Wilsons Promontory | VIC | Australia

I spied this particular drift from afar and could see its leading line heading up in a roughly South-East direction. That's just what I wanted. A big part of sunset shooting in these sorts of locations is not getting one's shadow in the image. I knew with where the sun was due to set (thanks PhotoPills app), that this drift should be perfect, and it was. I set off on the one kilometre trek (a bit over half a mile) across the sand, and was glad to see that not a single footprint marred the area - it was completely virgin territory. This is the reward for "going the extra mile" (literally half a mile). The direction of the setting sun caused the foreground ribbing to really pop, and the sun also cast a wonderful golden light against the Westerly side of the drift, complementing the crystal-clear azure cloudless sky. The wind had died off by this point, ensuring sharpness along the top of the dune. Needless to say, conditions were perfect.

For this "golden hour" shot, I had to wait until the sun was very low in the sky. Shortly afterwards, the peaks of other dunes quickly encroached on the scene, which did not look good. Thus, I only had a brief window of opportunity to capture the golden light without shadowing, and thankfully it all came together and I am pleased with the result.

Technically, this image is comprised of 3 exposures shot vertically with 1/3 overlap and stitched together using Lightroom's native stitching tool (Photo Merge > Panorama). I have not done much pano work of late and I was concerned about not getting it all in, so I shot this one at 24mm. I did pivot around the nodal point with a Really Right Stuff pano head and rail. It stitched perfectly, but I had LOADS of leftover image to crop - so much so that the end result is basically no different to taking a single image and then cropping 16:9. That's perfectly fine, but in future I'll probably use my new 20-70mm lens for panos; shooting at around 40mm, and maybe f/13 for depth of field without too much diffraction blurring.

My mum said she likes this one but said, "it could do with some camels" - good one mum!

Tags:   16:9 2048 3xp Australia Big Drift Gav Owen Sony A7RIII Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G The Big Drift Victoria Wilsons Promontory blue drift dune golden golden hour landscape last light lines minimalism minimalist no CPL no grads pano panorama ribbed ribbed for pleasure sand sandy stitch sunset exif:aperture=ƒ / 11 camera:make=sony geo:location=big drift exif:make=sony geo:lat=-38.869273 exif:model=ilce-7rm3 geo:country=australia exif:focal_length=24 mm geo:city=wilsons promontory camera:model=ilce-7rm3 geo:lon=146.227087 exif:iso_speed=100 geo:state=victoria exif:lens=fe pz 16-35mm f4 g

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Cape Woolamai | VIC | Australia

This was taken after the sun had set, and I was just left with the twilight afterglow. Over the millennia, chunks of rock fall off these distinctive formations, then end up being churned into sphere-like objects by the waves you can see rolling in relentlessly. It's a fascinating place, and I could never get tired of shooting here.

Tags:   16:10 2048 Australia Gav Owen Pinnacles Sony A7RIII Sony FE PZ 16-35mm F4 G Victoria glow glowing ocean red rocks saltwater seascape sunset waves Cape Woolamai geo:location=pinnacles exif:iso_speed=400 exif:aperture=ƒ / 8.0 geo:lon=145.342824 exif:make=sony exif:model=ilce-7rm3 exif:focal_length=18 mm geo:country=australia camera:make=sony camera:model=ilce-7rm3 geo:city=cape woolamai geo:lat=-38.558862 geo:state=victoria exif:lens=fe pz 16-35mm f4 g

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McLean Falls | Otago | New Zealand

At the entrance to McLean Falls in New Zealand stands a small and unobtrusive donation box, so that people can contribute to the falls' upkeep. My spirits were high and my mood generous - contributing as I did close to ten New Zealand dollars in loose change. That's more than my usual contribution, but I was flying out the next day and didn't want to take the coin with me, so I emptied into the box most of what I had. "That'll keep the karma Gods happy!" I thought as I bounded along the path.

I proceeded to photograph another location further downstream before getting to this location. The path is behind this scene and a fair way up vertically. I took some shots just off the path before making my way down to here. I lazily decided against putting my camera and tripod away but instead just pushed the tripod legs together and then used it like a walking stick - after all I was only going to travel a few meters...

As soon as I got to the edge where I was contemplating stepping down, something frightening happened - both feet slid out from under me and suddenly I was airborne! As I flew 10 feet in the air down to the solid rock below with several grand's worth of camera gear clamped to the top of the tripod in my left hand, all manner of terror raced through my mind - thoughts of smashed cameras, broken legs, twisted knees, flight cancellations and hospital visits all came at once.

