Whangarei Beach Scenes

Even on a dull, cloudy day, the beaches of New Zealand are beautiful. 

Now We Climb.....

........Seven Hundred and Fifty Seven Steps

I know because I counted every one of them, and with every step after about 200 I kept asking myself if the climb was worth the effort.  And it was!!!  The next photo will be the view from the top and the end of our journey.

We're Amost There!

Can you see the tiny lighthouse??  That's where we are heading, the East Cape lighthouse.  Check back to see the beautiful view from this lighthouse and learn why this location has a special significance.

Amazing Sky

Have I mentioned how amazing the skies are in New Zealand!!

By now we've spent over two hours enjoying this amazing coastline and have missed breakfast and lunch, because there are no services in this remote area.  But, we are getting closer to our destination.  (See several previous posts.)

Raukokore Anglican Church

Raukokore Church
 

Rounding yet another bend on our journey, (see last 3 posts), was yet another picture postcard scene.  This beautiful little Anglican church was a brilliant white reflecting the morning sun.  It is isolated on what looked like a small peninsula and appeared to be sitting right at the water's edge.  Its design looked somewhat out of place and in sharp contrast to the red carvings on the outside of typical Maori maraes, (sacred meeting places), that dot this part of New Zealand.  The church was one of several built in the area by Captain Duncan Sterling, a pakeha, (generally translated to mean a New Zealander not of Maori descent), from hand sawed timber.  Eventually he was married there in 1896 to Mihi Kotukutuku.  Mihi became the chief of Te Whanau-a-Apanui, (her Maori tribe), and she and Duncan had 10 children.  Stirling knew very little Maori, but connections between the Anglican Church and the local Maori people were strengthened through their marriage and Duncan's skill as an architect/builder.

 

Cliffs Near East Cape, New Zealand

 Cliffs reaching down to the clear turquoise waters of the Bay of Plenty

We're getting closer to the edge of tomorrow......no wait, I think it's the edge of yesterday!  I'll have it figured out by the time we get there! (See previous 2 posts)

As we travel farther east, the road gets bumpier, the little Maori villages are few and far between, and we haven't seen a petrol station, or a place to get some breakfast, for miles.  I don't seem to mind, though, as the wild beauty and remoteness of this place seems to sing to my soul. 

A Few More Miles Down the Road......

......with only an occasional wandering horse or cow to watch us pass by.  We're a little bit closer to the 'edge of tomorrow'.

(See previous post)

On Our Way..........

........... to the Edge of Tomorrow!

Last weekend we had a little break in our rainy weather, and no assignments so we headed out to explore another beautiful part of the north island of New Zealand.  Although it is winter, the grass is spring green, the mountains are covered with a variety of ever green trees and vegetation, and the weather was a pleasant 60ish degrees.  We traveled down the east coast on an isolated road and saw vista after vista of a wild and unspoiled coastline with turquoise water and rugged cliffs intermixed with beautiful green pastures. 

We were on the way to the edge of tomorrow.....literally!  Check my next post to follow our journey and see where we end up!

Winter Beauty

This  blossom adorned the the grounds of the Sydney, Australia temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  By the time we arrived at the temple, it was dusk, and I worked quickly to take my pictures before dark.  Walking back to the car I noticed this single blossom in front of a slatted fence.  Even though it was dark, the soft white petals stood out from the colorful background and I stopped to photograph it.  This was the type of image to throw caution to the wind and edit to my heart's content.  I had to bump up the exposure, and bring out details in the background.  Then I added some texture and pattern to finish it up.

Endless Summer

Beach in Whangarei Area

A War Story

I hate war, and I hate war movies.  I never thought there could be anything funny or entertaining about a movie depicting war............however, this talented film maker from Utah changed my mind.

Well, maybe you Nikon enthusiasts didn't think that was very funny!!

I posted this photo on our Kiwi Krossings missionary blog, but thought I'd post it here as well, since I rarely post family photos:

 Here we are ready to go to a fancy dress ball put on by our stake.  Missionaries, however, rarely bring ball gowns on a mission (haha), so the best we could do was for me to wear a black suit and for Jeff to wear what he wears every day, (although I thought the kiwi tie was a nice touch).  I haven't taken many photos of us together so I thought I'd take a quick one before our guests, (fellow missionary couples), came to dinner prior to the dance.  

For those of you interested:  I set my camera on a tripod, (with a diffuser on my flash to soften the light),  and we stood in front of a plain gray wall.  I tweaked the white balance to make the color 'warmer' and then I added a textured background so it wasn't quite so boring.  A few other tweaks and in 2-3 minutes I was done.  I kinda like the color wash look.

