Visions of the Arctic - West Fjords, Iceland

I've tried a lot of different business card companies in the past, but finally nailed it down to one that I really like. I've used Moo Business Cards for my last two orders of 400 cards and both times they came out looking really nice. Their print colors are actually spot on with what my calibrated home monitor renders which I was also thoroughly impressed with. I went with a glossy, all white card with pictures on the front and text on the back. Here is a quick behind the scenes video from my card selection meeting. The featured pictures were uploaded directly from Smugmug, text was added, and 10 minutes later the order is complete. Easy!

The Shot
This is another photo from the vaults, meaning I took it nearly two years ago, a few weeks after I got my D800. It's kinda funny looking through old pictures, especially the camera settings, many of which I would think twice before I shot at these days. This one for example was single RAW file taken at f/22 to get that nice silky water. Well shooting at f/22 really degrades the nice sharp details of the shot. In retrospect I would have liked to snap this off at f/8 for the full landscape then blend that f/22 water back in using Photoshop. I could go into full detail on my aperture selection methods, but browsing the web while writing this post I found a really nice website with full explanation on why I don't usually shoot beyond f/11.

None the less it's a good thing to keep learning and improving. I find that a lot of my pictures that I took even last month are lacking skill sets that I currently use. Hopefully this will continue for a long time.

This shot is from the West Fjords of Iceland. Unlike a lot of the locations which I can't pin point on a map when I get home, this one was very memorable. We stopped randomly along the side of the road and strolled down this small stream which took us to the ocean. At these latitudes of 65.6 degrees North, you're nearly in the Arctic Circle. The water almost looks like the warm Caribbean with it's beautiful blue glow, but trust me that stuff is cold!

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Nordic Nights - Southern Iceland

Do any of you have Sound Cloud? I use it constantly and share a bunch of music that I like on there. It's a free service and unlike Pandora ( which I also use a lot ) or other music streaming apps, artists upload their music here and share it so that you can pick and chose what you want to hear. You can find me at Dave Morrow Photo @ Sound Cloud.com. Feel free to leave suggestions for other cool music apps in the comments below.

I've been post processing a ton of Iceland pics lately. As shown in the post processing workflow video provided with the last post, all the pictures in my Lightroom Catalog are categorized by location and then tossed into smart folders depending on location. It's really fun to become completely immersed into one of these folders and find a bunch of pictures that were taken a year or so ago then forgotten about.

I took this behind the scenes shot an hour or two after shooting the sunset scene pictured at the bottom of this post.You can see our KuKu Camper parked in the middle the road.


The Shot
Post processing this shot lasted over at least a month. Thinking it was complete I would return a few days later and realize that results were not there yet. Eventually I was thinking about throwing the file out and starting over. Thankfully one last try, and finally, success ( well at least in my eyes ).

It's hard to tell in this picture but the mountain you see on the left side of the shot below is the same height as the mountain you see in the picture with our camper above. Things towards the center of a really wide angle lens always appear much smaller than they really are.

None the less, we were out driving for 4 hours during this sunset, and I can hands down say it was the best I have ever seen. Thankfully there are 40 pictures on the computer from this 4 hour span and only 3 have been processed. This is the first to make it online, so hopefully you like it:)
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Just a Perfect Day - Southern Iceland

My thoughts go out to all the photographers & students who were supposed to teach & learn at our amazing national parks in the coming days and maybe weeks. Thanks to big government & personal agendas, lovers of exploration, learning, nature and photography will all suffer along with countless others. It's a pretty disgusting idea that we are inclined to vote for such beasts, or turn our shoulders and take the only other path, letting them walk all over us with no representation at all. No matter what you do in life, provide inspiration, motivation, and make something beautiful for people to enjoy for a long time in the future. There is no reason to play within the realms of destroying what people have worked for and created in the past only to come away with nothing in the end.

