Exploring Norway in 14 Days: Fjords, Hikes, and Epic Photos Captured in Autumn

As an Australian who has never travelled to Europe, I ventured to one of the most distant and coldest locations (Norway!), to be apart of Mark Gray’s Photo Tour. Not only was I travelling to a location that I had only dreamt of, but I had the chance to experience a photo tour for the first time, in October 2024. The realisation of a dream became a reality sooner than I expected, having booked everything within 2 months  of finding out. Day one did not go as expected - I have never experienced such cold environments outside of a day trip to Mount Baw Baw in Victoria’s high country. Arriving in the middle of October, I wasn’t expecting  to see so much snow that wasn’t just limited to the mountain tops; How naïve I was.

The one thing that I had always heard about but never experienced, was Black Ice, and the streets were covered in it! What a memorable first day. I started off my trip heading up to a lookout above the town Harstad for sunrise and walking in the dark was a challenge as the black ice did not make it easy. Slipping and sliding everywhere made a 30-minute walk into almost an hour, but it was so worth the venture as I was blessed with an amazing view. The way back down took a turn, I slipped on the black ice twice and landed flat on my back. Thankfully my camera bag saved me from facing any major injury, my head could have easily smashed against the concrete. With the high impact of the fall, my camera gear was completely fine (A+ to the Shimano bag for durability), however I did hurt my right leg in the fall which  proved to be an annoyance for the remainder of the trip. 

Hagebyen Velforening Gapahuk Lookout

Even though my body was hurting, I still wanted to explore as much as I could before the photography tour began and so that same day I decided to head up to Mount Keipen. Doing research on the location it was about a 45 minute hike to the top, which actually took me an hour due to the conditions. Seeing a few cars at the carpark was reassuring, so I began my hike passing some people along the way and about half way up I could see that all the cars had left and I was now the only person on the mountain. As I continued on the hike my only navigation up was following the existing footprints in the snow. What I wasn’t expecting was to have internet reception the entire hike which was comforting. This hike did amazing things to my confidence and belief in my ability to overcome fear. Finally I successfully reached the peak of 500m above sea level. As I was up there it began to snow which was such a sight to see, but the wind really picked up dramatically making it really cold and uncomfortable. I still decided to pull my camera out and photograph what I could as I knew even if the photos were most likely not going to be usable. As I headed back down, I began to become anxious as the weather conditions were really taking a turn for the worst and so I decided to head down quickly. I began to pray which really gave me the power to not let my thoughts get the better of me and keep my mind clear. My body however hated me as my leg did not like what I just pushed it through.

Peak of Mount Keipen

Panorama from Iphone of Mount Keipen

Then began the photography tour. It was accompanied by wonderful people and some moments that I will always cherish. The places Mark had taken us, felt like places that shouldn’t exist as my brain could not comprehend the beauty of what was in front of me. We travelled to the island of Sejna and we got to visit vast sceneries ranging from Tungeneset, Mefjordvaer, Bergsbotn, Andsatnet (just outside of Senja) and many more. Unfortunately the Aurora didn’t put on the best of shows as we were met with cloudy nights, but it would not be the end to this story. What blew me away was how the environment can change within hours; I am use to having four seasons in one day in Melbourne, but literally going to sleep one night with barely any snow on the mountains to waking up the next morning and the town being completely covered in snowfall was baffling to me. It created such amazing photographic opportunities which lead to my favourite hike/scenery of the entire trip, Segla! Hiking up Segla through the snow was such an incredible adventure and one that will forever be ingrained in my brain. What seems like a short hike of 30 minutes was actually a little over an hour; the power of perspective when facing nature of extreme magnitudes. Once I had reached the top, I just couldn’t stop exploring the location to take everything in; it reached a point that Mark Gray called me questioning where I was heading and my answer was I do not know. I was just in awe of the scenery, I couldn’t fathom that I was actually at this location even though thousands of people visit each year. From seeing a lake on a mountain overlooking the ocean to seeing the peak of Segla and all the mountain peaks surrounding it. It was by far the best view in the world I have ever experienced. 

