This is #13 in my series ‘Making of 40 Photographs’. Dramatic light should be on everyone's list for photo making. It's often tempting to put the camera away when it's raining or when a storm is coming. But for me, it's the exact opposite.

I spent a month in Iceland, and before I went, I had done a lot of research on the places I wanted to visit. So here I was in the highlands of Iceland at a place called Landmannalaugar. It's only reachable by a very shaky bus trip over very rough ground and crossing a few rivers too during the short summer months, or by foot on the very rewarding Landmannalaugar to Porsmork trek.

I spent a few days here scouting out the location and waiting for some good light. On my fourth night here, it started to look pretty stormy, so I headed for the top of Mt Blahnukur with my Mamiya 7 and pile of lenses. I shot this using the 150mm lens (equivalent to a 75mm lens in 35mm land). It is one of the sharpest lenses in the Mamiya 7 line up. I love the graduations of tones on the hills and the sky.

I remember spending time up on the hill, watching the storm come in and just enjoying the peace while I watched events unfold before me. Sometimes, even if I don't get a picture, just the experience of being there is enough. In this instance, I did feel I got something quite memorable, which only heightens the experience for me.