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Any advice on scandinavian shooting?

atournas

By atournas
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atournas

atournas

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Hi,

 

I am to participate in a two-week motorhouse trip through most of Scandinavia (mainly Norway and Finland), all the way up to Narvik and Kiruna, and I would appreciate if someone could advise me on what places are photographically best spots for shooting. My outfit will be both film and digital Leica stuff.

 

Thanks

 

Paul

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lars_bergquist

lars_bergquist

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I would say that the scenery will be great, but though I know some spectacular spots, they can be reached only by backpacking—or helicoptering. The crossing of the range from Narvik to Abisko, on the Swedish side, is breathtaking both on foot and by train. I have never done it by car, but keep your eyes open.

 

Finland is mostly flattish of course. But it helps to think of it as the western tip of Siberia: Vast tracts of taiga. Good luck with your trip, and don't forget the total experience for your photography.

 

The old man from the Age of Frame Backpacks

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Kasimir

Kasimir

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slightly off-topic:

 

get yourself some warm underwear. If You're from north of Italy: take the amount You think necessary and double it. If from south of Germany: triple it.

 

on-topic:

 

for composition's sake: don't expect too much foreground. Norway at least got plenty of background but is rather scarcely blessed with foreground (dogs, people, houses, etc...). Eventually You may find it usefull to get Your car a nice and shiny finish to act as foreground.

 

I agree with Lars: You will reach the most interesting places by foot. Don't expect any hiking path here. The Norwegian concept of freedom proposes in such circumstances that there IS definitely path. But which one is only up to You to decide. And we're all different.

 

Beware of the gulls. They are most vicious.

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topi

topi

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As far as Norway is concerned, in my experience it's difficult not to find breathtaking scenery there. Just avoid the E something road going right through Norway in north-south direction. Driving will be slowish, though, and speeding there can be expensive (very). Anyway, if you drive past Røros, drop by - it's worth a visit.

 

For Finland it's also advisable to avoid the largest roads, they usually run just through the forests and swamps. Smaller routes going by the lakesides and through smaller villages offer more scenic places.

 

I guess you'll be visiting Helsinki anyway so my suggestion is to reserve about half a day for a visit to Suomenlinna - a group of islands with old fortresses off Helsinki with a boat connection from the main Market Square.

 

Otherwise it's a bit difficult to give specific advice about scenic places; both of these countries are actually relatively large, with correspondingly long distances between towns. It really depends on what you want to see and photograph. And so much depends on the weather...

 

Cheers,

 

-Topi Kuusinen, Finland

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SJP

SJP

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In this part of the world the mosquitoes are larger than the reindeer(s) and exceptionally bloodthirsty.

 

Bring plenty of DEET (even better DDT & flamethrower) to keep them at bay.

 

Otherwise you will suffer.

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cbretteville

cbretteville

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A little advice: Get up early in the morning if the sun is out. The morning light is warm, soft and beautiful. Watch your white balance if you're shooting digital (use a whibal) as the camera may have it's own idea of what is what.

 

Talk to the locals to get advice on where to go, most of us speak English. I agree with Topi, Røros is a nice place to visit. The town is on UNESCO's world heretage list.

 

Note that what might look on a GPS map as a drivable road might not be one. Don't rely on one as your only means of navigation.

 

The mosquitoes up north are a pain - stop at a pharmacy ('apotek' in Norwegian) and get something called 'Mygga', it helps keep (some of) them away from you.

 

- Carl

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Guest darkstar2004

Guest darkstar2004

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In this part of the world the mosquitoes are larger than the reindeer(s) and exceptionally bloodthirsty.

 

Bring plenty of DEET (even better DDT & flamethrower) to keep them at bay.

 

Otherwise you will suffer.

 

If you use any insect repellant with DEET, be absolutely certain that you do not get it on your cameras, lenses & film. DEET is very caustic and will etch fingerprints into polycarbonate or plastic parts of camera bodies. It will do the same to film if you are shooting film and it will strip the coatings off your lens elements.

 

I have gone to using Naturapel Insect Repellent Big Ray's Classic Alaska brand parkas and jackets. Designed for the Alaskan Climate. for the above reasons. You have to put on Naturapel more often than DEET based repellent but it doesnt damage cameras, film & lenses - and it does not have the health related issues that DEET does.

 

Also, get yourself a bugshirt: The Original Bug Shirt: Bug-Free, chemical-free shirt

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  • 3 weeks later...
atournas

atournas

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Hi,

 

Many thanks to all of you who responded to my original post. I made good use of the various kinds of advice (including avoiding...shooting Scandinavians!). Special thanks to Topi--we managed to go down to the very lake shores only via narrow footpaths.

