Tag: #geyser

What to Expect in Yellowstone

I had never been to Yellowstone National Park before, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. We were going to see the thermal zone — geysers including Old Faithful and some boiling mud. I had seen geysers and boiling mud before in New Zealand and Iceland, so I was prepared to be “underwhelmed.” I was wrong. We were in for feelings of excitement and lots of “wow” moments.

Our day began at “West Thumb,” a thermal zone and large lake with boiling mud and geysers. I was captivated. As the geysers steamed and bubbled, I composed my photos of the simple yet other-worldly beauty.

Steam rises from the boiling geysers at the edge of West Thumb in Yellowstone National Park.
Shapes of the land, water and sky make a nearly abstract scene at West Thumb in Yellowstone.

“Thar She Blows”

“Thar She Blows” was the cry of a sailor spotting a whale, but the expression came to mind as we stood waiting for the Icelandic geyser to explode with a massive force of steaming water.

About every 10 minutes, Iceland’s Strokkur geyser puts on a show — shooting hot water about 30 meters into the air. It’s a dramatic natural phenomenon that you can watch only a few places in the world. Yellowstone National Park and the north island of New Zealand are two other sites that come to mind. Geysers are an indication that you are standing in a volcanic landscape.

You would be well advised to keep your children and yourself out of the line of fire, but not everyone follows the rules or exercises good judgement.

#howto, #geyser, #geysir, #freezemotion, #iceland, #stokkur, #nikon
I chose to freeze motion with 1/1000 second exposure and f/11, the focal length that would keep the whole scene in focus. F/8 and f/11 will also give you a sharp image, edge to edge.

#strokkur, #iceland, #geyser, #geysir, #nature, #howto, #nikon
Strokkur reaches a height of about 30 meters. It’s startling to observe its power.

Geothermal Iceland

An active geothermal field of steaming, bubbling, and erupting hot water can be found a few hours from Reykjavik, Iceland. The “Litli Geysir” (little gusher, pronounced “gay-zeer”), is the name and place that originated the English word “geyser.”

#geyser, #geysir, #iceland, #boiling, #geothermal, #caution, #hot
This geothermal field is a good place to obey the signs about keeping your distance. Even the streams can be boiling hot, and you wouldn’t want to slip and fall and get burned, or step into mud and sink.

The geothermal field reveals its wide color palette, from yellow to green to blue and purple.  Steam escapes from many vents in the Earth.

#landscape, #iceland, #geothermal, #steam, #colors, #nature
Volcanic mountains and evergreens create a peaceful backdrop to the geothermal field.

#iceland, #steam, #geothermal, #hot, #sulphur, #landscape, #photography, #nature
Speculating that sulfur deposits may account for the yellow stain on the rocks underlying the hot stream here. As the water dries on the rock, the sulfur oxidizes. Notice ruins of a building to the left near the steam vents.