p.1 #1 · Where the Road Meets the Arctic – Fredvang, Lofoten
This shot was taken at this location only on the fifth or sixth attempt. There was exactly one moment when it actually worked, and even that was just barely.
The wind there is often extreme, as the mountains act like a funnel, channeling and intensifying the gusts at this exact spot. You wait for those brief, calmer moments between the heavy gusts, when things settle just enough for a few minutes before turning back into a storm again.
I had originally planned to shoot a panorama here, but that is simply impossible under these conditions. You are already lucky if you manage to get a few decent single shots.
At one point, my drone even started drifting and could barely hold its position against the wind. In conditions like this, I always make sure to keep at least 50 percent battery reserve, and even with that, it became very tight in the end. For a few minutes, I had already written the drone off in my mind. At that point, it is pure luck whether the wind calms down just enough in time to make it back before the battery runs out.
After that scare, the next one followed immediately. I had left the remote control on the roof of the car. Only 40 kilometers later, at a parking spot, I suddenly thought while getting out: what is that lying up there? For the first few seconds, I did not even realize that it was actually my own remote. To this day, I can hardly believe that it survived the entire ride on top of the car. And even more unbelievable, it did not rain during that time for once.
That day, I truly felt like I had used up all my luck. Someone must have been looking out for me.
