Gunnarsson works as a photographer for the Icelandic news outlet Vísir and has spent years documenting his country’s most dramatic moments, from volcanic eruptions to lava swallowing the Blue Lagoon’s parking lot. One of his eruption photos was shortlisted in the 2025 Sony World Photography Awards. For this series, though, he turned his camera toward the sea. “The ocean is close to my heart, as it is to many Icelanders,” he told PetaPixel.
His photos follow the south coast from its raw, rocky western end to the black sand beaches farther east, showing waves exploding against cliffs, spray swallowing rock formations, and people standing tiny against the water. Reynisfjara, he says, is where the ocean feels most powerful. And in one of the photos he took there, Gunnarsson sees a face in the wave.
