Wānaka

When it came to deciding on what to photograph in Wanaka it’s easy to say you are spoiled for choice when you have the Mt Aspiring and Lake Wanaka for a backdrop. The point of difference for me was trying to work out how to shoot parts of the local area in a way that reflected my thoughts around climate change.

The key for me was in the land – the land in three phases, the early morning, midday, and the evening. This is a landscape that has seen change many times over for longer than many of us can even comprehend, both man-made and natural and it will continue to change long after we’re all gone. The soft light of the rising sun on the world famous boundary marker hardens by midday to draw out the textures of the stone shores near Beacon Point. By the late evening the land softens again and the stars look down on a land that will endure but even rock can break and with the impact of human activity and the pressure on resources change may come sooner than expected.

For a kid from South Auckland it’s humbling to see the beauty of nature in this setting. I am used to seeing roads, light pollution and multi-level office blocks. Forever grateful for the chance to see the water so far inland, a child of the Moana, I am grateful for the chance to get another perspective.

Raymond Sagapulutele www.raymondsagapolutele.com