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Iceland is a place of rich folklore and abounds in many ancients myths and Viking tales. Most of the Viking mythology was written down in Old Norse language in Iceland to be preserved and passed onto future generations.

It is hard not to feel the power of these myths when one is confronted with rugged and surreal Icelandic landscape. Stokksnes is one place that made me feel the awe of this land. I could lose myself completely in the rugged and dark beauty of Vestrahorn mountains surrounded by the black sand dunes and listening to the sound of the ocean.

There is a number of possibilities for various compositions at this location. However, what attracted me to Stokksnes in the first place were the strange dunes with the green grass growing out of black sand. There are so many interpretations of this scene and that made it hard to come up with something different. I tried to focus a little away from the main dunes and used the two flatter spots with brighter grass to hopefully grab the eye of the viewer and let it "hop" across towards the dunes and the mountain.

With the light being rather flat I went for a long exposure to add some mood into the scene and the strong movement of clouds added a touch of that mystic feel that I was looking for. I also looked for a spot that was reasonably free of footprints to minimise any elements that might detract from the main composition.

It is a place that I will want to definitely re-visit if we get a chance to return to Iceland again.