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Stormy Awhitu

Awhitu Lighthouse, right on the Manukau Heads - with awesome views from Whatipu at the mouth of the harbour, through to Huia and the inner Manukau Harbour.

Camera: Nikon D2Xs, 70-200mm f2.8 VR

New Years Resolution

As life moves on things change and what was once important seems to drift away into memories. Surfing, such as big part of my life for so many years is one such thing that was put on the back-burner for a number of reasons: career, travel, family. Your close friends stop surfing, get married, move away or find other paths and you all loose touch with what you once held so dear. After what seems like an age out of the water and with a change of focus this year I was determined to get back into the surf. The boards where pulled out from under the house and a new coat of wax applied. The wait began for offshore winds and a good swell.

Anniversary weekend finally saw the right conditions hit the west coast. With the car loaded I set off to the coast feeling a little apprehensive after being at least four years out of the water. I wondered if it would be too big or even if I could get out the back with limited paddle fitness. I figured if I could get out and catch three waves I’d be doing alright. The drive down the hill overlooking Maori Bay clearly showed the swell was solid. Clean lines packed up a long way out…not too big though. So down the track to the beach and out.

That first surf was physically tough. A few beatings and rubber arms that didn’t last more than an hour. Mentally though, it was a bit of a wake up call, what had I been doing all those years out of the water? I forgot the peace of mind you get sitting out back waiting for the next set. The scenery looking back on to the beach, the gannets riding the up draft from the waves. Total escapism and I still struggle to find a comparable pursuit that gives as much as surfing does.

I spent the rest of that week chasing a diminishing swell, surfing every day and regaining paddle fitness and not “kooking” out so often. Slowly getting back the connection with the coast and waves. Life is a big road trip, you’ve got to make sure you keep what is dear to you foremost and don’t get lost. It has been said before the only a surfer knows the feeling, make sure you don’t forget that feeling.

Pics: Nikon D300, 300mm F2.8 VR, 1.7TC

Gannet Transition

The gannet colony out at Muriwai has thinned out quite a bit since my last visit. Mostly only juvenile birds are left. They don't make the most attractive of subjects, but it is quite neat to see the transformation they go through from fluffy chick into full adult colours.

ChickJuvenile
Adult

Cyclone Thomas

Had a great morning surf at Te Arai Point thanks to the pulse of swell thrown out by Cyclone Thomas up in the tropics. The wind was a little cross shore but light enough to not mess the waves up too much. Nice 3-4 foot sets with the occasional bigger one to keep you on your toes.

Photos: Nikon D300, 300mm F2.8 VR and 1.7TC.

Pinesong Presentation

Thanks to all the wonderful residents of Pinesong Retirement Village who attended my presentation this week. This was something new for me and was a real success. I think that showing a multimedia presentation of work really allowed me to engage at a more meaningful level with the audience. As opposed to the usual exhibition opening approach in which you only get to speak to a limited number of people attending. Presenting and talking about your work gives an opportunity for the audience to gain some insights into what motivates the artist and tell some of the stories that go into making a number of the images.

Gallery Q

Gallery Q located out at Waimauku is now stocking a range of my framed wildlife prints. Check them out at:

Gallery Q
Waimauku Shopping Centre
411 7292
021 798 271

Signal Gallery Re-Opens

The Signal Gallery has re-opened out a Bethels Beach for the summer season. Check it out at:

160 Bethels Beach Road,
Te Henga,
Auckland.

Image: Nikon D2Xs, 12-24mm Nikkor, 4 image stitch in Autopano Pro.

ANZANG Sixth Collection

The finalist images of the 2009 ANZANG Landscape and Nature Photographer of the Year competition have been published in a great book. Awesome images of the natural world in the Australasian region. The book can be purchased direct from the publisher.

Two of my images which made the finals appear within the book.

Kumeu Art in The Garden (7th & 8th Nov)

Kumeu Art in the Garden is a festival over two days showing almost 100 artists and sculptors within the gallery of six of Kumeu’s award winning gardens. The event run on Sat 7th & Sun 8th November 2009 10 am to 3pm.

