Arctic Horses Story.  After returning to Reykjavik from Egilsstadir, the next day we were thrilled to work with the local creative, Icelandic Selkie.  We met her at the Arctic Horses ranch near Grindavik. Icelandic horses are a unique breed only found in Iceland.  1000 years ago, Vikings brought the ancestors of the current horses to the Island. Iceland does not allow any other horses to enter the country, and once a horse is sold overseas, they are not allowed to come back in order to keep the breed pure.  There are more horses than people on the island (450,000 to 350,000). They are allowed to roam freely on ranches and in the interior highlands in the spring and summer and then rounded up in the winter to be put in stables. They are smaller than most horses with beautiful long manes and tails. They also have a unique gait that makes them a very smooth ride over the rough countryside of Iceland.  So, I was thrilled we had the opportunity to include them in our creativity. Selkie is a horse woman, while Anastasia had limited exposure.  At one point one of the horses bucked Selkie off, but she fell like the champ she is with no injury.  So, it was a pleasure to see Anastasia warm to the animals and enjoy the experience.  We shot with lava fields and mountains in the background. Anastasia and Selkie worked well together and these are some of my favs from the trip.

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Kleifarvatn Lake. Selkie next guided us to the largest lake in this part of Iceland to a portion with unique rock formations. Anastasia is an accomplished photographer and we both enjoyed shooting Selkie.  Anastasia would jump in and out of being shot with Selkie and then shooting her.  At one point I captured her shooting Silkie.....how many model /photographer's pose and shoot simultaneously! I captured some masterpieces of them both as they interacted so beautifully together.

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Shipwreck. This part of Iceland is known for its shipwrecks. Our next location was an old ship wreck that had been hauled up on land and dropped on top of a pile of lava rocks. The twisted and rusty hull was the perfect backdrop for Selkie's pale complexion and red hair. We then finished the day with my shooting both of them among the lava rocks. It always amazes me how models make laying on rocks look like they are lounging on cushions! 

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Blue Crystal Sunrise. We had a sheer skirt  and top made entirely out of strings of crystals that we had planned on shooting on the black sand Diamond Beach among the little icebergs that wash up there from the nearby glacier lagoon. Alas....there were no diamonds on the beach because they had been melted by intense rain when we were there.  The outfit seemed too glammy for any other location that we shot since then (not to mention hard to take on and off). On the next to last day, we found blue water among black lava rock that was perfect. The next morning we were at that site at 5:30 am as the sun was rising.  The rising sun cast a golden glow on Anastasia with the sparkling crystals accentuated by the blue waters.  True to her dedication, I could not believe she got into the muddy water in 45F degree weather to get the best shots. The stunning result speaks for itself!  We then ran back to the car and headed to the airport with Anastasia maneuvering to get out of the costume. An hour later, we hugged each other good-bye and the most epic trip of my life was over!

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