{"id":8809,"date":"2019-10-25T17:36:55","date_gmt":"2019-10-25T21:36:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/andreamaicreative.com\/?p=8809"},"modified":"2019-10-25T17:36:55","modified_gmt":"2019-10-25T21:36:55","slug":"when-god-answered-my-prayers-evp-september-24-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andreamaicreative.com\/archive\/when-god-answered-my-prayers-evp-september-24-2019\/","title":{"rendered":"WHEN GOD ANSWERED MY PRAYERS – EVP September 24, 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

A week before going to Iceland, I checked the forecast, it was said to be rainy all week for the time I was going to be there. So I prayed every night asking that the weather would not ruin my trip and seeing the Northern Lights. As the week progressed, it appeared that there was a good chance that the clouds would clear up later in the week, making it a good possibility for seeing the lights. However, we had a scheduling issue, as one group member had to leave early, so we had to cram in the schedule so that she would make the most of her shortened trip. This meant that one of the evening tours had to be scheduled for the first day upon our arrival. The tour included hunting for Northern Lights. And the forecast was showing rain and clouds.<\/p>\n

I continued to pray that somehow we could still see the Northern Lights.<\/p>\n

We arrived that early morning with rain. Though the rain had stopped later in the morning, it was still cloudy. That early evening, as we got on the tour bus, the sun had come out, and the skies had cleared. And there appeared a rainbow!<\/p>\n

The tour took us to Secret Lagoon, a lesser known hot spring spa. Truly a delight to bathe in the natural geo thermal water coming from the streams. The minerals and algae in the water is revitalizing, leaving the skin smooth and supple. I really liked this one, as the mini lake had varying levels of heat. Iceland has the best water sources in he world, and even just showering in the tap water is amazing.<\/p>\n

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\u00a92019 by Andrea Mai. All rights reserved.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Before dinner, the guide told us that he wasn’t optimistic that we would see any lights. It was explained to us that the conditions were not good. It was still cloudy. But after dinner, the skies were looking clearer, snd we could see the stars. He said he was a bit more optimistic about it. I kept praying. You can see in the photos, how cloudy it was.<\/p>\n

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\u00a92019 by Andrea Mai. All rights reserved.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We drove for a bit and I got my tripod ready. He took us to a spot on the side of the road and we saw the Northern Lights peaking through the clouds!<\/p>\n

Photographing the Northern Lights is new to me, even though I am experienced in night photography, this is different, as you are photographing something in the dark. The screen on the back of the camera can only pick up a tiny bit of the light. Manual settings have to be used, you have to be prepared beforehand. I was too quick to start photographing before making sure that I got the camera lens adjusted to the most optimal focus length. There isn’t much time to waste, as the lights are only there for a moment. I managed to get 57 \u00a0frames in a single position. And with that I was able to string all the photos together into this 7 second video of the Northern Lights. By the way, that is me playing guitar in the music.<\/p>\n