This 12 day Mountains to Coast Photography Tour offers excellent opportunities to photograph fiords, mountains, wild beaches, forests, waterfalls, and the snow-covered Southern Alps.
Starting with our 4 day Landscape Masterclass at Mt White Station expand your skills as a landscape photographer. Learn to master the art of capturing awe inspiring landscape photographs. Our teaching program will cover tutorials on composition along with advanced topics such as hyperfocal distance for getting sharp photographs. You will learn to shoot a diverse range of landscape photography from mountains, to rivers to high country panoramas from sunrise to sunset.
From Mt White you will head through Arthur’s Pass to the West Coast. This tour is perfectly timed at the end of winter, when the light is crisp and low to capture the stunning landscapes of the West Coast which boasts more forests, mountains, and protected lands than any other region of New Zealand. Here, wild and remote coastlines are flanked by primaeval rainforests, with the high peaks and glaciers of the Southern Alps rising beyond.
Unique access to high-country landscapes
High Country 4WD trips
3-night stay at Mt White Lodge
Te Wāhipounamu World Heritage Site
Amazing coastal sunsets
Lake Matheson sunrise
Punakaiki Pancake Rocks
White Heron Sanctuary Tour
Mt White Station
Arthur’s Pass
Punakaiki
Fox Glacier
Haast
Wanaka
Day 1 - Christchurch - Mt White Station
We will pick you up early from Christchurch to travel to Mt White Station at midday. After assembling at the lodge we will run through an introductory programme of advanced camera setup for landscape photography and tutorials on composition along with advanced topics such as hyperfocal distance for getting sharp photographs. Late afternoon, we will head out for our first 4WD trip to the top of a nearby peak to shoot sunset across the stunning river braids.
Day 2 - Mt White Station
Headed out before sunrise in 4WDs to capture sunrise over the mountains and Esk River. After breakfast head on to the Mound of Misery to spend the day exploring the mounds and the many photographic opportunities this remote area offers. Tonight we will shoot sunset with stunning views across the terraced high country landscapes with mountains and the Waimakariri River as a backdrop.
Day 3 - Mt White Station
After an early morning sunrise, we will then spend the morning in the lodge conference room to offer a group critique of the photographs from the last days and an in-depth post-production session covering the processing of landscape photographs. We will then help you process your two best images from the workshop and produce a finished 16x22\" fine art print to take home. We will head out in 4WDs to capture sunset returning to the best location on the station for the weather conditions.
Day 4 - Mt White Station - Christchurch
During our last sunrise shoot, we will capture some of the first morning light across surrounding mountains. We will depart the Station mid morning to head out to Castle Hill to photograph the strange and spectacular landscapes of this area before heading through to Christchurch.
Day 5 - Christchurch
Today you will have a free day to explore Christchurch or catch up on some processing before the start of the next leg of the tour.
Day 6 - Christchurch - Punakaiki
This morning we depart Christchurch and head across the Canterbury Plains and up into the Southern Alps. Driving through the famous Arthur’s Pass we will stop to photograph the waterfalls and forests of this area as we make our way to the West Coast. We will reach Punakaiki and its famous Punakaiki rock formations in time for sunset photography.
Day 7 - Punakaiki
The day begins with an exploration of the exquisite limestone and river landscapes of Paparoa National Park. We will spend the rest of the day exploring the exceptional coastline and sunset sees us heading out onto stunning beaches to capture the last light hitting the coastline and huge breaking waves.
Day 8 - Punakaiki - Fox Glacier
This morning, we drive down the coast stopping in at the Hokitika Gorge to capture the beautiful turquoise waters and then heading further down to Whataroa for a guided White Heron Sanctuary Tour up the Whataroa river; this is the only way to access the Waitangiroto Nature Reserve. Here, we will photograph the country's only nesting site for the beautiful White Herons (Kotuku), along with the Royal Spoonbill. We finish the day at sunset, we visit a remote west coast beach offering panoramic views of the snow-covered peaks of the Southern Alps.
Day 9 - Fox Glacier
This morning, we will photograph the sunrise at Lake Matheson, capturing the often-perfect reflections of Aoraki/Mt Cook and Mt Tasman—New Zealand’s highest mountains. If the weather is right, you have the option (at additional cost) to take a helicopter flight onto the vast upper neve of the Fox Glacier for some unparalleled photo opportunities. Sunset tonight will see us heading out to Okarito Lagoon, with panoramic views of the Southern Alps rising beyond a sweeping extent of rainforest.
Day 10 - Fox Glacier - Hasst
We travel along the coast, exploring the magnificent rainforest of the Te Wāhipounamu (a UNESCO World Heritage area). At sunset, we visit a remote West Coast beach for another west coast sunset.
Day 11 - Haast - Wanaka
After a coastal sunrise this morning we drive through Haast’s Pass, the gateway back inland to Wanaka. Along the way, we photograph a number of extraordinary waterfalls, including a beautiful 30-metre cascade in stately beech forest. Tonight we capture the sunset over Lake Wanaka.
Day 12 – Wanaka - Queenstown
This morning we will head out on a 4WD drive trip to capture the changing light over mighty peaks and mountain valleys. The rest of the day we will explore the hills around Wanaka before heading back over to Queenstown for late afternoon flights.
12 days’ photography guiding by Ken Wright & Glen Howey
11 nights’ hotel accommodation (twin-share, single upgrade available) mostly 4✩
11 breakfasts
4WD Trips
White Heron Sanctuary Tour
Transport during the tour
Christchurch pickup / Queenstown drop off
DOC (National Park) concession fees
Copy of our Pocket Guide to Landscape & Wildlife Photography
Donation to our Conservation Fund
Native tree planting to Carbon Offset your tour
Thank you for your booking on the NZ Mountains to Coast Photography Tour, we know that you’ll want to begin planning your trip, please find below some helpful information and details you will need for your booking with us.
Essential Guide
Here is a link to our Essential Guide, this PDF has lots of useful information for your trip with us, please take the time to read it.
Recommended Flights
You will need to fly into Christchurch the day before your tour starts as we will be leaving early (7-8am) in the morning and flights on the day can be problematic if delayed. On the first day of the tour we can pick you up from any centrally located (or close to the airport) accommodation.
Recommended Return Flights
We will be arriving at Queenstown airport at 4pm for domestic flights no earlier than 5:30 pm. Please do not book flights earlier than this or you will not make it to the airport on time. For international departures please check your own flights check in times.
Pre and Post Tour Accommodation
If you need pre or post tour accommodation, we can help you sort this please email us if you would like us to sort this for you.
Single Room Upgrade
If you would like to have your own room for the duration of the trip you can add the single room upgrade to your booking, if you didn’t do this at the checkout, just send us an email we can add this for you. Please note if we do not hear from you about this we will assume you wish to share a room with another tour participant. At Mt White Single room upgrades are for your own room with shared facilities.
Online Course - Essential Landscape Photography
As a part of this tour you will receive complimentary access to the online course, this will be sent out 30 days prior to departure so that you are camera ready for your trip.
Once you have booked your flights and made your travel plans please let us know what these are and where you would like to be picked up from to join the tour.
Thanks again for booking with us, we will be in touch again closer to your departure date.
We look forward to having you on tour with us soon!
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