 

I must say I enjoyed the trip immensely. I can find no words to describe the natural beauty of Norway, and I also can find no words to describe the female beauty of Finland.

 

I mainly used a 28-90 aspherical on an R7 for Ektachrome 100, T-Max 100 and Tri-X. However, I must now admit I should have taken my D2 instead. That combo was a bit heavy for the short stops and the quick trip we made (7000 km in 14 days). On the other hand, it was almost always sunshine (even in Kiruna) and I had no problems with not using a tripod (or at least so I hope--I have to see the slides first).

 

Finally, I feel I should do due justice to the D-Lux 3 I carried with me for P&S occasions. The camera worked flawlessly under really heavy duty: we took nearly 2000 pictures, many times we switched the camera on with the lens cap in place and I once dropped it on a hard table surface from about 30 cm height but nothing bad happened, and the two batteries required only two discharges each.

 

All in all, Scandinavia is a truly great place for Leica photography.

 

Paul

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lars_bergquist

lars_bergquist

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In this part of the world the mosquitoes are larger than the reindeer(s) and exceptionally bloodthirsty.

 

Bring plenty of DEET (even better DDT & flamethrower) to keep them at bay.

 

Otherwise you will suffer.

 

If you are going this year, I can assure you that the mosquito season is over since the early weeks of August. Otherwise, the advice is sound.

 

The old man from the Age of DDT

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brslomo

brslomo

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I have been planning a trip to Finland around Christmas. I'm thinking two or three weeks. I will be visiting an American friend and his Finnish wife in Juva. What do people recommend seeing at different places in the country? Also, is 35 mm slide film and developing readily available. I like to buy my film in the country I am visiting and get it developed before I leave.

 

Bruce S.

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andybarton

andybarton

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I have been planning a trip to Finland around Christmas. I'm thinking two or three weeks. I will be visiting an American friend and his Finnish wife in Juva. What do people recommend seeing at different places in the country? Also, is 35 mm slide film and developing readily available. I like to buy my film in the country I am visiting and get it developed before I leave.

 

Bruce S.

 

Go to Finland at Christmas and you won't see anything. It'll be dark 23 hours of the day :)

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atournas

atournas

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Well, that's what one sees in Norway right now!

 

Paul

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

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Mika K

Mika K

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The Borealis Light is a good subject :) Last time I was in Finland in winter it was minus 45 centigrade up North, in Hetta. My M3 froze to my fingers. I had to get inside real fast....

In the winter time the polar nights can be very beautiful, think of some lapland scenery with some fjells, trees, snow and moonlight. Also Aurora borealis if your lucky. Also during this polar nights period (= kaamos in finnish) the light acts a bit funny way, it is sort of blue/green and very special.

 

Can check my personal stashes for the suitable pics but there are some on the web for this..

 

Aurora Borealis - Northern Lights

Aurora Borealis Page

 

Happy hunting :D

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topi

topi

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I have been planning a trip to Finland around Christmas. I'm thinking two or three weeks. I will be visiting an American friend and his Finnish wife in Juva. What do people recommend seeing at different places in the country? Also, is 35 mm slide film and developing readily available. I like to buy my film in the country I am visiting and get it developed before I leave.

 

OK, Juva around Christmas won't offer you much light. With luck there'll be snow on the ground to reflect some of the light. The light levels will be low anyway and there's a good chance of the weather being overcast for weeks on end. Sorry to say, but December is *the* time of year I wish basically anywhere more southern than Finland.

 

The days will be short and sunlight will be in short supply. My recommendation for somebody visiting Finland that time of year would - controversially - to get to Lapland, somewhere around the Arctic circle. There you could at least be relatively sure of some snow.

 

Then again, Savonlinna would be a less distant place to visit from Juva - there's this old castle on an island in the river that's pretty interesting. The castle is the venue for the Savonlinna opera festival held in the summer. In addition to that you'll probably be going through Helsinki on your trip. It might be worth a visit there, if there's somebody to show you around. Just don't expect to encounter too many photo opportunities.

 

Getting slide film won't be much of a problem, but I don't know how fast you can get it developed. I'm pretty sure there will be a camera shop in Juva that will sell you all the silde film you'll need.

 

Anyway, good luck on your trip. Finland in December is totally different from Finland in June/July. I wish December were abolished. If that can be accomplished, hibernation would be cool, too.

 

Cheers,

 

-Topi Kuusinen, Finland

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