Puffins & Birds in West Iceland Photo Workshop

This is a new photo workshop for the summer of 2025. In this workshop, we’ll photograph the world-famous puffins and other sea birds that have summer residency in Iceland. The workshop will take place in the western part of Iceland. It’s a remote area that allows you to enjoy quiet nature, far away from bustling tourists. We’ll limit our travel time by staying three nights at each location, giving us the perfect opportunity to be out and about to capture the best light in the late evening or early morning and then rest midday when most visitors are around.

We will see beautiful landscapes with deep fjords, unique waterfalls, and dramatic seascapes and experience the fishing culture in small remote towns in Iceland. Our primary focus is the Atlantic puffin, as Iceland is one of the best places to photograph these magical birds. With 8 to 10 million puffins inhabiting the island, Iceland is home to more than 60% of the world’s entire Atlantic puffin population.

We’ll explore Snæfellsnes Peninsula, best known by photographers for the picturesque Mount Kirkjufell and its neighboring waterfall. Still, the area offers so much more, with moving landscapes and abundant of beautiful seascapes. It’s also one of three national parks in Iceland. The entire peninsula is a bird photographer’s paradise. It is where 60 out of 77 of Iceland’s bird species nest, and additional passage migrants stop on their route between Europe and Greenland or Canada. There are endless landscape photography options with many different seascapes, rock formations, glaciers, lava fields, and even whales.  Places like the Black Church of Budir, Arnarstapi, and Lonsdrangar are also in this workshop’s itinerary.

We will visit Grímsey island out of Drangsnes, one of Iceland’s most thrilling bird-watching spots. It’s an awe-inspiring place that provides terrific close-range opportunities for bird photographers. Grimsey is home to thousands of birds, including puffins, gannets, guillemots, razorbills, white-tailed eagles, red-throated loons, arctic terns, redshanks, snipes, auks, murres, kittiwakes, fulmars, snow buntings, and ringed plovers, to name a few. The Westfjords have much to offer photographers, and the landscapes will not disappoint.

This workshop combines wildlife and landscape photography in one of Iceland’s most beautiful regions, providing ample opportunities to refine your skills and capture breathtaking images.