The Shot

While rocketing our KuKu Camper through Southern Iceland we came along a really cool gorge, with lots of little streams and tributaries dispersing into it from infinite angles and locations. I decided this was a good time to stop and take a shot, well I can't lie, a bunch of shots. After busting out the ND filter and circular polarizer I set up my tripod and fired away... For more info on the photo gear I use check out the "What's in My Camera Bag" section of this website. PS: If you want to see this picture fill your screen instead of the scroll view, just click on it:)

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The Omega - Goðafoss, Iceland

Does anyone ever feel that they nail a picture on their nice & calibrated home monitor then look on another computer and see that is has completely destroyed the work of art? None the less it's always good to calibrate your computer screen for the sake of prints even tho most people only view pictures digitally these days. I personally use the Spyder4Elite Calibration System once a month and find it to work really well. This is the only sure fire way to make sure your clients will receive a print that looks the same as what's displayed on your home screen. There are also some other calibration options such as the X-Rite ColorMunki which comes at almost double the price point. It's doubtful that it's double as great, can anyone out there confirm, I would be interested to in knowing?

Just another update, there are now 2 spots left in my Online Star Photography Post Processing Group Workshop, where we will cover my full post processing workflow from start to finish. I even provide you a RAW picture file to work along with me:)

The Shot  ( Head on over to the Learn Photography Page for all my tutorials )

Traveling to Iceland on a yearly basis is always a really nice escape. This past year was the first time that we made it over to Goðafoss which has been on the top of my "To Do" list for a while now. Needless to say, this waterfall and the surrounding location are beyond beautiful. There is really nothing to describe the feeling I had while shooting a 3 hour sunset at the location, maybe it was the litter of rum Meghan and I had been toting around that day? 

Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )

Processing Time: 90 Minutes

Music: Knife Party 2013 Week 2 Ultra Music Festival Set ( One of my fav sets from the weekend )

Drink: Tanqueray & Tonic w/ some lime.... mmmm

Lightroom 4 

• This shot comes from a single RAW file. I rarely capture more than (2) exposures anymore.
• Carefully adjust white balance, this took about 10 min to achieve what I wanted.
• Bring out the shadows in the rocks a little. 
• Clarity brush for the foreground water detail only.
• Global sharpening.
• Export to TIFF

Photoshop CS6

• Apply Tony Kuypers Luminosity Masking Actions & Techniques using curves adjustments to selectively increase contrast throughout the image. 
• Apply slight color balance using the gradient tool to select parts of the image. 
• Detailed luminosity adjustments using Tony's Presets to make the foreground water detail really POP. This took around 20-30 min of the post processing time.
• Nik Color Efex Pro Contrast and skylight filter applied selectively throughout the image. 
• Nik Output Sharpener
• Nik Define
• Slight global vignette application
• Save to JPEG.

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Moody Blues - Selfoss, Iceland

Has anyone read the book "On the Road" by Jack Kerouac? It's one of my personal favorites, almost a travel bible of sorts. Last night we watched the movie On the Road and it was no where near as good, but hey, books are usually better anyway right? Currently I'm reading two new "Nook Books" which are pretty good. The first is ISLAND by Aldus Huxley & the second is a Wise Man's Fear which is almost done, both are good so far if you're into reading and all that good stuff:)

Fingers crossed for clear weather, it's time for another star photography weekend!

The Shot
The latest Iceland trip was amazing, but it takes at least two trips to get a feel for the place and find out which locations you would actually like to shoot. This being my second I was much more at home. The endless beauty makes it hard not to constantly pull over to the side of the road and take pictures, but over time you will learn to hold back. We arrived at Selfoss very early one morning and hiked out to the falls. It's really hard to get a feel for how tall this thing is from a picture but the internet told me it's at least 40 ft high.

Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )

Processing Time: 45 Min

Music: Claude Debussy Playlist

Drink: 14 Hands Wine / Hot to Trot ( Yeah I'm classy ;))

Lightroom 4  ( Head on over to the Learn Photography Page for all my tutorials )

1. (2) Exposures, one for the silky smooth water and another for the rocks & sky.
2. Adjust WB & fine tune in Lightroom 4
3. Export to (2) TIFF files ( yes I'm trying TIFF )

Photoshop CS6

1. Apply Tony Kuypers Luminosity Masking Actions & Techniques using channels to selectively blend the two files into one well exposed file.
2. Add some color & apply color balance using OnOne Perfect Photo Suite
3. Selectively adjust contrast and vibrance using luminosity masks.
4. Top secret cloud movement tricks...
5. Nik Output Sharpener applied selectively along w Nik Define for noise reduction.
6. Apply slight vignette with Nik Color Efex Pro 4, Darken / Lighten Center preset.
7. Use spot brush to remove sensor dirt and fix up a few messy spots.
8. Final touches using hand brushed masks and curves.

