Hobbit Country | Paul Tombleson

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New Zealand… a Land of Contrasts

Posted in Photography with tags Desert Road, Hobbit Country, iPhone 4s, Kite Surfing, New Zealand, North Island, Orewa, Piha, Ruapehu on June 15, 2014 by Paul Tombleson

Ruapehu Volcano

I was inspired recently to grab my camera and head over to the land of the Kiwi bird. Its been awhile since I have had the freedom and inclination to travel alone free from the encumbrances of “are we there yet”? The freedom to start and stop when inspired… aaahhhhh, bliss! I enjoy driving almost as much as photography so it was a win, win for me on this trip. And what a great place to drive… roads are excellent the scenery never stops and you’re never that far from your next destination or place of interest. I travelled with only two cameras…. my trustee D300 and iPhone. And yes the iPhone had two specific jobs. One to take panoramas and two instantly message/email pics to loved ones… I’m trying to remember if I used it as a phone? So my wandering took me to Orewa beach on a windy day where the kite surfers paraded up and down in what looked like an accident waiting to happen with wires and kites and people crossing paths in synchronized chaos. Reminded me of driving in India .One of the magnificence of New Zealand is its compact and diverse geography allowing one to photograph in a warm lush region then within an hour or so be in a cool high country. Thus allowing for many different subjects and landscape to be captured.

Piha

Poi Poi. King Country (Hobbit Land)

My wide angle lens (18mm) did not always do justice to the view presented so I found the iPhone panorama feature most helpful and good enough to document the vista.