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kottke.org posts about Ryan Newburn

The Otherworldly Ice Caves of Iceland

posted by Jason Kottke   May 16, 2023

a lone figure stands silhouetted in the entrance of a blue ice cave with the northern lights behind them

a lone figure silhouetted in the entrance of a blue ice cave, descending on a rope

Well, I don’t think these photos of Icelandic ice caves by Ryan Newburn need much explanation. Stunning. I found these photos via Colossal, which has more information about how they were taken.

Occupying such an ancient and always evolving space is an experience that’s difficult to photograph, Newburn shares, because the constant trickle of melting water, the roar of distant rivers, or even the unique interplay of light and glacier are impossible to depict entirely. “Underneath the ice, where the sun cannot penetrate,” he says, “your eyes slowly adjust from the bright sun to the glowing deep blue crystal walls of the ice cave. The more that your eyes adjust, the more saturated the blue gets. It’s a surreal visual experience that you cannot get from any photo of an ice cave.”

If you’d like to see some of these places for yourself, Newburn runs a tour company called Ice Pic Journeys.