Earlier this month we were parked up in Dunedin at Woodhaugh in the Leith Valley for a week. It’s only a couple of minutes walk to Ross Creek which gives access to the Reservoir and lots of lovely bush walks. Walking up the gorge beside Ross Creek I’d often considered the photography possibilities and with longer daylight in the evenings after work this month I finally got motivated to have a proper look.
On my first outing I didn’t bother with my tripod and just went to explore the angles and the light. It proved to be a bit trickier than I’d hoped, being a narrow creek below the track with lots of overhanging vegetation. I liked my fuzzy photos (long exposures with no sunshine or bright light) so headed back the following evening. This time I had my trusty tripod and my new remote release thing that Andrew had passed on to me – thanks Andrew.
It was even harder with the tripod, trying to get a secure base among the slippery rocks of the creek bed. I managed to find a couple of suitable spots with the following results….
Ross Creek is a great asset for Dunedin. All these photos were taken beside (or underneath) a very well-used walking/running track and all within 100m of the road and houses of Woodhaugh. The bird-song is wonderful; better than many of the remote forests of New Zealand.
I’ve still got some way to go with photo sharpness but it’s good to make a start. I might have to get a bit more up-close with the creek and I’m sure there are some more angles there to be explored. On my way back down the creek there was another location I wanted to try out. I just wanted to test the light and get a rough idea of the scene so didn’t worry about trying to hold things still. I quite liked the result – as below . Maybe I should wave my camera around more often.