Arctic Scandinavia
The pull of the North
I always knew I needed to go north. I mean, I complain about the temperatures here as soon as the thermometer reaches above 15 °C. My first proper bird photography tour naturally had to be someplace cold. So I joined a guided tour to Arctic Scandinavia, where we visited bird feeders in Finland, duck hides in Båtsfjord, a special night hide for Arctic mammals, and the bird island Hornøya.
I dare say not everything went to plan. Strong winds made the first Hornøya attempt futile, and the Båtsfjord hides were mostly duck-less. These things can happen, and they won’t take away from the spectacular experiences we did have. Driving through the snow-covered pine forests of Finland to the more mellow coast of Norway was like being in a different world. Along the road, spotting dippers, ravens of plenty, white-tailed eagles, and even fin whales. And the photographic opportunities… ruby pine grosbeaks in the snow, contrast-rich Atlantic puffins, guillemots and razorbills in their thousands, and, as icing on the cake, visits from an Arctic fox in the spotlights.
I’ll be going back to the area come June 2026. That says it all, I think.
Ar(c)tistic vision
One of the many reasons to go to the Arctic was the drive to practice ‘art’. I feel I rely too much on standard portraits with blurry backgrounds, and I want to explore the world of ‘artistic’ photography more.
With the potential to find many black-and-white animals and capture them in the snow, I knew this trip would deliver. My favourite subjects for ‘art’ were the razorbills, with their graphic bills and coats, and sociable nature. The sessions with them led to my first print sale, as well as potentially my favourite photo ever.
Purple-pipers
I’ve worked with ‘Dutch’ purple sandpipers more than I can count. These Calidris tend to be approachable and, therefore, so fun to work with. I like them so much that, even with all these new birds about, I felt the need to point out every single one I saw on this trip. I’m sure several people on the trip now associate purple sandpipers with me - and I wouldn’t want it any other way.