I will be at the Dragonfly Garden which is at 130 Muriwai Valley Road, Waimauku.

For tickets and more information visit the official website

The Conductor

This sequence of an Australasian Gannet at Muriwai reminds me of a conductor vigorously controlling an orchestra. Click image for a larger view.

Nikon D300, 300mm F2.8 VR.

NZ Dotterel (tūturiwhatu)

I spent a few hours photographing the endangered New Zealand dotterel at Wiawera last Friday. The Dotterel is inquisitive allowing you to get quite close without stressing the bird. Best approach is to just sit (or lie) on the sand and let them come to you. The dotterel was once widespread but has been subject to introduced predators and human impact and now only numbers 1500.

This bird was feeding on sand hoppers and would stand and perform a little stamp of the feet until hoppers jumped free. At this point a rapid chase ensued usually with the Dotterel getting a meal. Quite interesting behavior to observe.



Images shot with a Nikon D300, 300mm 2.8 VR lens and 1.7TC.

Kereru at Wenderholm

This time of year the bird life out at Wenderholm regional park starts to spark into life. There is plenty of food coming on stream through the flowering vegetation such as the Kowhia and Bottle Brush. I initially went up to Wenderholm with the intention of shooting Tui feeding on a large flowering Kowhia tree in the main carpark. The Tui’s were a no show, but I was fortunate enough to find a pair of native wood pigeons or Kereru feeding on the Kowhia flowers. The pair had a pretty big appetite for the flowers eating them whole in one gulp, without much pause before tearing another flower from the tree. Hopefully I’ll get the chance to catch Tui feeding on the Kowhia flower nectar over the next couple of weeks.

If You Don’t Go You Won’t Know

Thinking the weather was great for waterfall photography (bright overcast) I headed out to Piha to shoot Kitekite falls. The week had been pretty wet so I knew the waterfall would be charged with good flows compared to the trickle that it usually is in summer.

About half way out to Piha (a 60 minute drive from my place) the weather started to turn and it looked like rain. What to do? Well I kept on going. By the time I hit the carpark at the beginning of the track steady rain greeted me. After investing in the drive I thought I’d just take a chance and walk up to the falls outlook. Steady rain turned to a torrential downpour half way up the track. I was soaked and my camera bag was not faring much better. Pig headed I kept on going. At the outlook the torrent stopped, wind dropped and the clouds almost parted. The falls where charged up in spectacular form. Out with the damp camera and tripod for some satisfying shots. Serendipity. Sometimes you’ve just got to keep on going.

North Island Robin

I came across this little North Island Robin while walking through one of the tracks at the southern end of Wenderholm park. The Robin is a very friendly bird and this one was happy to pose for over an hour or so. Shooting birds like this in their natural environment can be challenging with the extreme low light and untidy backgrounds. On camera flash isn’t the most flattering of light, but that was all I had available to me. I’m reasonably happy with the images made.

LisaSarah Stainless Steel Art

I recently did some product photography for artist Lisa Turley who owns www.lisasarah.com. Her work is a fusion of nature imagery on a hi-tech stainless steel medium. You can buy direct from her website or through a selected retailers listed on her website.

Gannets at Muriwai

Went out to Muriwai to check out what was happening at the Gannet colony located at Muriwai Beach on Auckland’s west coast. The birds are back in from their winter break in Australia and are on both onshore nesting locations in good numbers. Still far from the peak numbers found in November. Good viewing of birds flying with building materials in tow can be seen right now. Look for a wind out of the west for great flying displays.

Australasian Gannet in fllight at Muriwai

2009 ANZANG Landscape and Wildlife Photography Awards

Just found out two of my images will be published in the 2009 ANZANG Landscape & Wildlife Photographer book. One of the images has made it though to the exhibition for final judging which will be held in October. The exhibition is on at the South Australian Museum in Adelaide from 2 Oct though to 22 Nov. For more details on the ANZANG awards check out the following link.

Flowering Rata, Karamea (selected for book and exhibition)

Silvereye (selected for book)