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Endless - Vik, Iceland

Do any of you Nikon D800 owners get a bunch of strangely colored pixels when you take long exposure ( 30 seconds+ ) + high ISO star shots? I have been seeing a bunch showing up in the lower ( foreground ) part of my Milky Way shots. Checking back to some older shots from last year I did not notice the issue... Interesting.

Who is interested in learning my Star Photography Post Processing Workflow, I have a new group workshop date that recently opened up. Full details and signup at my Online Post Processing Group Workshop Page.

The Shot
For all you world travelers out there, if you ever decide to head over to Iceland and want to avoid the Rain and nasty weather, stay away from Vik. It seems to be raining there every time I drive through, on the other hand it's an awesome town that I highly suggest everyone visit. The black sand beaches and beautiful fog are worth your while. I like driving through this part of Iceland late at night when the weather is really moving around and the ocean waves are rising and falling just over the hill you can see in the distance.

Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )

Processing Time: 15 minutes

Music: Pink Floyd - The Final Cut

Drink: Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

Lightroom 4  ( Check out my Learn Photography Page for all my tutorials )

1. Single Exposure at -1EV / f/11 / 1/6th of a second / ISO 100
2. Adjust RAW file in LR4 bringing out shadow details and highlights along with a small increase in vibrancy and decrease in saturation.
3. Export to JPEG.

Photoshop CS5

1. Midtones curves adjustment & bright highlights curves adjustment
2. Sharpen & noise reduction using Nik Software
3. DONE!

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Turn Style - West Fjords, Iceland

I was about to start this post, then realized maybe a snack would be necessary during the process. These things don't just write themselves.

There are only a few days left to enter my Star Photography Workshops Free Give Away Contest, it's free and the grand prize is free admission to my last star photography workshop for the summer. DO IT!

Logging on to Google+ last night, I noticed "1,000,000 have you in circles" under my name... wait what? One Million is a significantly large number, so thanks to everyone who helped on that front. All your support and nice comments are always appreciated. Thanks!

The Shot

There are no words to really describe this sunset. Nothing I have ever seen before even comes close. The entire visible Earth was bathed in some of the most vivid color imaginable. Standing there, hours from any town or person for that matter, witnessing stuff like this in the middle of the night is what dreams are made of. Selah....

PS: That water is cold, real cold!

Post Processing Info ( Grab some discount codes to the programs below at bottom of About Me Page )

Processing Time: 1 hour-ish

Music: Bob Dylan Personal Fav's Playlist

Drink: Big Swell IPA from the Island of Maui.

Lightroom 4  ( Learn more using my Free Digital Workflow Video Tutorial )

1. 3 Exposures captured at -2EV, 0EV and +2EV.
2. Adjust 0EV RAW file in LR4 then sync others to match all settings less exposure.
3. Export to (3) JPEGS

Photoshop CS6

1. Apply Tony Kuypers Luminosity Masking Actions & Techniques using channels to selectively blend the three files into one well exposed file.
2. Slight color adjustment with color correction function in OnOne Perfect Photo Suite
3. Apply Nik Pro Contrast to entire image
4. Nik Output Sharpener
5. Apply slight vignette with Nik Color Efex Pro 4, Darken / Lighten Center preset.
6. Final color balance and contrast adjustments.

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Sixty Six North - West Fjords, Iceland

Sifting through emails and comments is seemed like everyone liked the post processing info last time, so  I'll include some more every now and then. It's really nice getting responses and emails from everyone here and there, especially when they come in from all over the world. I read each and every one, and try to answer them all as well:)

There are 7 more days for you to enter in the Star Photography Workshops Free Give Away Contest, it's free and the grand prize is free admission to my last star photography workshop for the summer.

The Shot

After devouring one of the best fish dinners of our lives in Ísafjörður, we loaded up the camper and headed for a 2 day trek even deeper into the West Fjords. This part of the island is my favorite, and at times, you don't see another person for days. Every now and then we would stop, or swerve down one of the little roads that jut off of main road. This shot was captured at the bottom of a pretty steep hill, needless to say the camper had a pretty hard time making it back up.

Post Processing Info

Processing Time: 1.5 hours

Music: Deep House / Electro Playlist

Drink: Sailor Jerry Rum, on the rocks w/ lime.

Lightroom 4 

1. Single RAW exposure taken at 0EV. ( Always watch the histogram to make sure no data is dropping off the light or dark ends when shooting a single exposure )
2. Adjust file within LR4 Develop Module to bring out all the colors and details.