In what seemed like a very long time I hit the ground feet first, but on the wet mossy ground my feet slid out yet again and my butt cheeks absorbed most of the impact. My tripod lurched forward and I pulled back hard to keep it away from the water and rocks, and I also leaned back to stop myself joining the stream for an impromptu swim as I slid forward towards it.

When all motion had ceased my camera was just inches above the water and one foot was in the stream. I immediately checked my surrounds and I was relieved that no one saw the spectacle! I then proceeded to check myself - knees? fine. coccyx? fine. spine? seems OK. miraculously I felt 100%! It was only my hands that were shaking like a leaf from the massive adrenaline shot to my system.

I then decided to do what I came to do and that is to take pictures. Within minutes of my fall I set this shot up at the exact spot where my butt ended up, and it's ended up being my favourite shot of these falls.

The moral of this story?:- When you see those donation boxes then always toss some coin in, as the Karma Gods are watching!

Tags:   2048 3:2 Explore Explored Gav Owen New Zealand Sony A7RII Sony FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS cotton candy water creek flow green inland karma landscape long exposure lush moss mossy nature outdoor polarizer relaxing river rock serene serenity single shot slippery stream tripod water watercourse waterfall Chaslands Otago geo:country=new zealand exif:aperture=ƒ / 11 camera:make=sony geo:city=chaslands exif:make=sony exif:lens=fe 16-35mm f4 za oss geo:lon=169.352575 exif:focal_length=16 mm geo:location=mclean falls geo:state=otago geo:lat=-46.5693361 camera:model=ilce-7rm2 exif:iso_speed=100 exif:model=ilce-7rm2

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Purakaunui Falls | Otago | New Zealand

I love these falls. I almost drove straight past them on the way to Mcleans Falls, but then remembered the very friendly receptionist at the hotel I stayed at the previous night said these ones are worth a visit, and right he was. After my last few shoots being crowded out with other photographers, I was overjoyed to have these falls all to myself.

Tags:   2048 3:2 Gav Owen New Zealand Sony A7RII Sony FE 16-35mm F4 ZA OSS cotton candy water creek flow green inland landscape long exposure lush moss mossy nature outdoor polarizer relaxing rock serene serenity single shot slippery tripod water watercourse waterfall Tarara Otago geo:lon=169.55998833333 exif:aperture=ƒ / 13 camera:make=sony exif:make=sony geo:country=new zealand exif:lens=fe 16-35mm f4 za oss geo:state=otago exif:focal_length=17 mm geo:city=tarara geo:location=purakaunui falls geo:lat=-46.51827 camera:model=ilce-7rm2 exif:iso_speed=100 exif:model=ilce-7rm2

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Lake Matheson | Canterbury | New Zealand

My buddy and I checked out of the lovely Te Waonui Forest Retreat in Franz Josef earlier this morning and made our way down past Fox. A work colleague had previously told me about this lake that has views of the mountains, and so I suggested we make a stop.

When we got to the carpark I was surprised at how big it was, and that there were toilets and even a cafe and gift shop. The walk in was a few kms as well. We almost didn't bother as we had a fair drive down through the Haast Pass that day with quite a few waterfalls and pools to visit on the way.

We started the walk and I could see the mountains were reasonably clear. I could also see some cloud banks rolling in and so I decided to start running. I got to the photo location and everything was clouded over, but with a bit of patience the clouds opened up enough for me to see Mt Tasman, with Mt Cook still being obscured on the right hand side. Mere minutes after taking this shot, everything was clouded over and the lake became choppy from the wind, but I was glad I was able to capture this little moment of serenity.

Tags:   2048 3:2 Canon EF24-70mm f/2.8L II USM Explore Explored Gav Owen Metabones adapter New Zealand Sony A7RII South Island alpine blue cloud duck ducks green lake landscape morning morning light mountain outdoor reflection reflections relaxing serene sky snow travel water zen Fox Glacier West Coast geo:lat=-43.438386111112 exif:focal_length=50 mm camera:make=sony exif:make=sony geo:country=new zealand geo:location=lake matheson walkway geo:state=west coast geo:city=fox glacier exif:aperture=ƒ / 10 exif:lens=24-70mm f2.8 g ssm ii exif:iso_speed=100 camera:model=ilce-7rm2 geo:lon=169.964 exif:model=ilce-7rm2

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