Iza Grabska Photography

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Iza Grabska Photography

As a landscape and nature photographer, I’m constantly drawn to the raw beauty and the peaceful, yet powerful, presence of the natural world.

Even people seem more beautiful in the midst of nature.

08/12/2025

Second Time's the Charm: Mastering the Blend at Overstrand
I wanted to share this shot from Overstrand, Norfolk—a true exercise in contrast and patience!

I call this "Two Worlds in One Frame." It blends the peaceful, silky flow of the North Sea, captured via long exposure, with the vibrant, frozen motion of the fishing boat and the gull. It’s all about capturing the quiet resilience found on the North Norfolk coastline.

For the old hands and veterans in photography, this blended exposure is standard stuff. But for me, this is only the second time I've attempted it! I'm already exhausted 😅🤪 but it was so much fun shooting and editing. Perhaps I was just a bit lazy to try it sooner, but I'm glad I did!

The technique required combining:

Long Exposure: To achieve the serene 'silk water' effect.

Fast Exposure: To freeze the movement of the boat and bird, ensuring they weren't ghosted blurs against the mist.

It might not be a 'perfect' or 'wow-effect' final image, but I genuinely love the learning curve and the entire creative process!😁🤪😅

02/12/2025

Sheringham beach - Norfolk - storms in black and white vs. color.
The B&W version is actually two images blended together: a shorter exposure to keep the cloud detail sharp and dramatic, plus a long exposure for the smooth, dreamy water. Getting both elements right in a single frame is nearly impossible, so blending gives you the best of both worlds.
Which version speaks to you?

01/12/2025

Thurne Mill - Engineering Marvel on the Norfolk Broads
Crispy, slightly winter morning. Iza — that’s me — decided to go on a photo shoot. My main problem as a photographer? I almost never plan anything, so I don’t know where I’ll end up. I checked the weather the night before… but really, in the UK? I don’t even know why they call it a “forecast” :). It said there would be perfect conditions for mist.

Yeah, right. As you can see in the photo, there was hardly any mist or fog — I could practically cut the clear air like a loaf of bread instead of clouds of dew :)

And trust me, I’m not complaining.

I rolled the dice, got up, and… ta-da! I ended up wandering through this beautiful, calm part of the Broads. Lots of birds, fields, rivers, and windmills — the perfect place to get lost for a moment.

This stunning white drainage mill has been standing guard over the River Thurne since 1820. While many people think of windmills as grain mills, Thurne Mill served a completely different purpose - it was built to drain water from the surrounding marshland and pump it into the river, preventing the Broads from reclaiming farmland.
Some fascinating facts:

The mill is a "hollow post" design, meaning the main post is hollow to allow the drive shaft to pass through
The fantail (small wheel at the back) is an automatic winding mechanism - it keeps the main sails facing into the wind without human intervention
At 60 feet tall, it's one of the tallest mills in the area
It was restored in the 1940s and again in 2004, and is now cared for by English Heritage, and while its sails can still turn, the actual water pumping is now done by electric motor.
The white paint wasn't just aesthetic - it helped protect the structure and made it visible as a navigation landmark

I photographed these between 8-10am using ND (Neutral Density) filters, which allowed me to use long exposures - some up to 30+ seconds - in broad daylight. Conditions were far from ideal from a photography standpoint - clear, beautiful sky, no mist, no clouds, nothing, except this subtle pink hue and overwhelming blues - Just... nice weather for a walk. The kind that makes your non-photographer friends wonder why you're complaining :)

29/11/2025

Somewhere on the Norfolk coast.
I don't know if it's me getting older or getting more melancholic. Maybe a combination of those two factors. But I love this state - long exposure - my own bubble.

27/11/2025

Cregenan Lakes, Snowdonia National Park, Wales, UK.

Mysterious place—maybe because I visited during overcast weather. It was a bit dull, misty, humid, muddy… sometimes sunny, sometimes not so bright. Maybe that sense of mystery 'haunted' me because I had the whole place to myself, or maybe it's simply the character of that place—those imperative feelings and subtle emotions you can't quite name.
But from the very beginning, from the first glance, I was completely lost and love-struck—even without a thunderstorm that day.
Snowdonia National Park holds International Dark Sky Reserve status, and Cregennan is said to have light-pollution levels making it excellent for stargazing.
Unfortunately, it wasn't meant to happen during my visit—but the sense of solitude and seclusion was there the whole time, and I adored that in its own way. 🙂

What's a place that left you love-struck from first glance?
What's a place that captivated you from the very first moment?

26/11/2025

Holkham Beach, Norfolk, UK

If you’ve ever been to Holkham Beach, you’ll know it feels like stepping into another world — wide-open skies, endless sand, and that magical hush that only the Norfolk coast can give.

A few things I love about Holkham:
✨ The beach is so wide at low tide that you can walk almost a mile before reaching the water
🌾 The pine woods behind the dunes were actually planted in the 19th century to stop the sand from shifting
🎬 It’s so cinematic it’s been used in movies — including Shakespeare in Love
🦢 And it’s one of the UK’s biggest nature reserves, home to rare birds, winter geese, and the occasional visiting seal

There’s just something grounding and expansive about this place — like the kind of quiet that breathes you back into yourself.

25/11/2025

Low tide mood at Snettisham, Norfolk, UK.

When the tide comes in at Snettisham, something magical happens - tens of thousands of wading birds explode into the air all at once, creating one of Europe's greatest wildlife spectacles.
The mudflats here are insanely rich in food. Packed with worms, shellfish, and tiny crustaceans, they're a vital pit stop for birds migrating thousands of miles from the Arctic to Africa. Without places like this, many wouldn't survive the journey.
The tide at Snettisham retreats almost 2 miles, revealing vast expanses of textured mud. And here's the beautiful part - every single day, the sea paints new patterns with micro-currents and draining channels. No two days look the same.
It's also one of the few spots on the east coast where you can watch the sun set over the water, which is why the light here is so stunning.
If you love dramatic landscapes and wildlife, RSPB Snettisham is absolutely worth a visit.

📍 RSPB Snettisham, The Wash, Norfolk

Springwatch
Trust
Norfolk

18/11/2025

Cromer Pier. 🖤 Sometimes, the rain makes the shot.

17/11/2025

Unquiet soul

Moody waves at Horsey Gap, Norfolk

11/10/2025

My last road trip to Scotland part 1 - In Scotland, expect the unexpected: hail, storms, and searing heat from the sky, which can turn to drenching rain or a gale-force wind in an instant. Add to that the annoying, niggling, and intensely irritating midges, and it all combines to create something truly magical and special. And be sure to look around, for that is where the true beauty lies: those sublime and timeless landscapes and vistas.

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http://www.izagrabska.com/

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