Clouds and Water Photo

Photographer’s Note

The 'Sounds' of New Zealand's South Island west coast (the most famous of which is Milford Sound) have often been compared to the fjords of Norway. I had been on a cruise of Milford Sound many years earlier and so, inspired by reports that if one was prepared to travel a bit further from Te Anau to get there Doubtful Sound was actually more impressive, this time we decided to cruise for a day on Doubtful. I have already uploaded one picture, taken on the way to the sound.

In this part of NZ there is a very good chance that the weather will be overcast and wet; the annual rainfall is phenomenal. This day was no exception, except for the few seconds of sunshine that occurred from time to time, as seen here on the side of the mountain. The rain had been teeming earlier, causing the waterfalls to stream down the steep faces of the mountains. The boat gives some idea of the massive size of them.

The Fjordland website says:
"Sometimes called “the Sound of Silence” there is a cloistered serenity within Doubtful Sound that contrasts with Milford Sound. The fiord is rich in flora and fauna, New Zealand Fur Seals and Fiordland Crested Penguins can be seen on many of the small islets in the entrance of the fiord.
At 421 metres deep Doubtful is the deepest of the fiords and is long and winding with three distinct “arms” and several outstanding waterfalls in the area from Deep Cove to the open ocean, a distance of around 40.4 kilometres."

Clairedelune, peter1892, ChrisJ, Elaine_Blath, pranab, Lisas_world, alekpet, Propofol, Donald, MLINES has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

Modacolor51 (1309) 2006-05-06 13:06

Beautiful place. Good capture with very nice colours.
Regards.
Yılmaz.

Malyshev (2491) 2006-05-06 16:15

Wow! Great view and nice shot! This picture from my dream! Thanks and best regards! Yuri

peter1892 (3201) 2006-05-06 17:46

Nice work Andrew - the small amount of sunlight falling on the side of the valley adds a nice bit of contrast to the shot. The boat helps define the size of the place too.

ChrisJ (70443) 2006-05-07 4:25

Hi Andrew

Milford Sound is a spectacular locale. I have been there, in the early 1980's. I like the repetition of the waterfalls here. Good work!

Didi (36420) 2006-05-07 9:43

Hello Andrew
Very nice landcape with nice filtered lights on the mountain.
The clouds give a mysterious adventure ambiance.
I think you sould close more your aperture at f/8 or 11 to have a bigger depht of field.
Well done.

Elaine_Blath (6170) 2006-05-07 12:56

Hi Andrew,

I like your photos still more and more...such an amazing place!!! Excellent, and superb composition....well done!

Regards, Ivana

anesugur (16980) 2006-05-08 3:21

Hi Andrew,
Superb composition and excellent POV.
Very beautiful colors.
Very well done. Uğur

pranab (5354) 2006-05-08 3:33

andrew,
excellent pov once again lets us experience the vastness of thios place, adding the boat in the picture with the hint of water was a brilliant idea to give us the feeling of depth here. good color saturation despite th epoor weather.

sebinho342 (18784) 2006-05-08 9:19

This is good picture Andrew, from new zealand, how that sounds freedom and spaces ! :))
Perhaps a little lack of contrast but perhaps more would have denaturated the picture.
Good work Andrew, i like :)

daddo (11533) 2006-05-17 6:22

Hi Andrew. I love this photo. The vegetation on the slopes reminds me of a tapestry. The merging of the clouds, land and water(through the waterfalls) creates a spectacle. The light on the side of the mountain adds a moment of magic and richness. Great work. One of my favourites. Regards, Klaudio. Also, Happy Birthday.

Lisas_world (1184) 2006-05-23 19:23

Good evening, Andrew, Well I am attracted as much by the name "Doubtful Sound" as anything. This is a gorgeous shot you have taken, with the colorfully imposing mountain jutting up over the ship (which I'm sure is not nearly as tiny as it looks). The clouds give a sense of moodiness to the mountain, almost as if the mists embodied its thoughts.

Very well composed, nice color.

Regards, Lisa
P.S. I finally got hold of the books you recommended by Mario Vargas Llosa (Feast of the Goat, War of the End of the World). Perhaps I'll be adding them to my favorite book list on my intro :)

alekpet (4659) 2006-05-26 3:36

Hi Andrew.

I really appreciate this view, the scale is really phenomenal, enormous size of the falls, looks like the mountain is crying. Clouds and the boat add special interest to the falls.

Aleks

rushfan2112 (2965) 2006-06-04 18:36

Andrew, impressive and moody shot. I like the lighting - a slight sense of foreboding -and the boat giving the mountains a sense of scale. Nice capture. Paul.

Clairedelune (4885) 2006-07-16 18:08

Doubtful Sound? Really? I wonder why they called it that way. I like old mountains with their rounded crests and their colors. Oh, I would like to see those waterfalls! When it comes to waterfalls, I am like a kid. Same with fireworks! I like the mix of colors here, the rusty and the greeny ones. Not so sunny? So what? We have so many sunny photos already. And clouds like cotton balls are fitting well here with the dark and rough mountain.
Claire

Donald (134) 2006-10-29 3:32

Hi Andrew, to give a critique on such a beautiful photo is some thing I find harder than trying to take a great photo, its a bit easyer if you are the first to critique the photo, I like the whole picture the way the wee cloud is left hanging on to the side of the hill, I love the colours of the hill as they change from top to bottom, and the Boat just puts the the whole photo into scale. In a case like this I feel the best critique I could give it is to take it to my favorites and that way I can use it to learn.
Thank you for sharing it with me.
Kind regards
Donald

Jonathan_Tree (4773) 2007-11-22 8:55

Howdy Andrew! Amazinh seascape wit mountain and boat. Wonderful composition. Fantastic shot. Well done!

jimkilgallon (0) 2008-09-01 4:11

Hi Andrew
I have not made it here yet, I dream to see this for myself soon. Excellent mood with the harsh like weather with the big mountains just oozing colour and detail despite the light. The boat shows the depth of these fjords. Excellent work.
PS - I really enjoy using the grad and polarizer at the same time. The colours come in nicely and the more important thing is the detail in the sky holds better.
Cheers
Jim

MLINES (10948) 2009-10-03 22:20

Hi Andrew, Well composed photograph. The rivers of rainwater are unusual and add a lot of interest. The boat in the foreground is well positioned. Green colour of the vegetation is attractive. TFS. Murray.