'Action' landscape photography at Punakaiki

We are slowly coming out of Lockdown here in New Zealand. Auckland is still at complete level 4 Lockdown, but the rest of the country has moved to 'Delta' level 2. At level 2, you can start to travel a little further afield, and businesses can re-open (while still maintain strict social distancing and mask-wearing). I'm still working from home, and probably will be for at least another two weeks. The weather has also been rotten this week - wind, rain, thunder and lightning - the works. My wife and I have got a touch of cabin fever.

So when we discovered that Saturday looked promising weather-wise, we decided to pack a lunch and head out for the day. Yay! But where to go?

The Chimney Pot. OM-D E-M1 with Panansonic 12-35mm f/2.8.  f/5.6 @ 1/1000th, ISO 200

A quick check of the tides, and I knew exactly where I wanted to go. High tide was scheduled for 1.00pm, and it was likely going to be very dramatic. The country had been issued with a high-waves warning earlier on in the week, and from our home we can hear, and see, the waves as they crash into Cobden tiphead. With tides, and waves that dramatic, there's really only one place to head to if you're a photographer - Punakaiki and the Pancake Rock Blowholes.

Yours truly ready to capture the action. Photo: Joanna Lorimer. Nikon D70 with Nikkor 18-55mm

The Pancake Rock Blowholes at Punakaiki, are a very famous tourist destination. The 'pancake' rocks are formations that began 30 million years ago, when lime-rich fragments of dead marine creatures were deposited on the sea bed. These were then covered by layers of soft mud. Thousands of years of rain, wind and sea spray have etched the softer siltstone into horizontal grooves, which look like giant layers of pancakes.

Earthquakes have raised them from the seabed to the level we can see today, as well as creating a maze of underground passages and open caverns facing the sea. When there's a big swell and a high tide, the ocean surges into these caverns and water is forced through the passages. Huge geysers of spray can then burst spectacularly skyward - under the right conditions. The sorts of conditions we were likely to have on this very day...

Pancake Rocks Blowholes, Punakaiki. E-M1 with Lumix 12-35mm. f/6.3 @ 1/1250th, ISO 200

We were not disappointed. I've lived on the West Coast for most of my life, and have visited - and photographed - the Pancake Rocks Blowholes dozens of times. I've never seen them this good. They were, as the young kids say, 'Epic'! In fact, they were so good, and so powerful, that the spray from the really big geysers was reaching the viewing platform and drenching everyone. Very exciting - but not great for camera gear and lenses.

For the hour or so that we were there photographing the blowholes, I adopted a 'burst and hide' style of shooting. I would wait for the really big blows (you could hear them coming), shoot a rapid-fire high speed burst of about a dozen images, then quickly point my camera down and into my chest as I turned my back to the spray! It helped to keep most of the salt spray off of the camera, but I would still need to wipe the front of the lens every 10 minutes or so. Note to self - use a UV filter over the lens next time.

Surge Pool. E-M1 with Lumix 12-35mm. f/6.3 @ 1/640th, ISO 200

Fortunately, both the Olympus OM-D E-M1 and the Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 are weather-sealed and can take some pretty serious punishment from the elements. But salt water is salt water, and probably not great for lens coatings or metal, weather-sealing or not. I was, as mentioned, trying to be careful and not get my gear drenched.

Having said that, it was pretty difficult to keep anything dry with all the spray from the sea floating around. As someone who wears glasses 100% of the time, it didn't take long between wipes until the lenses of your glasses (and camera) were needing a wipe-down again. Annoyingly, the really big geysers seemed to happen every time I stopped to wipe clear my glasses and lens. I must have missed at least half a dozen really big blows while wiping glass clear of water spots. But as maddening as that was, I knew if I was patient, it would only be a matter of time before another big gush came around.

Thar she blows! Olympus OM-D E-M1 with Lumix 12-35mm. f/6.3 @ 1/1600th, ISO 200

This is the big one! The biggest geyser I have ever seen come from the Pancake Rock Blowholes. And as impressive as it looks in the photograph, it's ten times more impressive being there and seeing it happen. The sheer volume and power of the water is - in a word - awesome!

