#VantagePoint
In the last few months I was lucky enough to visit Canada, part of the USA and The Bahamas. In February, I travelled to New Zealand for a 10-day trip from the north to the south island with AAT Kings. And during those times I visited some of the most incredible locations that I’d been dreaming of for a long time and I finally, FINALLY got there. I am actually glad I never got there earlier in my life, I don’t think my photography was up to scratch so I’m glad I waited.
There were times where I was able to get the shot straight away and then there were times where it took a lot more work, a bit of DIY as I don’t own a lot of gear (we all know how expensive gear is) so I decided to pick my 3 favourite photographs and explain a little bit on how I got the shot.
U.S.A
Multnomah Falls is a waterfall just outside of Portland, Oregon.
When we got out there, Mother Nature just decided to make it harder for me, it started to rain, but no rain will ever stop me. EVER! I set everything up and realised my ND filter was the wrong size for the lens I was using. It was too small, so I decided to place the filter onto the lens and just hold it in place right on the edge, while shooting over a fence knowing my filter could easily drop and I’d be saying bye bye! Filter.. But I never give up. I’d come all this way from Australia to see this incredible waterfall, I’m too poor to come back anytime soon, so I’M GETTING MY SHOT. Mind you, my lens was fogging up, it was raining, and it was getting wet. I did not prepare for rain or have anything to cover it so it was a long process of shoot, wipe everything down, set up again, shoot. In the end, I got a few shots I was very happy with. This was one of my favorite shot from that day.
Settings: 11.0 sec at f/11 ISO 400 // Filter: ND64 6-stop
CANADA
While driving up to Banff, we pulled over for a short break and came across this tiny and cute little squirrel in a tree. I don’t think I have ever changed my lens over so quickly in my life. It was getting quite dark, and the only zoom lens I have is the 24-105mm f/4. So I had to decide on my settings quickly before the squirrel spots me and runs off while I'm trying to blend into the trees and get as close as I possibly can. I only got 3-4 shots of it sitting still and then it ran off.
This is one of my favorite shots from that moment. ALSO how cute is it! It was no bigger than my palm.
Settings: 1/80 sec at f/4.0 ISO 2000
NEW ZEALAND
This was probably one of the most unique shots I’ve ever taken and it’s definitely one of my favourites. Firstly because I’ve never been in a helicopter cos seriously, who can afford to go up in one every time they holiday? Definitely, not me. And it was also one of the hardest shoots I’ve done of landscape. There were 4 of us in the back, I was by the window (thankfully) and we only had 30mins, which was a challenge. I was squashed, trying to shoot with my huge Canon 5D MK III, making sure my settings were right each shot ( I only shoot manual), and getting a really nice composition. It was one of the hardest things I’ve had to do with no time but it was an incredible experience and I’d totally do it all over again.
Also, to understand the size of this location, look for the little red house up on the hill.
Settings:1/400 sec at f/4.0 ISO 160 // Filters: Circular Polarising Filter
There’s always that one thing about traveling and photography, lugging around so much heavy gear and the back pain is not fun. I love my 5D MKIII, and the beautiful lenses I use but lately, I’ve been only taking one lens with me and I have to work around that which also makes it challenging.
However, I discovered a new camera being released soon called the L16 by a company called Light. The results are meant be DSLR quality but it’s a lightweight, compact camera that fits in your hand. Sounds AMAZING, and it's the way of the future. I am one of those people that can’t deal with change, so I’m keen to test this camera out someday if it ever reaches Australia. For more information, you can find it all here: light.co
Feel free to give me some feedback on these images :)
Until next time…. Lexi xo
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