PSNZ Queenstown Landscape Workshop

with Meghan Maloney - By Kelly Munro APSNZ

With Meghan Maloney as our tutor and guide, twelve keen landscape photographers set out for a weekend of fun, food, photography and entertainment ̶ and we were not disappointed. The workshop began with a presentation by Meghan on making great photographs and using filters to improve our photos in-camera. The weather in Queenstown was overcast but when Meghan was demonstrating some local webcams during her presentation we discovered that the Glenorchy end of Lake Wakatipu had clear skies with some high cloud, so we headed down the Queenstown-Glenorchy road for a sunset shoot. The Tongan volcano effect came into play after sunset and we were treated to a lovely afterglow in the sky. Unfortunately, the rental van broke down after sunset, leaving some of our group stranded in the dark beside the lake with limited cell phone reception. The rest of us made our way to Fergburger to order food for everyone. 45 minutes later, with burgers in hand, we headed back up the lake to feed our stranded friends.

Saturday morning involved an early start as we drove up to a somewhat frosty Glenorchy for sunrise. The lake was relatively calm so we were treated to some nice reflections. After sunrise we headed to the Glenorchy Hotel where we enjoyed a delicious breakfast to feed our hungry crew. Then it was off to Paradise, literally. We spent several hours photographing in the beech forest, with great conditions for making “sun-stars”. After an afternoon tea break at the Glenorchy Hotel, we headed towards Lake Hayes for a sunset shoot. Once again, the Tonga effect came into play and there was a nice pinky glow in the sky following the sunset.

Despite the forecasts, we had some great weather and were treated to an amazing sunrise over the Queenstown lakefront on Sunday morning. The sunrise was so vivid it was a case of having to desaturate it in post-production. After sunrise, we returned to the motel to pack. Most of us celebrated with brunch before bidding farewell.

PSNZ Queenstown Landscape Workshop

with Meghan Maloney - By Emma Hissey LPSNZ

Sandwiched between two weather bombs, the timing for the PSNZ Landscape Photography workshop with Meghan Maloney couldn’t have been more perfectly timed. Thirteen eager photographers met at Pinewood Lodge on the afternoon of Friday 15 July. Our unassuming accommodation had spacious six-bedroom units and ample communal space. After an introduction to Meghan's approach to landscapes, we made a (very) last-minute decision to head towards Glenorchy. Given the near 100% cloud cover in Queenstown it turned out to be the right decision, and we found a “pull-out” just past Bennett's Bluff lookout to settle in for the evening.

And settle in we did. After a moody sunset, complete with a “second sunset” due to the Tonga effect (volcanic remains in the atmosphere from the Tongan eruption earlier this year), our quirky van decided it was done for the night. Cue Kumbaya and storytelling (did you know we have a PSNZ member who is also a rally car driver?) to pass the time and distract us from the cold while we waited for a jump start. Knowing that our Ferg Burger dinner, courtesy of “Ted’s Eats” was on its way, helped keep spirits up too!

Given that Glenorchy had delivered the weather goods on Friday night, we were straight back out to the wharf for sunrise. Moonrise coincided, so we were able to capture some near full moon shots as she made her descent behind the mountains. But by gosh it was cold!

When we could no longer operate our cameras due to numb fingers, dethawing and breakfast in front of the fire at the Glenorchy Hotel was in order. Hot chocolates at the Glenorchy Hotel were a particular hit with the group!

Not content that Glenorchy was sufficiently paradisal, we continued on. Our poor wee van wasn’t capable of making it to Paradise, but we certainly found some cracker vistas en route! This included gnarly trees and epic mountains, and beech forests for some sun starburst action between the branches. We followed this with sunset at Lake Hayes before tacos and tutorials.

This practical workshop was interspersed with informative sessions. Although participants had varied photography experience and ability levels, there was something new for everyone in Meghan’s slides – from using filters, composition tips, editing techniques and Lightroom shortcuts to planning your shoot using Photopills and a variety of weather apps. At sunrise the following morning we then had one last chance to put our learning into practice. We predicted it was either going to be a clanger or an absolute banger; I’ll leave the images to speak for themselves. It was an absolute high on which to end the workshop!

A huge thanks to Meghan Maloney, Brian Rowe LPSNZ, Nicole Tai and the PSNZ committee for orchestrating this weekend. It’s safe to say that everyone enjoyed it – with a 10/10 recommendation!