Hamilton Gardens, New Zealand

Where's Waldo?????

Hamilton Gardens in Winter, New Zealand

I think I found an interesting foreground element for this shot!

Quirky Yard Art

I'm trying to think of something clever to say about this photo, but I'm at a loss for words.  It struck my fancy because it was unusual and I really liked the reflection.

Hamilton Gardens, New Zealand

Hamilton Gardens, Hamilton, New Zealand

A little over a week ago we had an assignment in Hamilton, which is about an hour and a half drive south of Auckland.  We arrived early for our meeting so we decided to spend a little time in the Hamilton Gardens.  It was a dull, cloudy day, not very enticing for photography.  But as usual, I hauled around my camera bag, mainly because I never, ever leave my camera equipment in the car, not even in the trunk.  Anyway, I took very few photos, but this one I really love.  I adjusted it with the 'simplify' filter in Topaz Adjust.  This eliminated distracting specks of light and helped bring out the colors and reflection in the water.

Sydney Opera House at Night

This beautiful building is photogenic from all angles and any time of day or night.

Play Your Didgeridoo, Blue

Remember, 'Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport'????  There's a line that goes, 'Play your didgeridoo, Blue'.  This is a didgeridoo.  It is basically a hollowed out log.  The 'real' ones are hollowed out by termites, so we were told.  The ones made for tourists are not and are colorfully painted.  It was amazing how many different sounds he produced.  Now for a few behind the scenes snaps:

Nice looking accompanist!

And one for the grandkids back home!
(I was shooting in bright midday sun,  trying to get a clear shot amid dozens of tourists, so not great technically, but sometimes the subject is more important than the technicalities!)

Harbor Bridge - Sydney, Australia

View of the Harbor Bridge taken while walking toward the Opera House

Feathered Friends in Sydney

There must be a clever title for this shot, but I can't think of it!

Melbourne Temple - Sydney, Australia

Melbourne Temple

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Nicely Framed

After the last post I thought I'd better post something pretty.  This photo was taken in the dark after I finished photographing the Sydney Temple at dusk.  I experimented with the amount of flash in order to light up the 'frame' (branch), in the background, without blowing out the flower in the foreground. 

Yikes!

So, it was dusk and I was having a wonderful time photographing the Sydney Opera house from across the harbor.  I was standing near some bushes, and happened to look about 8 inches next to me, and to my horror, I saw this huge spider.  After I jumped about three feet I noticed there were about 6 identical, huge spiders right near where I was standing.  It gives me the creeps just thinking about it now. 

Blue Mountains, Australia

The Three Sisters overlooking the Blue Mountains near Sydney, Australia

After spending a couple wonderful days exploring Sydney, we left town to take a tour to a wildlife park and the Blue Mountains.  They really do look blue from a distance!

Sydney Harbor Cruise

Sydney Harbor area is absolutely beautiful day, night and dusk.

Koala Cuteness!

Sydney Opera House with Clouds

I took this shot just before sunset when the light was very warm.  It was a beautiful scene especially contrasted with the dark, low hanging clouds overhead. 

Sydney Opera House and Harbor Bridge

We walked around the harbor and found this view near sunset.  The Sydney harbor area, called Circular Quay (Key), is a beautiful area, with walking paths, parks and beautiful views all around.

Sydney Opera House and Ferry

Here is the first of several photos I took of this iconic Sydney landmark.  It was a beautiful winter day for sightseeing and we had a great time.

G'Day Mate!!!

I've been MIA for awhile because we have been on assignment in Australia.  We've had a great conference, which we were in charge of organizing, and now are taking a few very much needed days off, since for a few days leading up to this conference I was averaging 4 hours sleep a night in order to get everything prepared.  It was all worth while as I think that everyone who attended had a great experience.


One day after our meetings, one of our local people asked if we wanted to go for a ride and see a bit of the area around Melbourne, then one of us said they wanted to see a kangaroo.  Our local man said it was doubtful, but he'd take us to a park where kangaroos have been seen at dusk foraging for food.  We drove through many lovely neighborhoods and just before dark, finally pulled into the parking lot of a park.  We were still in a suburb, not out in the bush, so I didn't think there was any chance we'd see a kangaroo.  We parked and walked about 15 feet from the car, and there were about 20 kangaroos.  They didn't seem too concerned that we were there and I managed to get my camera out, put on my flash and snap a few shots before they hopped off.  Another missionary couple working here said they had been in Australia 8 months before they saw a kangaroo.  What luck!

After our conference in Melbourne we flew to Sydney for more meetings, and now we have a few free days before returning to NZ.   

