New Zealand

Hello all

 

In March, my wife and I will be travelling from Ontario, Canada to New Zealand for three weeks. We hope to spend at least

9 days in the south island and I am looking for some recomendations as to best places to visit for nature photography. We

do some hiking, but will not be prepared to hike for a 2-4 day round trip hike.

 

thanks in advance

 

Kevin

<p>If you enjoy the outdoors, scenery, etc then the South Island is the place to be, so personally, I'd suggest you try and spend more time on the SI than the NI. On the SI is one of the world's greatest hikes, the Milford Track. If you don't get to do the trail then Milford Sound is a must see/do anyway. You should also be looking at the Ateroa Peninsula east of Christchurch, Mt Cook region, and the glaciers on the east cost. There are numerous short walks/hikes throughout the SI. March could be cold and wet, so be prepared.</p>

<p>Hi Kevin,</p>

<p>I'll travelling to NZ in March too - for my 4th visit - see you there.......(I'm from Australia) You will not be short of scenery on either N or S island. Aside from the greater Auckland area (which does not agree with me) the remainder is a thorough delight.</p>

<p>As you will not be short on photo opportunities on the South Island. Autumn in NZ offers the most stable weather so you can expect plenty of sunshine even down in the Fjordlands and in the Alps. For nature photography I suggest coastal locations like Kikoura, The entire Banks Penninsula (Akaroa) the entire trans alpine road from Christchurch up to Arthurs Pass and down to Greymouth / Hokitika. The entire west coast hwy of the Sth Island is a joy for photographers. Be sure to visit the Haast River Valley - I expect you will find similar scenery to what I gather parts of British Columbia look like. Lakes Hawea, Wanaka, Manapouri and Wakatipu are beautiful and might offer some perfect still reflective photo opportunities if you are lucky.</p>

<p>I strongly reccommend avoiding the crowded Milford Sound tour and instead substitute this with the Doubtful Sound eco tour - no crowds, far more spectacular scenery and more accessible from Te Anau which is where most stay to visit the Fjordlands. The Central Otago district and Mount Cook are also well worth a look. You will be able to make a great round trip of these sights.</p>

<p>The eastern portion of the Sth Island from Christchurch southwards (Canturbury Plains) is very flat, rather featureless farming country which is very fertile and valuable but offers far fewer opportunites for nature photography.</p>

<p>Best wishes for your travels in NZ !</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Hi Kevin,<br>

I agree with the above posters, although I've only been to New Zealand once. I spent three weeks on the South Island doing all that was mentioned above and that was not enough time by far. I would also include Abel Tasman National Park on the north side of the South Island. Whether you trek through the forest or go kayaking, there will be plenty of photo ops there.</p>

<p>Thank you for all your suggestions, This trip has become a little overwhelming for my wife and I, because there are so many amazing places to see and so little time. I have just started to shoot digital, and wondered if there are any suggestions on how many memory cards I should bring.<br>

I shoot a Canon 50D and will be shooting both RAW and Jpeg, with some bracketing as well.<br>

thanks again</p>

<p>Kevin,</p>

<p>As you are a new comer to the digital format it's possible you might be hitting the shutter button quite a lot with your 50D. This is based upon my own experiences with my first digital camera and freedom from film processing fees. May I suggest a pair of cards of minimum 4 gig and a small portable hard drive. I have an old 30 gig portable HD unit which is fractionally larger in size than a large cigarette packet - I take it travelling with me always. I'm sure the newer models have more memory, are smaller and lighter in size and are likely to be cheaper than when I purchased mine about 8 years ago.</p>

<p>Best wishes for your trip and may the photo opportunities be plentiful.</p>