As I said earlier, I've photographed the blowholes dozens of times. And I've captured some pretty decent geysers in my time. Or at least I thought I had. Until today. 

I really don't think it could get any more impressive than this. The photograph above of the biggest geyser I've ever seen at the Pancake Rocks Blowholes, is a 'bucket list' photo for me. It's one of those "if I never take another shot of this in my life I'd be happy" kind of photo. It's the 'action' shot of the blowholes that I've always wanted. And now, I've finally got it.

Does getting the image fill me with a sense of accomplishment. Heck yeah! Of course it does. The above image is probably a 30+ year image in the making. I smile every time I look at it. Why wouldn't I?

The aftermath. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with Lumix 12-35mm. f/6.3 @ 1/1600th, ISO 200

Does that mean I will stop going to Punakaiki to photograph the blowholes? No, not at all. I will still head to the blowholes if the weather and photography gods line-up again. And who knows, maybe there's an even bigger geyser in store for me in the future? 

But I doubt it. And as I said, if I never get the same conditions ever again in my lifetime, I can die happy, knowing I got 'my' image of the blowholes on a good day.

I also couldn't think of better gear to capture it with either. The Panasonic Lumix 12-35mm f/2.8 is creating beautifully crisp, detailed, sharp and vibrant images - with very impressive edge-to-edge sharpness at the apertures I'm shooting with (around f/5.6 to f/8 mostly). And the Olympus E-M1 is blazing fast, wonderfully responsive, fantastic to shoot with, and the RAW files are a joy to process. I've only had this combination for a few weeks, and it has already netted me a 'bucket-list' shot. What more could I ask for? 

Punakaiki Pancake Rocks - Tourist for a day with the OM-D E-M1

Autumn has started here in New Zealand, and the weather has been glorious! This weekend just passed (as I write this), my darling wife and I decided to make the most of it, and go for a drive. We initially considered heading South to Hokitika, but then remembered that the Hokitika Wildfoods Festival was on. Far too many people heading that way!

So we decided to head North instead, to Punakaiki, and check out the Pancake Rocks Blowholes. The tides were favourable (high tide), the sun was shining, and there was really no wind to speak of. We arrived at around 2.00pm - not quite the middle of the day, but not too far from it. Not really the ideal conditions for award-winning photography!?  But that wasn't what this trip was about. It was just about us getting outside in the sunshine - playing 'tourist' for the afternoon, and seeing what sort of images we could get. What if this was the only opportunity we were ever going to have to take photos at the Blowholes (fortunately it's not)? What kind of images can you get in the middle of the afternoon if, as a tourist, this was your only chance? Let's see shall we....

Nikau Palm, Punakaiki. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with 12-40mm f2.8 Pro. 1/100th @ f5.6, ISO 100 (Low). Polarising filter

We were travelling 'light' - me with my E-M1 in a Lowpro Slingshot 100 (that can easily carry the 12-40mm f2.8 Pro, 40-150mm f4/5.6 and 8mm bodycap) and Joanna with the Pen E-P3 and 14-42mm kit lens. I kept the 12-40mm f2.8 lens on most of the time, with a polariser attached - but as you'll see later on, I did 'experiment' with the 8mm at the blowholes. This is exactly the sort of kit I would travel with - light, portable, but extremely high quality (yes, even the 8mm bodycap).

The Pothole, Punakaiki. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with M.Zuiko 12-40mm f2.8 Pro. 1/250th @ f6.3, ISO 100. Polarising filter

Because the day was so bright, I decided to leave the polarising filter on all day, and began by shooting with the E-M1's 'Low' ISO setting (ISO 100). The E-M1 shoots at ISO 200 at its lowest native setting, unless you unlock the 'low' option in the menu. This effectively gives you an ISO 100 image. Tests on-line and reviews I've seen indicate that ISO 100 does give a very 'clean' image, but you need to be careful not to blow out the highlights. Good advice at any and all ISO settings I would have thought. Considering the above images, ISO 100 (Low) looks pretty good to me!

