Located within the Arctic Circle, the Lofoten Islands offer spectacular opportunities for photographers. We will soak in the dramatic landscapes, incredible fjords, crystal-clear sea against a backdrop of gigantic mountains, and authentic fishermen’s life in well-preserved old fishing villages. It is no accident that National Geographic considers Lofoten to be the third most beautiful island group in the world. The light can be extremely beautiful during the winter, offering prolonged sunrises and sunsets due to the low angle of the sun.
When the sun’s light fades, the Northern Lights might dance in the sky, and we will be ready to capture this unearthly spectacle. Here you can experience Aurora Borealis in all its glory, flowing over arctic beaches and rugged fjords.
Tour Highlights
- Iconic fishing villages Reine, Nusfjord, Hamnøy, and Å
- Beautiful beaches Uttakleiv, Skagsanden and Haukland
- Rough mountain ranges and pristine Norwegian fjords
- Capturing the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis)
- Learn Image post-processing like a pro
Date
14 – 21 February, 2025 – Sold out
13 – 20 February, 2026 – Spots available
Duration: 8 days
Difficulty
Photo Skills Beginner to Pro
Fitness Easy to Moderate
Group
Small group Max 10 participants
+ Two Photography Guides
Tour Price
Photo Tour Price: $3900 USD
(Double Occupancy)
Lofoten Photo Tour Itinerary
Let’s go explore the unique life of fishing villages surrounded by Norwegian fjords
“Some people in Lofoten believe that the Northern Lights is a visible form of angry gods, eager to scoop unsuspecting souls into the sky to roam across the darkness for all eternity”
Days 1 – 2
Upon your arrival at the airport in Leknes, we will take you directly to our hotel in town. You will be able to rest after the flight and meet everyone at dinner, where we will go over our plans and itinerary. The next morning, we will travel to Reine, one of the most beautiful fishing villages in Lofoten. Typical rorbu cabins right in this picturesque village will be our base for the upcoming four days.
With the iconic peak of Mount Olstind rising from the fjord, the traditional red huts, and a crystal-clear bay, it is a paradise for photographers any time of the day as well as at night when the aurora lights up the sky.
Days 3 – 4
We will explore the beautiful surroundings of Reine, especially Sakrisøy Island, where there is another charming fishing village known for its yellow fishermen’s huts. For sunsets and sunrises, we will explore the Arctic beaches around Flakstad, like beautiful Skagsanden Beach which often offers spectacular reflections of the surrounding mountain ranges.
We will be sure not to miss UNESCO site Nusfjord, one of the oldest and best-preserved fishing villages in Norway, and the iconic Hamnøy Bridge offering spectacular views of the traditional red fishing huts surrounded by majestic mountains.
Days 5 – 6
Depending on the weather and light conditions, we will alternate between Skagsanden, Uttakleiv, and Haukland beaches. Uttakleiv Beach with its impressive rocky shoreline and sandy middle section is one of the most impressive beaches on the archipelago. We will also pay a visit to the very end of the Lofoten Islands, where there is an authentic fishing village called Å with a diverse array of red fishing huts, cod-drying racks, and incredible mountain scenery.
Leaving Reine, we will slowly make our way to our second base, more centrally located on the archipelago, where we will be in a great position to explore the area and its Arctic scenery.
Days 7 – 8
We will explore the mountain range around Fredvangskrysset and another photogenic location – Storvatnet, a frozen lake where it is often possible to photograph ice cracks. On the way to central Lofoten, we will stop at floodlit Flakstad Kirke. This wooden church built in the 18th century resembles a ship; its ceiling is like an upturned hull.
We will constantly be selecting the best places to go based on the weather, and we will not stop chasing the Northern Lights.
General information
On the Lofoten Photo Tour, we will have two bases from where we will start our trips for sunrise, sunset, daylight, and night (chasing the Aurora Borealis). The distances between photography spots in Lofoten are not long. We can always adjust the itinerary in response to current weather conditions and select shooting locations accordingly.
The Lofoten Photo Tour focuses on the Northern Lights, and we will do our best to avoid missing any opportunity to photograph this phenomenon. The geographic position of the archipelago, absence of light pollution, and long winter nights, dramatically increase our chances of success. We will constantly be checking the KP index and solar activity so we are ready to go. After night shoots, we may sleep longer and adjust the upcoming day’s plans accordingly.
