As we continued our tour of the Snæfellsnes peninsula, we came upon a mysterious black sand beach with the name of Djúpalónssandur, which translates to Deep Lagoon Sand. This name traces back to the initial first settlers of Iceland, some 1200 years ago.
Djúpalónssandur, or Deep Lagoon Sand, beach
One can imagine this cove during the days of yore, when it was home to 60 fishing boats, creating a strong economic foundation for people in this part of the Snæfellsnes peninsula. If you look carefully, you see the strewn remains of the Epine (GY7), a fishing trawler that was wrecked here on March 13, 1948; the Epine hailed from the port town of Grimsby in North East Lincolnshire, England.
Another feature of this beach are the glistening pebbles that cover it, which are know as Djúpalónsperlur, or “pearls of the deep lagoon”. These pearls on the beach stunning and appealing, but should be left alone, as it is against the law to collect them as a souvenir of your trip!
View toward Djúpalónssandur Beach
The path down to the beach is a bit of a steep descent (and climb on the way back), as the parking area is high and dry upon the volcanic cliffs. As you walk toward the beach, you may want to test your strength to see if you would qualify to work on one of the fishing boats. The four Aflraunasteinar, or Lifting Stones, are along the path toward the beach. These stones range from Fullsterkur (full strength) weighing 154 kg, Hálfsterkur (half strength) weighing 100 kg, Hálfdrættingur (weakling) weighing 54 kg to Amlóði (useless) at 23 kg; to qualify for work on a fishing boat you should at least be able to lift Hálfdrættingur.
A word of caution is that this is definitely not a swimming area, as the Atlantic Ocean has unpredictable and strong rip currents here that will pull one far into sea. Also, it is not wise to go wading here, as surprise waves will often come far onto the beach.
On the photography part, both images were capture with my Canon EOS R5 mirrorless, using a Canon RF24-105mm F4 L IS USM lens. First level processing of the images was done using Skylum’s Luminar AI software; for these images, I created a template based on the Backlit Clouds template that is part of the Overcast collection of templates. Touch up processing was done in Photoshop.
A Fresh Perspective
Photography is more than just a vehicle for capturing the world around me; it provides me with a palette and a set of brushes, with which I paint not only what I see, but also look to express the emotions that are evoked by the scene in front of me in that moment.
Growing up in the Netherlands exposed me to a wide cross-section of visual arts that laid the foundation of my photographic view of all that surrounds me. Early influences were the Dutch Masters of the 17th century, to whom I was introduced by my grandfather during museum explorations; favorites among them are the scenes of quotidian life depicted by Jan Steen and Frans Hals and the vivid landscapes of Jacob van Ruisdael.
My classical high school education was supplemented by the Boijmans Van Beuningen museum, where I spent many a lunch hour exploring its great collection. Here I was introduced to surrealism with a particular love for the approach taken by Salvador Dali; Dali also rekindled my appreciation for the work of Hieronymus Bosch, who often showed the folly of us mortals.
Universal Connections
My approach to any photographic subject is to look for understanding first; in this I look to establish either a connection between the viewer and the subject or capture the connection of the subject with its surroundings. The captured image then aims to portray this connection from a perspective that is part of my personal interpretation.
This interpretation is often a form of externalized introspection, which may alternately display the connection of isolated beings and items with their environment or highlight the whimsy of the profound world, in which we find ourselves. The universe is full of connections, many of which are waiting to be discovered; part of my journey as a photographer is to document these connections.
Any assignment, be it an event, a product shoot or a portrait session is always approached through communication with the client; this is where the first connection is established. Ideas are exchanged and a collaborative plan of action forms, ultimately resulting in a set of images that aim to exceed the expectations of each client.
And, lest we forget, it is important to have fun while practicing the serious business of photography!
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4 thoughts on “Snæfellsnes Peninsula – part 3”
Fascinating place. We have 1kg weights at health circuits, so don’t think I’ll make it to the fishing boats!
It is definitely mysterious. I’m happy to stay at the useless range of the strength challenge, as a fishing boat might be a bit more than I can handle 🙂
Dutch goes the Photo! 
Fascinating place. We have 1kg weights at health circuits, so don’t think I’ll make it to the fishing boats!
It is definitely mysterious. I’m happy to stay at the useless range of the strength challenge, as a fishing boat might be a bit more than I can handle 🙂
Very beautiful! It looks so inviting to explore!
Thank you! It’s a wonderful place.