Hi there! My name is Charlotte (@charlottelittlewolf) and I'm excited to share my journey as a PDX Explorer with you.
A few months back I received every adventure photographer's dream: an invitation from Portland International Airport (@pdxairport) to explore and photograph in another country—Iceland. I had been dreaming of traveling to Iceland for years and this was my golden ticket. You can now fly non-stop from Portland to Iceland; winning!
Iceland is a dream for photography. The colors and textures of the landscape are exactly what I like to shoot. Waterfalls, black beaches, churches, volcanos and the Northern Lights all made for total sensory overload. It was a struggle to take it all in. If you plan to travel here, I’d say two weeks would be the ideal timeframe to see everything. My only wish was that we had more time to explore!
Iceland really is a very special place. I had been “friends” on social media with Joe Shutter (@joe_shutter) and Gunnar Freyr (@icelandic_explorer)—local Icelandic photographers—for a few years. I’m so glad we got to become friends in real life while we were there. They were SO welcoming and kind, and the trip wouldn’t have been the same without them.
Upon returning to Portland, I contracted a severe case of the post-Iceland blues. This place will be forever in my heart. Since we enjoyed our visit so much, my fiancé Josh (@joshstaygold) and I have decided to elope in Iceland next year with some of our dearest photographer friends and family. I cannot wait for our return!
Here are some photos I took on the journey—I hope you enjoy them.
