Hey there! I shot this week’s image in Oslo, Norway during a tour of Scandinavia with a close friend from college in August 2010. “Viking Ship Museum” was taken with an aperture of f/3.5 and shutter speed of 1/10, at ISO 800.
During my two and a half weeks in Scandinavia, I spent three days in the capital city of Oslo. For whatever reason, I always wanted to travel to Norway. I really can’t put my finger on what it was about the country that intrigued me so much, but it was always on my list of must sees. Oslo did not disappoint. It is a relatively small capital city compared to other major European cities, and therefore has a much calmer, easy going feel. The history, architecture, and culture were all incredibly beautiful, and the city itself was definitely one of the cleanest cities I’ve ever been to!
One of my favorite attractions was the Viking Ship Museum. Before we arrived, I really didn’t know what to expect. Obviously I knew I would be seeing Viking ships, but I beyond that I really wasn’t sure. I quickly realized the museum was more than just a space that housed Viking ships; it was more like a gallery with the ships on display as pieces of art. The museum itself is very small. Each room that connects to the central hub houses an individual ship as well as information about the history of Vikings. While the historical data was important, I felt like like the space really highlighted the craftsmanship of the ships. Visitors can walk around each vessel and view almost every inch of the ship. The room even had a small observation deck that allowed visitors to see down into the ships. By providing 360 degree access to the ships, I felt like I learned so much just by taking the time to truly see each ship. Rather than being bombarded with data, I was able to imagine the building process and how it once sailed through the water.
When I shot this image in particular, I wanted to capture the museum space as a gallery and highlight not just the ship itself, but the entire room where it resides, including the symmetry of the windows and lighting. I converted the image to black in white in order to represent the simplicity and beauty of the space.
Thank you for reading!
Hey Katy, what lens did you use?
With the large aperture and slow shutter speed I’d expect less depth of field. Is it the fast ISO ( oops, I almost said “film”) that produced the depth? Hand held or tripod? Love your work, so thoughtful. Thanks!
Hi Bob! I used a 16-85 mm lens. This photo specifically was shot with a focal length of 16 mm (converts to 24 mm with a 35 mm film camera), which helped maintain a deeper depth of field. The high ISO allowed me to hand hold the camera. Ideally I would have used a tripod for this setting since the lighting was on the lower side, but unfortunately the museum prevented me from doing so. Thank you so much for the comment and kind words!
Stunning!