Photographers under the spell of Iceland’s golden light call the little country “Nature’s Lightroom.” The island lures them with endless summer days, stunning volcanic landscapes and a sprinkling of warm-hearted Icelanders—just 300,000 people.

In July 2006, 10 renowned photographers and four Adobe staffers visited Iceland on a dream assignment: shoot intensely for a week and road-test the beta version of Adobe® Photoshop® Lightroom™, which gives professional photographers a single application for importing, managing and presenting large volumes of photographs. San Francisco photographer and writer Mikkel Aaland created the Iceland project as a unique hook for his forthcoming book, which features photographs and Photoshop Lightroom tutorials from the Iceland adventure.

Aaland worked with Adobe to select photographers for their professionalism, diversity in style and generous spirits. The team included landscape photographers shooting classic large-format scenes, sports photographers, a lifestyle specialist, a wedding photographer and two shooters from Adobe. “The cross-pollination was inspirational,” said landscape photographer Michael Reichman. “We are so different and yet we all share a common passion.”