Photoshop CS6

1. Apply Tony Kuypers Luminosity Masking Actions & Techniques adjusting Light, Mid-tone, and dark regions of picture for contrast and color balance. Note: This is not an HDR brush through masking technique using channels like the last post, but a curves adjustment confined by luminosity masks.
2. Slight color adjustment with color correction function in OnOne Perfect Photo Suite
3. Apply Jaime Ibarra's Color grading techniques + a few of my own to obtain a unique overall look and feel for the water and the sky.
4. Final curves / lighting adjustments, and painting out a few pieces of sensor dust using clone tool.
5. Apply slight vignette with Nik Color Efex Pro 4, Darken / Lighten Center preset.

Care to buy a print of this picture? Click here

Lost Worlds - Vik, Iceland

Driving through Iceland with a camera is a really tough task. First off you need to have enough self control not to stop and take pictures every few seconds, don't fall in to this trap, you will never see everything you want to:) Second of all, there are sheep all over the place, and third, well it's probably some strange hour of the night, at least during the summer months. All in all this is what some people such as myself call fun. 

NEWS & Events

Two weeks left to enter my Free Star Photography Workshop Give Away Contest. HELLO it's free:)

A few new updates and links added to the Free Star Photography Tutorial, as well as a cool upload and sharing feature for you to share your star shots. 

Two spots left in my Star Photography Workshops for the entire summer.

The Shot

Right before I went to meet up with Conor MacNeill & Greg Annandale, Meghan and I were driving top speeds through Southern Iceland chasing the sunset as some call it. For a while such strange beauty was happening that it was hard to shoot, let alone function. None the less we got outta there with some awesome shots. At least I think so! PS: Check out Conor & Greg's websites linked above, both very inspirational photographers in my opinion.

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And the Wind Spoke - West Fjords, Iceland

I met up with Jimmy Mcintyre and his wife Rachel last night to snap some pics & have some drinks. Eventually we got side tracked from the whole photography thing and ended up at a few bars. All around good times! I highly suggest checking out both of their blogs linked above, very inspirational. 

Keep in mind the Star Photography Workshop Give Away Contest is still up and running. You have another month to submit your best night shots for a chance to win free admission.

The Shot

One of the best parts about looking through pictures from trips of past is the sparking of memories that lead into more thoughts and often inspiration for new adventures. Here is one from the a night in Iceland that featured some of the best color I have ever seen. My girlfriend Meghan and I drove through the landscapes jaw-dropped for hours.

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We Told You What to Dream - Reykjavic, Iceland

Well it's that time of month again, the moon is setting as the Milky Way rises and I'm headed out to shoot some stars. It's always a struggle deciding where to shoot, with so many places, heading one way always makes you feel like your missing out on the other....

The Shot

Touching down in any foreign land is always great, the world is in front of you and nothing stands in the way saying, "No". Something about that feeling has always intrigued me, Iceland was no different, what an awesome to place to spend a few weeks in the middle of nowhere.

The Triad - Vík, Iceland

Topaz Labs is having a sale right now, you can get their entire bundle for 100$ dollars off the list price. I really like their stuff, and find it to add a much needed flair to some of the shots posted on this website. I used a few of the presets and blended them in on the shot below. You can click through HERE, and use the coupon code july4 when checking out to get the discount:) 

I spent my afternoon doing some odds & ends as well as planning an upcoming China trip for the fall. Beijing, Hong Kong and Guilin look like awesome places to explore & snap some pictures along the way.

The Shot

Just getting back from Iceland last week, it seems like a good time to bust out pictures from my previous trip. Here is one from the quaint town of Vik which lies on the Southern Coast of the island. 

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Wild Horses - West Fjords, Iceland

Returning from Iceland sparked me to look through all the old Icelandic pictures sitting on my hard drive. There are a bunch I have processed and not posted. At time it's hard to remember that there are so many un-posted pictures sitting on the computer. Now if there were only a tool that would post them on every social network at the same time annnnnd do a good job at it. Off to enjoy a lazy Sunday, with some reading, breakfast and maybe a beer or two.

The Shot

I spent a sunrise deep in the West Fjords in a field of horses, knee deep in mud and who knows what else. None the less these guys were really friendly and fun to hang out with.

