the Pyrenees and has great subject matter, especially the hilltop Cathar castles. Also it's not far from Tarn and the spectacular Pont de Millau, which I need to visit. Languedoc is also more 'raw' than Provence.
...next best thing to keep you warm.
...so no nice golden hour shots of mountain top villages nor nice landscapes. Nevertheless I think I've come away with some interesting shots.)