Upstairs, downstairs

Is it a preference or an indication of social standing. It’s so hard to tell anything with sheep.

Let it Be the Dawn

A chorus of the wind, birds, little waves lapping. My own breath. My heart surely has something to say…

We got no brilliant dawns in Wanaka this year… but two years ago – I am still awed… There are no filters or anything special done to this dawn, other than putting the camera on  a tripod so I could leave the shutter open a wee bit longer without it all becoming a blur.

I’m pretty sure the girl was still out from the night before. I remember those days, when the only time I ever saw the dawn was when I was up all night. That happened surprisingly often. However, dawns like this are rare…

Why I photograph

The crack of dawn over Lake Wanaka

Back in the day, back when I took pictures like a regular punter, a good piece of scenery was incomplete without someone standing out front.

It’s how I was raised. My mom took a photo of every cactus in Texas the year I was 12. And every one of them had one of us kids standing next to it, looking bored as hell. As the trip progressed, most of them starred my youngest sister, as she was only six and we pretty much shoved her out of the back seat of the car to stand in that scorching Texan sun.

Dawn transforms the lake into a pool of lava!

I still like to photograph people, but these days it’s about people doing or being, not posing.

I took over 1000 photos during my week in Wanaka – many of them amazing, spectacular, breathtaking. Some I plan to photoshop a bit, just tweak so they are perfect. Then there are those that tweaking could only detract.

Scarlet in the east and purple over the Southern Alps

These shots are unretouched, untweaked, un-anything-ed. They’re straight out of the camera.

They’re why I get up before dawn to take pictures – because sometimes, every once in a blue moon, the takings are just so gobsmackingly amazing, nothing, nothing, nothing can compare…

We got just one proper sunrise in Wanaka. And it was one in a million!

Sad angel

After that the day turned overcast and the light was flat, not much fun for scenery, but I’ve recently got into exploring cemeteries. Love this angel.

I admit she’s had a bit of work done. There was a large black tombstone to her left and a nasty looking green rubbish bin to her right. She was overwhelmed and I merely uncluttered her world. I think she’d approve. Strangely, she is not watching over a particular grave or group of graves. She’s not guarding the entrance or really, doing anything obvious.

She’s just there looking terribly sad.

I love her.