Winter temperatures in Lofoten are mild considering its location north of the Arctic Circle. The average temperature in January is around 0°C (32°F), but we must be prepared for very unpredictable weather conditions such as wind, snow, and rain. If there is heavy rain or a snowstorm and we are not able to go out shooting, we will focus on image post-processing or picture review in the warmth of our accommodation.
Drone photography in Lofoten?
Lofoten is an exceptional location also for aerial photography, and we suggest bringing your drone along if you can. Using drones in Lofoten offers unparalleled opportunities to capture its beautiful landscapes from unique and unusual angles. These aerial perspectives reveal intricate coastline patterns, dramatic mountain peaks, and serene fjords in ways ground-based photography cannot. Using drones in Lofoten is often limited by the region’s unpredictable weather conditions. However, we aim to capture its beauty responsibly and sustainably by respecting local policies and protected areas.
Learn post-processing like a pro
We know what your images need
Bring the touch of perfection to your digital images
Our Lofoten photo tour goes beyond capturing images. We also emphasize the crucial aspect of post-processing. Time permitting, we will conduct individual post-processing sessions to assist participants with workflows in Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, or other apps we use to make your photos stand out. Additionally, we can record the post-production techniques demonstrated, allowing you to easily replicate the process on your own and apply it in the future.
You may learn how to
- Organize your photos efficiently and speed up your workflow
- Develop RAW files with Lightroom, Photoshop, or other apps
- Work properly with color grading and enhancing mechanisms
- Apply edits partially using various types of selections, masking
- Blend multiple exposures or do focus stacking
- Use essential plugins to achieve various effects
- … and much more
Lofoten Photo Tour Details
What is Included & Excluded in the Price
Included
- Two professional photography guides
- 7 nights accommodation in cabins (double room occupancy)
- All transportation in rented cars
- Transfer from/to airport in Leknes
- One-to-one Image Post-Processing sessions
Excluded
- Airfare to/from Norway
- Food and beverages
- Optional single room occupancy (supplement $650 USD)
- Travel insurance and visa (if applicable)
- Equipment and baggage insurance
- Personal expenses such as laundry, phone, etc.
Accommodation & Food
We will be staying in a series of fully renovated cozy Rorbuer cabins right on the coast. Each cabin comes with a bathroom, two rooms, and a fully-equipped kitchen plus a living room. Each room is occupied by one (single occupancy) or two (double occupancy) persons. The surroundings are beautiful, and when the Northern Lights are dancing in the middle of the night, we can literally shoot from the windows.
Eating out in Norway is expensive. Participants can decide whether to eat at a restaurant or make their meals in the cabin kitchen.
Lofoten Photo Tour Leaders
We want you to get the most amazing pictures on our Norway – Lofoten Photo Tour whether you are a beginner, keen amateur or professional photographer. We strongly emphasize on individual approach so each of our participants gets the right infield guidance. Moreover, you will be in a group of people who share the passion for photography and you will expand your creative and post-processing skills. Let us show you the uniqueness of Lofoten and return with plenty of outstanding pictures and unforgettable memories.
Martin Bišof
Martin is a Prague based professional photographer and adventurer who has years of experience guiding photo workshops and also with a commercial shooting. He has traveled to more than 45 countries around the globe and has explored wonders from the depths of the Amazon rain forest to the high peaks of the Himalayas. His pictures have won awards internationally and appeared in various magazines. Read Martin’s full profile >
Pedro Kin
Portuguese landscape photographer and educator based in Slovakia. With a long list of destinations on his travel list, Pedro favors the unique landscapes and cold nature of northern Europe. He is regularly guiding photo tours in Lofoten, Patagonia, and Iceland. His portfolio includes not only classic work but also lesser-known locations on the Baltic Sea and the Tatras. Pedro’s photos have made it to several photography magazines.
Gallery | Lofoten Photo Workshop
& Behind the scenes
Testimonials | Lofoten Photo Workshop
Alan, USA
Hi Martin and Pedro. I am home now and showing my wife the pictures of our trip. I was very pleased with your tour and would recommend it to anyone considering on signing up.
It was a great group and I would definitely go on another trip!
