Travel Notes: The Bay, New Zealand

The Bay of Islands was named by Captain James Cook in 1769. The Maori called it Eppiri, which means many places to fish, swim, sit and enjoy the beauty. There are many tales and many islands; It looks like 144. The best way to see it all is by boat. There are two main sites in the bay: Brett Point Lighthouse and The Hole in the Rock.

I could have titled this post “Travel Experiments”. Unfortunately, you have days when nothing seems to go your way. This was one day. If you visit the states, learn from my mistakes and hopefully, have a better time than I did and take some really amazing photos.

Exploring the bay

We drove to Pahiya which is also called “Pahiha”. Our plan for the day was to take a cruise off the coast to see some dolphins, Hole in the Rock (Percy Island) and the Cape Brett Lighthouse. While waiting to board our cruise, we explored the harbor.

Unfortunately, we made a huge rookie mistake by not doing enough research beforehand. Our Fuller Great Stites Dolphins and Hole in the Rock Cruise at our hotel was a highlight. But unfortunately, it was a big catamaran that could hold up to 180 people. This meant we couldn’t get great photos as many people were using iPads and selfie sticks and unwilling to share the view. I hardly saw any dolphins, and in the end, I had to push my way out. Don’t get me wrong I’m sure people love this cruise but we didn’t.

As photographers, we tend to prefer smaller and more personal tours, especially with smaller craft (like the ones we’ve seen above). Crowds race to see dolphins, seals and more on board. I hardly saw any dolphins, and in the end, I had to push my way out. I’m glad I’m still out on the water, the wind, the sun and my hair floating, and we’ve had great weather.

During the cruise we saw the Brett Point Lighthouse and the Hole in the Rock. The little craft enjoyed sailing through the hole, but our captain thought it too difficult to fit into our much larger vessel. Seals were seen on the way back, but I couldn’t see them very well. Unfortunately, too many people have had a very unpleasant day. Even though I paid a lot of money for the excursion, we didn’t get the service we were used to on the much smaller tours.

They liked it

After the picnic we had lunch at Jimmy Jacks which had the best burgers and ribs in town. We stopped at a nearby fudge shop before wandering through the arts and crafts market for dessert. Paihia was a lovely little tourist town.

Visit the waterfalls

On our way back, we stopped at Haruru Falls, just outside of town. Unfortunately, it was very dry and needed more water to make it truly a sight to behold. We realized that the height of summer might not be the best time to see waterfalls. But still, it was nice to visit the nearby Rainbow Falls. All areas of these falls are easily accessible and many people used to swim in the lake at the base of the falls.

Overall, it wasn’t our best day, the choppy water made it difficult to take sharp photos even at high ISO and shutter speeds. To be honest, looking back now, I could have gone much higher than ISO 3200 to avoid any camera shake, and I could have taken a shutter speed faster than 1/500 second. Most modern digital cameras can easily handle ISO 640 — 800 without too much grain. Aperture Priority Mode, with auto ISO and a minimum shutter speed of 1/1000, could have saved me a lot of grief later. That summer isn’t always the best time to see waterfalls. Lessons learned for the journey ahead.

Useful tips

• Do your own research. I get caught up in people telling me that an attraction or activity, location, etc. is amazing. But it was a different time of the year, or not to my liking, or more for tourists than photographers.
• Don’t get too upset with yourself if you make a mistake. Enjoy the experience (as much as possible) and keep it all as an adventure.
• Don’t be afraid of high ISO. You’ll get better at high ISO than poorly exposed images.
• When taking photos from a boat, try to steady yourself – feet apart and place an arm or hand on the rail for support.
• If you don’t do well with water, remember to pack ginger or seasickness tablets.
• Don’t forget sunscreen, a hat and sunglasses, even on cloudy days. If you need sunglasses, maybe your glasses need a CPL (circular polarizing filter)?