Reykjavík Grapevine - jún. 2023, Blaðsíða 30

The Reykjavík Grapevine 6 / 23 30Travel
Travel Feature Birdwatching
With A Pro
Learning to “catch and release,” the birder’s way*
WORDS Iryna Zubenko
IMAGES Art Bicnick &
Sigurjón Einarsson
I vividly remember the moment
I met with friends after lockdown.
Everyone was sharing their
pandemic hobbies and, as you
can imagine, there was a lot of sour-
dough and banana bread baked over
those months. One friend, however,
proclaimed her new found passion
for birdwatching. She mentioned
an app where you can track the birds
you see. It sounded like a perfect
hobby – learning something new,
experiencing a sense of achieve-
ment when spotting a new bird and
spending time in nature (although,
as I’d soon discover, that’s not
entirely necessary).
Fuelled by curiosity to learn more
about birds and how to spot them
without travelling too far outside the
city, I sought out avid bird watcher
and bird photographer Sigurjón
Einarsson.
GETTING STARTED
After bouncing each other a few
emails, Sigurjón and I agree to meet
at a gas station outside Reykjavík.
It’s not hard to spot Sigurjón – you
immediately notice a pair of binocu-
lars on his windshield. We follow his
car for half an hour to the Flói Nature
Reserve. A couple of times, the lead
car would stop and we’d spy a giant
lens poke out the window, eliciting a
slight jealousy from the Grapevine’s
lesser-equipped staff photographer
– bird paparazzo Sigurjón snaps
a few shots before I can blink. As
we arrive at our destination he jokes:
“I have to travel a lot all over Iceland
for work and this one is always with
me,” he points at his camera. “Some-
times my wife comes with me, so she
has to sit in the back – this one has
the front seat.”
“Do you need such a big camera to
go birdwatching?” I ask, wondering
if I could even lift that thing. Sigurjón
reassures me that you don’t really
need a camera or, in fact, leave
the city.
His passion goes back to childhood,
when he was spending time with his
In the beginning, I went out
and just photographed birds.
Today, I usually go out because
I have a photo in my mind.