The photographer is looking for generalized feedback about the aesthetic and technical qualities of their image.
Description
This is the Oseberg Viking Ship and was used for the burial of two women.
It is circa 1,200 years old.
These were taken during my last trip to Norway in July of 2018.
I wish that I had of had a wider angle lens with me for these shots, the 18-105 lens at 18mm was not wide enough to get it all in the frame and there wasn’t enough time to do a series of shots for stitching. As I recall, we only had about an hour since we had to walk about a 1.5 miles to catch the last ferry of the day, we had a house rented on the other side of the bay and it was our last day in Oslo so not much time for such an interesting subject.
I also photographed at least 100 other artifacts from various Viking excavations.
This museum is currently closed because they are in the process of building a brand new facility so they can add more artifacts and to better preserve what they already have, the new building is due to be completed sometime on 2026.
Specific Feedback
These were somewhat poorly composed due to lack of time, the lack of a 12mm lens and being inside of a building so please forgive the compositions.
I was quite surprised that there weren’t a lot more people there but they said that an hour earlier it was packed full of tourists, we got lucky
I can’t go back for alternate perspectives
So, anything that you can think of in terms of processing?
Technical Details
These were all shot with a Sony a6000 with an 18-105 f/4 lens at 18mm, 1/200s, various aperture openings (f/5.6 - f/11 - I think) and ISO between 400 and 3200.
Ps for all adjustments and cloning of minor distractions (mostly white dots on the hull used for electronic measuring equipment).
I like all of these images, Merv. You did well with the lens limitation. The bow image is especially striking. In the early 1980s, I lived just down the road from this museum and used to catch the bus to work at the museum bus stop. My house overlooked the Framhuset just on the other side of the inlet. Unfortunately, I was not into photography at the time, other than family photos.
I’d say on a calendar scale of aging items posted in this WC theme this might be the oldest representation for sure, Merv. It’s obvious the challenges you were faced with in being able to get in and around the museum to gather some images. These all fit the marksmanship of providing some understanding and scale of the Viking Ship… Amazing how low the sides seem on these units with thoughts of rough seas crashing over the sides. Maybe if they only saw Fiord usage the water was not that turbulent?
Our high school teams were the Vikings and our class year books were called the Valhalla…
I remember a bus stop and an old phone booth at the museum, must be the same one. We thought about catching a bus there but decided it was quicker to just walk since it was all downhill to the harbor from the museum.
That makes me think the old saying: “It’s a small world after all”
This is the first time I’ve posted an image from another country where someone said they used to live there, that’s just really cool to me!!
That entire area was just a gorgeous place to visit.
I wanted to visit the Fram Museum, unfortunately we didn’t have enough time.
Yeah, I guess it would be hard to beat in terms of age but I never considered that aspect when I posted these.
The other WC entries are far better composed than mine!
Honestly, I saw this as a good opportunity to share these images outside of the non-nature category.
Actually, these vessels were commonly used for full blown high seas travel.
They were designed to be able to withstand the open sea but still have a shallow draft for navigating rivers once they arrived at their destination.
From what I’ve read, the people sailing the seas in these ships had to be very diligent and very strong as well as having extensive seamanship abilities, one sideways approach to a large wave could be detrimental.
I’ve had a lifelong fascination with the Viking era, specifically the ship building process. The design, craftsmanship and materials that went into these vessels was astonishing for the time to say the least! Even the math concerning the calculated buoyancy of the wood was heavily considered, they wanted it to float like a cork even with a heavy load.
Now that’s pure cool, we were “Yellow Jackets” Hmm… just not as cool as yours in my view! Lol
Ah, you’ve hit my weak spot here Merv. I am, and have been for very many years, besotted with all things Viking. A trip to Norway is in order I think…but the carbon emissions may play on my mind a bit much and take the edge off of it .
Do I wish the vikings had made it here to NZ…probably not!
Thankyou for these images and the accompanying details.
Cheers.
Thank you so much for commenting!
Yeah, I am besotted by all things Viking as well! I only wish that I had more time at the museum since it was likely my one and only chance to see it in person.
I’ve come to be more conscious of carbon emissions over the past few years and I find myself making a list of errands, then when the list is full enough I’ll try to get it all done in one outing rather than doing several outings in an effort to do my part.
BTW, the museum is closed to the public while they build a new facility, I think the new one is due to be completed sometime in 2026.
I have a few more images of things like wooden sleds, wheels, carvings, etc. that I’ll try to process and post sometime in the near future, I’ve been meaning to do that anyway.
Yeah, the Vikings were a serious threat to many when they went on raids but they are an interesting part of world history to me.
Like the ship shown here, they said there were two women buried in it which is kind of odd but I’ve read where some think that only one was being honored, the second woman could have been the personal Slave/Servant of the honored woman (Shield Maiden?). They claim that the Shield Maiden would need her personal Slave/Servant with her in Valhalla.
Along with the Shield Maiden and Slave/Servant, they buried food, ale and other items that were part of their everyday lives.
What gorgeous, graceful shapes these boats had – you did a fine job of capturing them! The history is very interesting, too. Years ago I was somewhere in northern Germany or maybe southern Denmark and an excavation of a Viking ship or boat of some sort was underway, but there wasn’t much to see yet. I don’t think it was anything this grand.
I can easy imagine a Viking excavation in that part of the world, the Viking era was a few hundred years long (circa year 800-1100) and they often buried their honored dead in anything from small canoes, wheeled wagons, snow sleds and large raiding ships so it’s hard to know what they found in the excavation site you saw.
Some were burned in canoes and small river boats but I’m not sure why some were buried while others were burned.
Some of the burial ships were discovered in England in the 1930s just before WWII broke out.
It is believed that some of Hitler’s bombs destroyed a few of those burial sites but that’s probably just rumor.
Very interesting piece of world history!
I think my interest is more with their structural ingenuity, mathematics & applications and knowledge of wood & craftsmanship. Even their homes and village hall buildings were built to last hundreds of years.
I think the new Viking museum is being built to have enough room for all of the discoveries during the last few decades as well as potential undiscovered items.
Amazing how low the sides seem on these units with thoughts of rough seas crashing over the sides. Maybe if they only saw Fiord usage the water was not that turbulent?
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