Grundarfjörður shoreline

Kirkjufell doesn't need the waterfall: from the shoreline between the mountain and Grundarfjörður town, the peak stands over the fjord with water in front of it, and on calm days — mornings, most often — the reflection doubles it. Pull-offs along Route 54 and the harbour area in town give a run of stances, all quieter than the falls car park.

This is the flexible half of a Kirkjufell session. The beach below the road puts dark sand and wrack lines in the foreground; the harbour adds boats and working-town colour that most Kirkjufell photos never show; and in winter the low sun stays kind to faces here long after it has left the mountain's shaded side. For couples this is where the relaxed walking frames happen, with the peak as a constant companion rather than the whole subject.

Nothing much goes wrong here — that's the point of the spot. Park fully off the road in the marked pull-offs; Route 54 carries real traffic. Wind over the fjord kills reflections quickly, so if the water is glass, shoot the mirror frames first and the walking frames after. On aurora nights, this shoreline catches the lights over the mountain with none of the viewpoint's tripod crowd.