Westman Islands photoshoot: the day trip that hinges on the ferry

The ferry decides your day

Only Heimaey is inhabited, and almost everyone arrives on the Herjólfur. From Landeyjahöfn, on the south coast about two hours from Reykjavík, the crossing takes roughly thirty-five minutes. When weather or drifting sand closes that harbour — which happens, particularly outside summer — the sailing is rerouted to Þorlákshöfn and the crossing becomes two and a half to three hours instead.

What that means in practice:

• Check the sailing on the day, not the week before. Departure point and times can change at short notice.
• Book vehicle space well ahead in summer if you are bringing a car. Foot passengers have an easier time of it, and on Heimaey you can manage without a car if your session stays near town.
• Build slack into the schedule. A two-hour session with a same-day return sailing is comfortable; a two-hour session with the last boat forty minutes after it is not.
• There is also a short flight from Reykjavík, which is the reliable option when the sea is not co-operating.

Once you are on the island, distances stop mattering. The whole of Heimaey fits inside a fifteen-minute drive, which is why a two-hour session in the Westman Islands covers more ground than two hours almost anywhere else in the country.

A two-hour loop around Heimaey

The classic loop has four scenes and they are genuinely different from one another:

The harbour entrance. The ferry comes in through a gap in the cliffs that feels like a gate, and the same walls frame the harbour from the shore. Boats, water, black rock — this is the island's establishing shot.

Eldfell. The red cinder cone that erupted in 1973 and buried a third of the town rises straight above the houses and can be walked in about half an hour. The colour is unlike anything on the mainland: rust-red scoria against a grey sea. The ground is loose, so this is a boots-and-layers scene, not a heels one.

Herjólfsdalur. A green amphitheatre of a valley ringed by cliffs, soft underfoot and sheltered from most wind directions. The gentlest part of the loop and the natural choice for a family session on Heimaey — small children can run here without anyone holding their breath.

The town. Coloured houses, fishing gear, the lava field that stops at the edge of somebody's garden. Good in flat light, which the islands supply generously.

Puffins, and the closures to check first

Stórhöfði, the headland at the southern tip, is the windiest place in Iceland and holds the largest puffin colony in the world. The birds are ashore from roughly May to mid-August, and in that window the cliffs are extraordinary — thousands of them, close enough to photograph without a long lens.

Two things to get right. Parts of the cliffs and reserves close during nesting, and the dates move from year to year with the birds; check the current status before you fix a date rather than turning up and hoping. And once you are there, distance is the whole etiquette: burrows are shallow and easily collapsed underfoot, so stay on the paths and let the birds come closer to you rather than the other way round. If you want a drone in the frame, check the local rules first — bird cliffs and nesting sites are exactly where restrictions apply.

By late August the puffins are gone. That is not a reason to skip the islands; it is a reason to shoot the harbour, Eldfell and the town instead, which is the itinerary that works in every other month.

Wind and cliff edges

The islands are the windiest corner of a windy country, and the drops here are sheer and unfenced. Both facts shape how a session runs.

Cliff edges first: the lip is often undercut and the ground near it can be softer than it looks, so photographers here work well back from the edge and use a long lens to compress the drop instead of standing on it. No frame is worth the last two metres.

Then the wind, which is a wardrobe problem as much as a safety one. Veils and loose long hair need a plan — tied, braided, or deliberately loose with the wind behind you — and a coat that keeps its shape beats one that flaps. Our guide to what to wear for a photoshoot in Iceland covers the layering; on Heimaey, add that the ferry deck itself is cold even in July.

When to come

May to mid-August is puffin season, long light and the reliable ferry. In June and July the evenings stay bright until well past eleven, so an eight or nine o'clock session gets low, warm light and an empty town.

September and October trade the birds for autumn colour in Herjólfsdalur, quieter streets and a good chance of dramatic sky.

Winter is a gamble on the boat and a gift when it runs: storm light on coloured houses, spray coming over the harbour wall, and long blue afternoons. Keep a spare day in the itinerary and treat the crossing as the variable.

Pairing it with the south coast

Landeyjahöfn sits in the middle of the south coast route, which makes the islands easy to slot into a longer trip. Dyrhólaey and Vík are an hour east, and the whole run of waterfalls and black beaches is covered in our South Coast photo guide. A common two-day shape: south coast on day one, islands on day two, with the ferry booked both ways in advance.

Travelling with children? The short crossing, the swimming pool in town and the pony-sized distances make Heimaey an unusually easy day, and our notes on family photoshoots in Iceland with kids apply here more happily than they do on a windswept glacier.

Book it

Every photographer sets the price of each of their packages, and every price shown is all-inclusive — nothing is added at checkout. Browse the photographers, compare their packages on duration, region and photo count, and book the one that fits; your edited gallery usually lands within about a week. Ferry tickets and flights are yours to book and are not part of the session price.

Tell your photographer which sailing you are on when you book — that single detail is what turns a tight day into a relaxed one. Browse photographers covering the south coast and the islands, or start with a couples session on Heimaey or a family shoot if you already know the shape of the day.

Frequently asked questions

How long does the ferry to the Westman Islands take?

From Landeyjahöfn on the south coast, about thirty-five minutes. When weather or drifting sand closes that harbour the sailing is rerouted to Þorlákshöfn and takes two and a half to three hours instead, which changes the whole day. Check the departure point and time on the day itself, book vehicle space ahead in summer, and keep slack around your session. There is also a short flight from Reykjavík.

When can you photograph puffins on Heimaey?

Roughly from May to mid-August, when the birds are ashore and the Stórhöfði colony — the largest in the world — is at its busiest. Parts of the cliffs and reserves close during nesting and the dates shift each year, so check the current closures before fixing a date. On site, stay on the paths: burrows sit just under the surface and collapse easily underfoot.

Is a day trip long enough for a photoshoot in the Westman Islands?

Yes, comfortably, as long as the ferry co-operates. Everything on Heimaey is within a fifteen-minute drive, so a two-hour session can cover the harbour, the Eldfell cone, the Herjólfsdalur valley and the town without rushing. The risk is never the island; it is the crossing. Book both sailings in advance and leave an hour of margin before the return boat.

Do the Westman Islands work for a family session?

They work unusually well. The crossing is short, the distances are tiny, and Herjólfsdalur is a sheltered green valley where small children can run without anyone worrying about cliffs or traffic. Keep the cliff-top viewpoints for the adults-only part of the loop, dress everyone for wind rather than for the forecast temperature, and plan around naps rather than around light.