Punakaiki Blowholes. Olympus OM-D E-M1 with 12-40mm f2.8 Pro. 1/400th @ f7.1, ISO 200. Grainy B&W Art filter

Because I was 'playing' tourist, I decided to 'play' with the Art filters in the camera as well. Grainy B&W has always been my favourite art filter (mode II with an orange filter - border added), although in such bright conditions it can be a bit tricky to get the exposure right. The filter is very high contrast and blows the highlights and shadows together very quickly. In the above image the sea spray has a few areas of blown out highlight detail - but this is very much the 'look' of this filter. Highlights and shadows can be controlled to a certain extent with the highlight/shadow curve adjustment controls built into the camera - but in such bright overhead light, you're fighting a loosing battle.

Punakaiki Blowholes 2. OM-D E-M1 with 12-40mm f2.8 Pro. 1/400th @ f7.1, ISO 200. Silver Effex Pro2.

Fortunately, since I shoot RAW, when you use the Art filters it creates two images - the Grainy Art filter as a jpeg, and the original RAW colour image. I used the RAW image of the same shot and processed it in Nik software's Silver Effex Pro2 - to get a similar black and white result. I actually like this image better, but of course you have to go through the whole processing of the image yourself - whereas with the Art filters, the camera does it all for you...

Thar She Blows! Olympus OM-D E-M1 with 8mm fisheye bodycap. 1/250th @f8, ISO 400.

The fun didn't stop with the Art filters either! Because of the high tide, the blowholes were putting on a decent display. But at the front of the railing, with the 12-40mm lens at 12mm (24mm equivalent in full frame), I wasn't getting enough of the scene in. Fortunately, I'd decided to throw my 8mm fisheye bodycap lens in the bag before leaving (it weighs practically nothing), and I'm so glad I did! I'm thrilled with the new perspective I was able to get of the blowholes, and I love the fisheye effect on the horizon. Hands-down my favourite image I've taken of the blowholes at Punakaiki.

E-M1 with 12-40mm f2.8 lens. 1/800th @f6.3 

We had a fantastic day wandering around the Pancake Rocks, being tourists for the day, and enjoying the beautiful weather and amazing scenery. The light was harsh - full on mid afternoon autumn sun - but we still managed to get some 'keeper' images that I would be happy to show off to friends and family - and one shot that I'd even consider printing and framing!

It just goes to show that good photos can be made at any time of the day, even if you find yourself at a once-in-a-lifetime location with less than ideal lighting conditions.

If your camera has art filters, and you've never used them, why not have a 'play'. You might stumble on a filter that you actually quite like. And remember, if you shoot in RAW mode, the camera will create two files; the original RAW file and a jpeg processed with the filter effect. So you can get the best of both worlds.

The Olympus OM-D E-M1 (and micro four thirds in general) is a perfect travel camera. Small and lightweight - even with the all metal 12-40mm f2.8 Pro lens and battery grip attached - with excellent image quality, and packed full of advanced features. Even the Pen EP-3 was up to the task, and Joanna took some beautiful images on a super small and lightweight system.

Yours truly with the E-M1. Photo by Joanna Lorimer

Much has been said (and written) recently about the future of micro four thirds now that full-frame mirrorless cameras are all the rage. Some (so called) 'experts' have claimed that micro four thirds is already dead - but with the release of Olympus's E-M1x and their roadmap for future lens releases, I believe that nothing could be further from the truth.

Photographers have a real thing about size. Most truly believe that 'bigger is better'. I used to be one of them. But since moving to the OM-D E-M1, I don't believe I've 'compromised' on image quality one bit. I couldn't be happier, and intend to immerse myself even further into the system. I'd love an E-M1x, and hope to get one someday. But until then, I'll quite happily use my E-M1 (and maybe a MkII). For me, and I suspect for many other photographers, it still happens to be the ideal system.