ralphbellaphotography
FollowThe most photographed tree in New Zealand... the Wanaka lake willow tree. I waited patiently for the sun to throw light on the clouds to get a good reflection. ...
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The most photographed tree in New Zealand... the Wanaka lake willow tree. I waited patiently for the sun to throw light on the clouds to get a good reflection. The morning mist over the lake gets my filters fog up and had to wipe off every time, and the freezing waters up to hip level is quite hard to tolerate. This place is beyond beautiful!
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Awards
Contest Finalist in Lonely Trees Photo Contest
Runner Up in Fstoppers Volume 1 Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Fstoppers Volume 1 Photo Contest
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Peer Award
Top Choice
All Star
Jaw Dropping
Magnificent Capture
Outstanding Creativity
Superior Skill
Great Find
VIP Favorite
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sela
July 17, 2014
I recognised this tree straight away. . You have done an amazing job. Congratulations.
Lindy64
July 17, 2014
Fab photo... Next time Im down that way, I know what I will be wanting to get a pic of... Awesome job... Go Kiwi !!
danielmartin
July 21, 2014
One of the best quality a GREAT photographer must have is Patience... This is one of the results from Patience!!! Bravo!
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
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Behind The Lens
Location
Taken at Lake Wanaka, south island of New Zealand. One of the most photographed tree in the world, also known as the Wanaka willor tree.Time
This was taken during sunrise just when the sun was about to come up the horizon. Thw water was freezing cold and covered in mist.Lighting
This is a back lighted image, i used the sun to give me natural shadows and reflections and used the diffused light from the cloud, blocking the harsh sunlight.Equipment
The camera i used is a Canon 7D, paired with a canon Ultra wide 10-22mm lens with a Hoya ND64 filter attached and a Lee 0.9 Soft edge GND filter. Sitting on a Manfrotto Q5 057 magnesium ballhead with Manfrotto 055XPROB tripod legs.Inspiration
This iconic tree is one of the most photographed tree on earth. It inspired me to shoot this perspective when i saw the cloud formation building up earlier when the sun was not even up yet. I visualized it to be somehow mystical with the mist over the lake. I composed it using the basic rule of thirds, framing the cloud formation and the tree then i waited patiently until the sun rose and threw colors at the clouds so i could get a reflection of both the tree and the illuminated clouds on the misty lake before i pressed the shutter button. This image turned out to be one of my favorites during this photo trip.Editing
I always shoot RAW so post processing is actually a must. I process my photos using Lightroom 4, i only usually tweak contrast, saturation levels, sharpening, noise reduction and curves. Also load camera lens profiles, fix distortions, vignettes and some chromatic abberations.That is pretty much my workflow for post-processing.In my camera bag
I keep myself to gears that i only use and need. I have my camera body, my 10-22mm ultra wide angle lens for my landscape photography, 3 ND filters (ND8, ND64, and a 10 stop Lee filter), 2 GND filters (0.9 Hard and Soft edges). A 50mm and a 135mm prime lenses for my portraiture works, 1 flash, spare batteries and CF cards, and camera cleaning stuffs.Feedback
Always try a different perspective, visualize how you want your images to look like before hitting the shutter, play around with depth of field on how far you want your images to be focused and how long you want the light to come in without blowing out highlights and shadows. Long exposure shots requires a lot of patience so better have one. :)