Walking along Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown New Zealand the clouds were clearing from the night’s rain revealing snow packed peaks of the southern alps. Sound too good to be true? Just another day in the land of magic.
Colors of Arrowtown
The colors on New Zealand’s south island were in full array last week, and none more than Arrowtown. Located in a valley it was surrounded by an explosion of colors on all sides. Here we walked through a park at the end of the day looking for compositions. We didn’t have to look too far. 😉
Deer Park Heights
This is the view of the Remarkables from Deer Park Heights which is one of the mountains above Queenstown. At that early hour the pond was as a mirror and the landscape provided amazement in all directions. After I composed this shot I walked along some hills overlooking the town. As I returned from my walk the ground thundered below me and as I turned around a muscular ram stampeded past me no more than ten feet away. My guess is he was spooked and just happened to be running by, but it got my heart going nonetheless.
Infinity Lake
I guess you can call this an infinity lake because it just kind of disappears into the horizon. It’s high up on a mountain and as we flew straight through the rock walls the water fell of a cliff into a waterfall. I took this while leaning outside of a helicopter since we took the doors off for this trip. I was intrigued by how the early morning light played on the rock walls ahead. Talk about a morning cup of Joe.
Dawn Over Queenstown
I took this last week as we walked in the early morning along the shores of Lake Wakatipu in Queenstown, New Zealand. We’d had rain at lower elevations the night before and so the mountains were all capped with snow. Those are the Remarkables in the distance which seem to dominate the view of all the small towns below. In any case, now that I’m back in Florida I long for the cool air and breathtaking vistas of New Zealand. Time to plan my next trip.
Autumn in New Zealand
Twice I’ve had a chance to experience Autumn in the last year, once in North America and once in New Zealand. The crisp air is refreshing and adds a little bounce to my step. I took this the first day we arrived for a photo adventure in New Zealand and it has improved since then. Everyday we’ve had a cornucopia of colors, vistas and the breathtaking landscapes that exists only in New Zealand. Before I arrived I didn’t know a thing about this country, now I’m in love with it. Tomorrow we travel home to Florida with enlightened hearts and memories so full it will take months to process. In the coming weeks and months I’ll be sure to share more experiences with you through my photography. Have a wonderful day everyone.
Place of Magic
Imagine, if you will, walking along a misty frozen swamp just after sunrise, surrounded by snow capped peaks. Occasionally the silence is broken by the call of black swans as the establish they’re presence in the valley. This is not a fiction of my imagination, this is the scene at Glenorchy this morning. As I was immersed in this magical landscape I couldn’t help but wonder how such a place could exist in our modern world. But it does, right here on the southern island of New Zealand.
Lookout at Robinson Preserve
This is the lookout tower at Robinson Preserve in Bradenton. Actually, most natural preserves in my area have lookout towers because its so flat you need some way to see above the scrub and trees. Any place that has mountains, or even hills, would have no use for these because if you want a vista you just walk to the top of the nearest hill. As I write this I’m on the south island of New Zealand and I’ve not seen a single tower like this. What I have seen are plenty of hills and mountains. Two different worlds entirely.
Queenstown Gardens
There is a park in Queenstown that seems to radiate with the morning light. And so it was this morning as twenty photographers gathered to capture the rare light of dawn. I captured this bridge just as the sun rose and we found ourselves in the midst of an overwhelming choice of compositions. This was one of many, but one I’ll not soon forget.
Remarkable Day
Today was nothing short of remarkable. Which leads be to my second point, these mountains are call the Remarkables because they run directly north and south. I can just imagine that word out of the mouth of a British explorer, remarkable indeed sir. My musings aside, last evening and this morning were filled with rain, but above 900 feet it was snow and when the clouds finally cleared this morning we were presented with this, …remarkable view. I came to this spot morning, noon and dusk, each time capturing a different light. This was around noon.