Sunrise at Te Mata Peak, Napier, Hawkes Bay
The first colors of a day is more eventful when you are up at the mighty Peak to capture the beauty of sunrise
The first colors of a day is more eventful when you are up at the mighty Peak to capture the beauty of sunrise
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May, 2016Views
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Awards
Contest Finalist in The First Light Photo Contest
Peer Award
Absolute Masterpiece
Superb Composition
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
Magnificent Capture
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Behind The Lens
Location
This shot is taken at Napier, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand from the top of the Te Mata Peak. Planned to capture the first light of the day, i drove to this mighty 'peak' at dawn and was thrilled to see how the light uncover the magical view as the time pass by.Time
The dawn hour is one of the most precious time of a day for any photographer, and so i planned to reach the very spot to capture the golden light of the dawn and the sunrise colors. The faint light at the horizon on a fairly cold morning was mesmerizing.This shot was taken from the Te Mata Peak at the sunrise hour which is around 7:15 am on the month of April. Loved the transition of the colors of the green landscape which was lit up by the sunlight.Lighting
This shot was taken at a morning hour approximately 15 mins after the sunrise on a clear ambiance.I pictured the frame with the sun at the right so that the dramatic terrain and the landscape provide a magical composition of light and shade.Equipment
To get a proper balanced landscape shot, i mounted my lens on a tripod (Manfroto Ball head) and used a ultra wide angle lens (Samyang 14mm F2.8 manual lens) with the Canon 6D. I took around 9 images few with different frame (for the pano effect) and few with the same frame with different exposures for a well balanced composition of light. I used the hyperfocal distance method to get a balanced sharpness and focus. The technical details are: ISO -100 Shutter Speed - 1/10 , 1/30, 1.0 secs Aperture - F11 Focal length - 14mmInspiration
New Zealand is famous for the picturesque landscape and the dynamic terrains and so Hawkes Bay, Napier is one of the must to visit spots where you can explore the green wineries and the rugged terrain. I was inspired by the stories of the place and the experiences shared by many photographers who visited the place. The stories were enough for me to get motivated and plan for the trip. I was lucky to be present at the top of the peak well before the sunrise hour and loved every moment of the morning glow. The 360 deg view from the peak gave me plenty of opportunity to plan my shots and the outcome was refreshing. The sunlight added more drama to the landscape and was supper happy to get such a composition.Editing
There was not much of post processing required as the shot was taken in ambient natural light conditions and the landscape colors were vibrant enough to please the eyes. Still, i have to use the Photoshop CS5 to blend the different exposure shots to bring out the dark and light areas and also to merge the same for the extra pano view. Few color corrections and a soft HDR also applied as a part of my regular post processing.In my camera bag
I have some must to carry gears and some nice to have gears. The must to carry gears have added over the years and now a days the list stands as, Camera body off-course, EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM, Samyang 14mm F2.8 lens, a set of 77mm Polarization, ND400 Variable filter, ND1000 filters, shutter release, extra memory card, extra battery pack and yes a small set of cleaning kit, like the Blower, and some clean wipes. I also carry a led torch and some clean cloth which comes handy at night shoots. I also pack my tripod as a must to carry gear. Nice to have gears include Canon 1.4mm 50mm lens, Tamron 70 - 200 mm F2.8 lens and few more filters.Feedback
My only advise to fellow photographers who are inspired to capture the beauty of natural landscapes is to plan for the dawn at least 2 hours before the sunrise time as the magic happens when there is a transition from night to pre-dawn to dawn to sunrise. Patience is the key and for landscape there are few thumb rule technically - shot with the lowest ISO, use aperture form f8 - f16 for a balanced focus, use a tripod specially when you are planning at dawn or sunrise moments. Good luck guys.