Auckland Photo Contest

Say Cheese

Harbor Lights

June is photography month in Auckland.  They have special exhibits, lectures, etc. all over the area.  One Saturday is designated as a contest day.  All photos entered into the contest have to be taken on that specific day and must relate to the theme, 'My Day in Auckland'.  Last year I submitted several photos just for fun.

This year I submitted three photos, including the two above.  I was surprised to receive a call that I had won second place, (out of over 1500 entries), with the following photo:

 A Day in Bed

I guess it was just quirky enough to attract the judges attention.  After the fact, I felt a bit uncomfortable that I had submitted this, even though I had permission from the 'subject' to do so!

Takapuna Sunrise

It is Saturday morning in this part of the world and I wanted to go down to the beach before sunrise to take some slow shutter speed shots in low light.  Unfortunately, I forgot to set the alarm clock and when I woke up the sky was already light in the east.  Even though I hurried as fast as I could, I couldn't beat the sun.  By the time I had my tripod and camera set up and ready to shoot, the sun was already over the horizon and it was too bright for the picture I had in my mind.  I had to settle for a picture of this seagull taking a moment to enjoy the early morning warmth of  a winter day in New Zealand.

Characters on Queen Street - Auckland

 CHARACTERS ON QUEEN

We spent a couple of hours in downtown Auckland last Saturday, and I had fun doing a little street photography. 

Photography and Something More

The Magic of Photo Editing Software

I've been teaching a beginning photography class once a week after work.  Everyone seems to be fascinated with my post processing and editing workflow, so this week I'm going to demonstrate the magic of Photoshop and talk about how technology has changed traditional photography forever.  Making minor adjustments such as cropping, removing red eye or adjusting the exposure are done in a twinkle.  But when you are feeling especially creative, using photo software makes it possible to start with a photo and turn it into something more.  Here is one of my examples for the class tomorrow:

Before

After

Harbor Bridge, Auckland, New Zealand

HARBOR BRIDGE

AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

This is my first photo of the Harbor Bridge.  We wandered in and out and around local neighborhoods until we came upon this little bay with a lovely view of the Harbor Bridge with the Sky Tower in the background.  Earlier, I found other views but they were boring because there was nothing of interest in the foreground.  And even though the tide was out,  (so there were no great reflections in the water), I still like how this turned out.

(I shot this at f/16 for 13 seconds.  Using a small aperture is what makes the lights turn into stars.)

Moon Magic

The moon was beautifully framed in a pillow of fluffy cotton clouds tinged with the golden glow of Auckland at night.  Too bad my camera couldn't capture it all in one exposure.  But with the magic of computer editing, I combined an exposure of the clouds with an exposure of the moon and voila!

Auckland Skyline at Night

Yesterday was a holiday to celebrate the Queen's birthday.  I celebrated by taking photos.  For the first time since we've been in New Zealand I went out by myself with no other purpose than to shoot pictures.  Although we've been to some amazing places with spectacular scenery, we are always on our way to an assignment or other activity and I always have to rush to squeeze in a photo or two.  And the times we do have free, Jeff is always with me and he's not keen on hanging around too long while I mess around with camera equipment, lenses, and filters or take time scouting around for the best compositions.  

I've wanted to get some pictures of the Auckland skyline at night ever since we've been here, so this was the day.  The Sky Tower shines with different colors and combinations of colors for special occasions and holidays and is the tallest freestanding structure in the southern hemisphere.

Walking the Dog

A little bit of street photography in New Caledonia.

New Caledonia Scenery

Sails, Sun & Sea

Fragile Beauty in New Caledonia

Take Time Today, Because Tomorrow May Be Too Late!

 Today I took time to admire something small and beautiful and fragile.  I'm glad I did because soon it was gone!

While on a lovely walk this morning, Jeff picked up an interesting flower that had fallen from a tree.  It had four petals that you cannot see very well in this photo.  I could tell it was delicate so I carefully carried it back to the hotel because I had never seen anything like it and I wanted a photo (every time I decide not to take my camera with me, which isn't often, I always find something I want to photograph!)  Anyway, by the time we got back, all of the petals had wilted and fallen off and it drooped sadly.  There was a purple file folder sitting on the desk, and I arranged the petals and propped up what remained as best as I could.  By then we noticed the most heavenly fragrance filling our room.  I really wished I would have had my macro lens with me but I didn't.  (After seeing how this photo turned out, however, I'm glad I didn't.)  I photographed this in the natural light from the glass doors with my telephoto lens.  I got as close as the lens would let me get and still focus, about 5 feet away.  This made for a very narrow depth of field creating this soft, out of focus background.  I only had time for a few shots before the flower totally wilted and fell apart.  Now all that is left is the perfume.....and my photo!