When we do my photo workshops in Queenstown, this is an area where we usually begin. We start along the lake and walk for about a mile down to Queenstown Gardens. We always time it to arrive just before sunrise. It’s usually pretty cold, but when the sun pops out, everything is great again!
If you end up coming to my Queenstown Photo Workshop then you’re really gonna love this spot. It’s one of my absolute favorites, and, honestly having a workshop is a pretty good excuse for me to get out here and shoot! The colors are out of this world, and simply walking around the gardens is quite relaxing!
Here’s a pretty view from when I took a workshop group up here one morning. The lake was like a huge mirror and perfectly still. I think we all walked around it a few times to get every possible angle. If you look over to the left, you can see, of all things, a North Korean prison. It was used for some terrible Disney movie decades ago. It’s since been demolished because people thought it was an eyesore, but I thought it was kinda cool!
Photo Workshop party in New Zealand! We do have a formal photo workshop coming up in April, but yesterday I did a personal one with this gentleman, Brandin Cooks. He first visited me a few years ago at my studio here, then became an art collector, and then we started going on photo adventures together! He’s a really good photographer and a hungry student that asks lots of good questions. Brandin is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met too… if any of you follow the NFL, then you probably know who he is. I think he’s actually carving out a very interesting niche by being the only pro photographer who is also becoming a pro photographer. Anyway, we had a fun little one-on-one day here in Skipper’s Canyon, then met his wife at Ferg before heading out to take sunset photos in Glenorchy.
The water was like this each and every day. Not only was it this unusual color, but it was super warm and perfect. On our first day there, we went out paddleboarding, which was perfect for beginners because the water was so smooth. There was a lot of falling off anyway, mostly because Ethan was going around like a battleship trying to sink everyone else.
The image from today’s video was taken during our Queenstown, New Zealand Photo Workshop which is coming in soon in just a few weeks! It’s going to be a great time and this is one of the many locations we visit together. If you’re a Passport Member then you get to see the edit of this video… If you were there at the workshop, you got to see it live!
This was a fun edit. I really enjoy these situations where you get to mix together soft areas with defined areas all in the middle of a soup of pretty colors. Enjoy! 🙂
My new friend Matt Conti has made an amazing journal entry about Africa! Wow – that was a lot of work Matt! Great job and amazing photos!
Matt came out to my workshop there in Africa… so, don’t forget to sign up for the upcoming one in New Zealand!
I really do almost zero shopping, being a minimalist and stuff. However, I do like to walk into quirky looking stores to be amused and take a few photos. Like this place, in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for example. Seeing little things like this brighten my day with a little surprise here and there.
Here is one of my favorite art cars from Burning Man. It’s actually more than just an art car… their entire team amazing. Plus, whomever they get to make these videos is seriously talented! Check this out:
I love it when I get to introduce new people to New Zealand during my workshops! These are incredible events and we usually end up visiting Queenstown Gardens. There are so many different kinds of trees and the colors are completely ridiculous. Often times, we begin here in the gardens so that everyone immediately gets some good photos to share with friends and family back home.
My friend Stu sent me this interesting thing from Merriam Webster that shows what words were used for the first time the year I was born.
Here’s a photo I took during the Autumn Workshop (which you should sign up for!) when we went up to the top of Coronet Peak. I have a list of like 10 of my favorite places to take the group… I usually wait till the very last minute to decide based on the weather. All the spots are good during any kind of weather, but some are better than others… It’s only taken me about 10 years to figure out all this stuff!
Today, if you’re a Passport Member you get to see a new 360 video from our recent workshop in Africa! We had a ton of fun… and you’ll get to hear a little from some of the guests!
You can see more about what happens on the workshop here.
A few weeks ago, I shared a 360 video where I talked to a few of the workshop members that joined me in the wilds of Africa. This year you get to hear even more… I think my favorite one was when Phillipa and I were talking and lemurs were jumping all over us! 🙂
(As always with 360 video you can turn the video around while watching.)
We’re in Africa for Passport Sunday this week and in glorious 360 to boot as I chat with some of the lovely people below. This was taken just as we were heading off to another location on part 1 of my Africa photo adventure/workshop.
I’m out in Africa at the moment (probably Madagascar when you’re reading this) running a couple of back to back photography adventures. During the first workshop I grabbed a few of the attendees for a quick chat about what they will take away from the experience. It’s always fun to hear what people pick up on, especially those who’ve joined one of my trips before. (Next up on the workshop front is New Zealand in April… which is fall/autumn in upsidedownland… Come join me!)
Oh, and remember, you can grab the camera view and spin it to look around as you watch. 🙂
