Bakklandet, Trondheim

Bakklandet, Trondheim

Those who know me well will know how much I enjoy travelling to Norway. I certainly have more than a passing interest in Nordic culture (particularly music), but there’s also something about exploring places such as this that keep me coming back. About as typical a scene of Norwegian cabins as you can get, Bakklandet is a region alongside the banks of the river Nidelva in Trondheim. It was here that I first witnessed the Northern Lights, in November 2017 (see some examples here), so it’s not suprising that it has a special place in my heart. On a return trip towards the end of 2019, with one of my best pals in tow, I set off once again to capture these iconic buildings. While the clouds obscured the sky, they create a moody backdrop for this picture, with a long exposure time of 4 minutes blurring them into a smooth background. What I love most about this picture however, other than the colourful cabins, which each seem to have their own personality, is how calm the river was, creating a mirror-like reflection. A combination of winds high up in the atmosphere but stillness over the surface of the river, along with double ND filters which cause some of the heavy vignetting seen in this photo, combine to create one of my favourite photos to date.

Technical details:

• Camera: Nikon D5300

• Lens: Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6G VR II Lens

• Filter: Tiffen ND1000 (3.0) 52mm x Gobe ND8 52mm

• Settings: 240s exposure time, f/10, ISO 100, 22mm focal length

• Taken: 4th December 2019 @ 13:53