The photography aspect of the tour was met with many emotions and sometimes frustrations. From many rainy days to beautiful weather conditions, it was never boring and I can truly say I was able to capture many images I am beyond proud of. As far as my photography gear went, I was photographing everything on my Canon R5 Mark1 with a Canon RF15-35 F2.8 & RF24-105 F4. I also had a Canon R8 as a backup and two tripods as a fail safe. Most of the images were caught on my 15-35mm and only using my 24-105mm when I needed that extra reach and compression. Images such as Lakeview Retreat & Dormant were captured on my 24-105. It was also the trip where I learnt how to truly capture a Panorama and this was the moment that began my venture into capturing more and more Panos within my portfolio. 

After the photography tour had ended (5 days), I rented a car and travelled 4.5hrs south to the famous Lofoten Islands. Nothing short of breathtaking views along the way and I was immediately blessed with an amazing sunset the first night I arrived in the town of Reine. I immediately checked in and hiked up the hill which was above my accommodation and captured a Pano (Fjords Retreat). I stayed in Reine for 3 days and my mission was to go on the hike of Reinebringen. Unfortunately, the entire 3 days I stayed in the town of Reine it was raining non-stop to the point the clouds were covering the mountain top and making it impossible to do the hike. The one that got away! It will forever be a hike that I must return to. It was not all unfortunate as there was finally a clear night where I got to witness the northern lights in all its glory! When people say that the lights dance, I thought that would only be achievable by seeing it through a video, but that night put on such a show that you could witness the dance with the naked eye.

There were a few key takeaways from my two week experience in Norway.

1 - How much I hate black ice (don’t think anyone likes it). 

2 - The people in Norway are extremely kind. Many people tell me how great the people in Australia are, but to me the key differences is that in Australia people are friendly, but in Norway people were very kind and warm hearted and it was very noticeable. Something that I don’t see in Australia is on a day I was driving in Lofoten, traffic controllers were stopping traffic outside a tunnel as there was construction happening. The traffic controller went to each and every car (including myself) explaining the situation and that a there will be an escort car arriving shortly to take us through the tunnel safely. Not only was is it so kind of him to go to as many cars as he could, but he was polite and respectful. I have never experienced such kindness like I have in Norway. 

3 -  The water is like nothing I had ever drank before. I can honestly say I did not know what clean drinking water was until I tasted the water from Norway.

Some photography tips I encourage

1 - When trying to maximise a reflection, get your camera as low as possible.

2 - A shower cap can be really useful to cover your camera when it is heavily raining.

3 - Stick between F8-16 if you are on a full frame camera. Areas where the depth of field isn’t as large, I recommend F8 and gradually stop down the greater the depth of field. Be careful not to push further than F16 as diffraction will really hinder your image sharpness.

4 - Keep your camera bag light! I recommend 2 lenses from wide to mid range telephoto. 14-200mm will cover pretty much all scenarios. Also handy to have a fast prime lens F1.4-2.8 if you are wanting to capture the Aurora.

5 - If a scene is too large to capture in a single frame, I highly recommend capturing a panorama. Best to shoot portrait and 8-9 frames across the scene. Ensure your horizon is level throughout for optimal results and best to achieve this through using an L-Bracket so you can mount the camera directly above your tripod so your centre of gravity does not change.

6 - Always wait out the rain. In most cases it might not lead to anything, but there will be a time where the rain will clear up and you will be blessed with beautiful light! My images of Nordic Haven & Peaks Reflection were taken within an hour after heavy rainfall.

I cannot wait to visit Norway again, which will be in 2027 and right in the middle of winter, which means Reinebringen hike will have to wait until another time, but I will get it done! My favourite images from the trip were - Nordic Haven, Heaven’s Peak, Dormant, Peak’s Reflection and Skyfall - http://stevenfarah.com.au/gallery/norway

This trip wouldn’t have been possible without the support of family and friends and most importantly the strength Jesus had given me to get through exploring a world completely unknown to me outside of a computer. There is always a moment of fear when challenging myself, but praying helps me overcome which enables me to explore the amazing wonders of what God has created for us.