Adventures in Ísafjörður - West Fjords, Iceland

After a weekend of star photography workshops, and little sleep it felt great to get a full 6 hours of shut eye. After clicking "publish" on this post it's time to pack for Iceland, where the 4 hour sunsets and sunrises keep me busy for days. As for my other workshops this summer, there is 1 spot left in each of my July Star sessions. Head on over to my Summer Star Photography Workshops page for full details. 

The Shot

It's been around 350 days or so since I took this shot & since I am headed back to Ísafjörður tomorrow, why not post a shot? I really liked adventuring through this town in the early morning around 3 AM when no one was awake, it was a complete ghost town.

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Misty Mountains & The House of Sheep - West Fjords, Iceland

I leave for a 10 day trip to Italy this Saturday and have decided to take a break from posting to this website while I'm gone. A nice relaxing vacation without internet sounds great just about now. On my return it will be business as usual with a shot every day less the weekends:) We are headed to Venice for the first stop, any suggestions for must see places? 

If you would like to learn how I processed this shot, check out my FREE HDR Video Tutorial. 

The Shot

The West Fjords of Iceland are beautiful and there are more sheep than people in this part of the country. You can wander around for days and not see a soul, it's a great experience.

Black & Blue - Vik, Iceland

Another long nearly sleepless weekend in the books that took us to Cannon Beach, Cape Kiwanda and some other random spots. The weather played along well and I have some amazing shots to throw in the folder with the 18,000 or so that are waiting to be processed! I'm happy to see a few more people signed up for my In the Field Star Photography Workshops. Spots are running out, grab one fast or let me know if you have some questions...

The Shot

When out shooting I always take a few "minimal" shots including just the clouds and sky. Sometimes these turn out really cool as this one from Vik Iceland did.

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In a Foreign Land - West Fjords, Iceland

I just got back from a weekend trip to the Gorge in Oregon. The waterfalls and spring greens were in full effect which made for some great shots. We also managed to get some star shots with a creepy old house that should turn out really cool. 

The Shot

Another shot from the beautiful West Fjords of Iceland. I processed this one using exposure fusion on Photomatix. If you like the results and want to try the program for yourself, head on over to Photomatix and use the coupon code DAVEMORROWPHOTO when checking out to recieve a 15% discount:)

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Ride On - West Fjords, Iceland

While out in the Olympic Peninsula shooting streams and waterfalls last weekend along with Second Beach, I decided to make a quick "How To" video on shooting waterfalls. I took it with my iPhone so the quality isn't great, but I still think there are some great tips in there. Enjoy!

For anyone that is interested in my Online Star Photography Post Processing Group Workshop, I just added the dates for May. I also recently put up new dates for my In the Field Star Photography Workshops. Feel free to drop me a line if you have questions about either...

The Shot

I clearly don't remember much of this shoot, it was my last day of 10, living out of a camper in the West Fjords of Iceland. None the less June is really an amazing time to visit the country, the sunrises and sets last for 3-5 hours depending on the weather and light. It is truly a photographers' paradise!

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Icelandic House of the Dead at Mind - West Fjords, Iceland

Fridays from here on out the rest of the year I am going to post a new star photo to my website and all the social networks. This should be a fun and challenging tasks which will also keep me running around all week taking star shots. No complaints... For those of you that want to learn about star photography I offer a Free Star Photography Tutorial as well as In the Field Star Photography Workshops @ Mount Rainier National Park! Sign up today.

The Shot

As for today I have a really fun & somewhat creepy shot from the West Fjords of Iceland. It took me a while to finally get this one done in post processing, but here it is... Enjoy!

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5 Wise Guys - Vik, Iceland

I had a great weekend exploring the Olympic Peninsula and doing some camping at Crescent Lake & Second Beach. I would highly recommend each place to spend the night, make a fire and do some relaxing... I have provided the GPS coordinates and a fun iPhone shot from the weekend below. Just copy and paste the GPS into Google Maps and boom!

Second Beach - [47.887428,-124.624701]

Lake Crescent - [48.054261,-123.79976]

Saturday Morning sounded like a great time to adventure to Sol Duc & have some beers so why not mix and match.. Don't worry I provided a "REAL" shot for my daily post directly below this one:)

The Shot

Since I am sharing lots of water and ocean locations today, why not post a shot from an amazing small town on the Southern Coast of Iceland. If you go to Iceland, Vik is a must for their black beaches and famous little church that sits on the hill.

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