Ada, Australia
It is my first time to join photography tour. It is well organised and with flexibility. I felt so relax and enjoy very much the whole trip and the spots Martin and Pedro brought us to. The spots are all wonderful and stunning. No matter how bad the weather was, we always had some good moment for shooting. It is really an insightful trip for me to learn photography in landscape shooting.
Nathalie, Canada
Awesome, awesome trip!
I had the pleasure to go to Lofoten Islands in Norway with Martin and Pedro this February ( 2023 ). It was a great experience! They were both very helpful and available at any time to help us with composition, technique, post-processing, gently critiquing our work and providing constructive criticism and always ready to answer any questions we might have.
Great atmosphere, a lot of good laughs. Accommodations were spot on, clean and simple. I will definitely book another tour with Martin at some point in the future!
Alden, San Francisco
My sister and I joined Martin’s trip to the Lofoten Islands to photograph the northern lights. The entire trip was very well organized – lodging, transportation, and some meals taken care of just as described, and the accommodations were all very nice.
The locations we visited were amazing and we got beautiful photos, including photos of the aurora! We really appreciated Martin’s local knowledge that allowed us to find the best locations for shooting depending on light and weather. One thing that made this trip extra-special was the one-on-one post-processing that Martin provided to help us organize and edit the many photos we were taking. I came home from the trip with amazing photos and an improved understanding of how to work with lightroom and photoshop to get the most out of those photos. I also really appreciated the small group setting and the amount of communication that Martin provided. We always knew what the plan was and what factors might cause us to re-evaluate the plan, such as weather. The whole group was able to provide input on what kind of photos we wanted to take and what techniques we were interested in learning about.
Overall an incredible trip and a great opportunity to improve my photography skills!
Bill & Karyn, USA
We’ve done three photography tours with Inscape: Iceland, New Zealand, and most recently, the Lofoten Islands. Each trip was well organized and executed. Martin, the owner, makes sure all the details are taken care of and if there any problems that arise, he takes care of them promptly behind the scenes. From a photography view, Martin is very talented and has a strong eye for composition. He is also strong in post-processing. He will help you as much as you would like, yet let you do your own thing if you prefer. He is patient, kind, and likes to help the participants learn new things. We’ve also been pleased with the additional guides he hires to assist on the trips. They have been equally talented and capable of running tours on their own!
We look forward to taking another photography tour with Inscape in the future. Maybe Africa…
Roger, USA
Excellent trip, Martin was a very good tour leader, locationg for shooting were top notch. Lodging was ideal for getting to know the local area. He also took extra time to help my daughter who was using a pro camera for the first time in 10 plus years.
Highly reccomend!
Ingo, UK
This was already my 3rd workshop with Inscape Photo Tours. Everyone of these trips are extremely well planned. Martin and Pedro made sure that everyone on this trip had a great experience. The group of photographers was very diverse and we all had a fantastic time. I am already looking forward to my next trip with them in the future.
Bo, USA
Great experience with Inscape and Pedro Kin leading our Lofoten workshop. We knew that seeing the northern lights depends on a few things including having clear weather and favorable solar activity, but Pedro made us a promise: if the lights are visible, he will make sure we see them. And he delivered! We also stopped at a number of places throughout the week to photograph beautiful fishing villages, beaches, and winter landscapes. Pedro clearly listens to his guests and accommodates requests to go back to certain spots or to include other locations in the itinerary whenever possible.
Thank you Pedro and Martin – looking forward to another trip with you in the future!
Teresa and Wing Wah, Canada
Lofoten, Another Unforgettable Exceptional Photo Tour with Inscape
This was our second time to have Photo Tour with Martin (Inscape Photo Tour). Last time, we had an exceptional great private tour in the Czech Republic; this time, as expected, we had filled up our camera’s memory cards with loads of wonderful and precious nice photos again. Not only having Martin, we also have Pedro together to arrange our tour schedule thoroughly making sure it went smoothly, choosing and showing us the good spots for composition even though the weather didn’t really cooperate with our original schedule all the time. Before taking off for the photo tour, our concern was the unpredictable change of the weather conditions. During the flight to Lofoten from Oslo, the announcement from the flight captain already warned us of the high wind condition reaching the limit possibly with problem for landing. We were worried if we would have good weather for taking good photos in this condition such as those nice and good photos we have seen from Martin and Pedro. No matter what we might encounter, we would like to go and explore and to enjoy taking such nice photos.
