In January the sun comes back to arctic Norway, but it’s also the coldest time of the year. With temperatures down to -30°C at the coast of Finnmark, it gets even colder once you travel away from the coast.
This year it hasn’t been that cold so far, but last sunday temperatures went down to -25°C, while around -20°C near the sea. Too cold to be outside you may think, but in this beautiful winter landscape and with the special arctic light I really recommend to get outside. Hot chocolote tastes even better when having been in the cold for some time.
Nothing beats warm clothing in -20°C // Fujifilm X-T3 ISO 160 80mm f/2.8 1/110sec
So what’s so special about the light in the far north? Apart from northern lights, you have beautiful lighting the whole winter. Imagine the blue hour, just that this is ‘normal’ daylight. When it’s not cloudy you often get a mixture of blue and pink skies
Arctic skies // Fujifilm X-T3 ISO 160 80mm f/5.6 1/45 sec
There’s one advantage with really cold temperatures - the frost smoke above water creates a unique atmosphere combined with the light. Wouldn’t it be so cold I would be on the water kayaking. But in this case I prefer my snow shoes on land.
Reinøya - “Reindeer Island” // Fujifilm X-T3 ISO 160 80mm f/8.0 1/6 sec
Even though it’s quite cold outside you get warm while snowshoeing. Moving through the snow can be exhausting, but in this weather I don’t mind as the exercise also keeps me from freezing. We even took a break after some time when it was time for some chocolate - and an image of course!
A break with a view // Fujifilm X-T3 ISO 400 80mm f/4.0 1/15 sec
Sure, I would prefer a picnic when it’s warmer. But the experience was worth it, and our huskies enjoy being outside in the snow.
As you may have noticed, all images are taken with an 80mm lens - Fuji’s macro lens. I normally use wide angle for landscapes - but recently I found out that I quite like the look of a telephoto lens for landscape (…and in -20°C with cold fingers you think twice before switching lenses).
See you on the next adventure!