SOUTH ISLAND TRIP 2016: DAY 11, 28 JUNE
We were up at the usual time of 7am, waders on and then we headed out along the edge of Lake Mapourika to catch the sunrise. The lake was very high so I spent my time standing on what was normally the top of a bank on the edge of the lake, knee deep in water. The sunrise was very nice, with sunlight hitting the top of Mt Tasman in the distance and mist rolling around the lake.
"Lighting Tasman"
Lake Mapourika, West Coast, South Island, New Zealand
D800, ISO100, 62mm, 30sec, f5.6, with Lee Little Stopper ND Filter
We headed back to the campervan for some breakfast, then rolled out at 9:30am continuing on our travels north. We stopped briefly at Lake Ianthe (so many beautiful lakes on this stretch of the coast) and then on through Hari Hari and Ross, before stopped for a look around Lake Mahinapua. This again was a bit of a scouting mission for the sunrise shoot the next morning, but it looked stunning even in the midday sun.
Lake Mahinapua, like a mirror
The soft light of the West Coast winter, Lake Mahinapua
We stayed here for about 1/2hr then carried on north to Hokitika. We have been through Hokitika a few times in the past, and I have to say it is looking much nicer than I remember it being, and has a real nice feel to the town.
We had some lunch at about 12:30, had a walk around the shops, then stocked up on groceries. At the north end of town we found our camp for the night (Shining Star beachfront accommodation) at about 2pm. We plugged in, powered up, did washing etc and relaxed.
As the sun started to sink towards the sea we walked 5 mins through to the beach to shoot the sunset (it is ironic that, even though we had been driving up the West Coast, this was one of the few opportunities we had had to shoot the sun sinking into the Tasman Sea, as a lot of the road we were following was located inland).
There were some large storm clouds brewing to the north and west which blocked a lot of the sunset, but provided some stunning moody images. The hard part was staying out of the way of the pounding surf.
It was nice to see how well used the stretch of beach was, even on a dull and windy evening.
We walked back to the camper for some dinner, and enjoyed our evening of electricity and internet.
The Tempest
Hokitika, West Coast, New Zealand
D800, f13, ISO100, 48mm, 1.6sec, with Lee Little Stopper ND filter