Definitely, Martin and Pedro took care of our concerns, always ready and had the alternative plan to work around the bad weather without our worrying. Professional post-processing discussion and teaching and peer-to-peer photos sharing were some of the alternative options too. In addition, they were very familiar with the area and showed us the best spots to capture the best scenes in different weather conditions.
We will definitely have more photo tours again with Martin and Pedro. Tours to Iceland and Patagonia are in our bucket list!
Sandra, USA
This trip was fantastic thanks to Martin’s great planning and enthusiasm. Every detail was well executed from the lodging to the photography locations. I did not know any of the participants beforehand other than Martin. The group was diverse, engaging and alot of fun. Everyone was willing to share their knowledge and enthusiasm for getting some great shots. Even when weather did not cooperate, there were plans for expanding our photo processing skills at every level.
I would not hesitate to book another amazing tour with Inscape Photo Tours. Hopefully, soon.
James, USA
The Lofted Photo Tour was not on my ‘bucket list’, but having gone I would recommend ALL make this trip sometime with Martin. At 74 years of age, I was the oldest on the trip. I joined my brother and sister-in-law and left with more photograph memories than I could imagine. From the minute we got to Norway, our trip began with building a memory…..one day at a time. Martin and Pedro had photography planned before we got to our hotel room. They monitored the weather and times to view the Northern Lights. We were told from beginning to the end of the tour, what to bring for warm clothing, weather, lens, shoes, jacket, etc.. If the weather changed, we changed with it to do post-processing or learn ways to improve our picture taking.
Many years ago I made up my mind to ‘find people doing and going where I want to go in life and grow old with them’. This was my third trip with Inscape and I can hardly wait for the next. You don’t need a large group to have a BIG memory. Martin keeps the size of the group at a size that you feel that you are treated personally with all your questions and desire to learn.
Ilian, Bulgaria
Since my last trip with Martin and his crew at Inscape Photo Tours, and the wonderful people I was able to meet in Iceland. I was eager to make another one and it was on… Lofoten 2020 Wow such a blast having to meet all the same people and have one of my best time in my life with such a rich country with beautiful landscapes and vistas.
To me Inscape Photo Tours is not only about the actual photo tour and be able to be in front of outstanding landscape, it is about meeting with great people exchange knowledge and most importantly make friends with whom to spend more good times like this. Thank you all for the great time and experience, stay safe and well, for till our next photo tour <3
Eric, Canada
I’ve been on three workshops with Inscape and can’t wait for the next one! Iceland, New Zealand and the Lofoten Islands were all bucket list trips. Martin and the team at Inscape delivered amazingly! I finished the workshops with photos ready for my portfolio and up onto my walls. Inscape bends over backwards to ensure that we get the best possible results providing as much or as little help as needed with compositions, making use of light and post processing.
Martin and the team at Inscape again delivered an awesome workshop. Despite bad weather, we had many opportunities to take incredible pictures worthy of any portfolio. Martin and Pedro’s advice on composition, use of light and post-processing were indispensable.
I’ve never been on a workshop where the guides don’t sleep, but are constantly checking weather and aurora conditions to ensure we get the best possible shots! The tour was filled with fun, laughs and great company. I am already planning my next trip with them!
Caroline, France
I cannot recommend Inscape Photo Tours more highly. I met Martin after doing a morning photography class in Prague and was so impressed with him that I decided to come on one of his multi-day package trips. I am so glad that I did! My sister, who is a much better photographer than me, met me in Norway and we visited the Lofoten Islands, which were incredibly beautiful. We met up with the rest of our small group and our two guides and quickly formed some new friendships. Everything was organized for us so we really didn’t need to think much, which was great! All of our accommodation was really nice and also within proximity of insane views.
At first, I thought I wouldn’t be taking great photos because I am such an amateur, but with the help of Martin and our other guide Pedro I got the MOST AMAZING PICTURES! I can’t even believe I took them!
Turns out when you have professionals teaching you how to take and edit photos, as well as chauffeuring you around to the best spots during the right times for the best light, you too can be an amazing photographer.
I learned so much and had a fabulous time. I will definitely be doing another trip with this company in the future. This was a once in a lifetime experience, and I am so thankful.