FERN BARK

MOUNT COOK, NEW ZEALAND

Image Number 245

The micro climate growing on fern back in the rain forest at the base of Mount Cook.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Contax 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 1 minute 40 seconds and aperture F8.   120 mm Zeiss macro lens with leaf shutter.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.

BEECH FOREST

ROUTEBURN TRACK, NEW ZEALAND

Image Number 176

In 1850 a Dutch botanist recognised that beech trees in the southern hemisphere were different from those in the north. He named them Nothofagus, meaning false beech. Southern beech trees can be found on slopes around much of New Zealand; their inaccessibility means that many forests are still intact.  This beech forest on the Routeburn Track in the South Island of New Zealand features in the first "Lord of the Rings" movie.

TECHNICAL NOTES

Captured by Atticus Webb on a tripod mounted Zeiss Contax 645 medium format camera with Zeiss 80mm lens at F22 with an exposure of 1 second.  File size 260 meg, 8 bit.  The image was registered on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back at ISO 100.  The combination of sensor size and megapixels from this back captures approximately five times more detail than the highest resolution 35mm SLR camera currently available – and explains the exceptional resolution of the image.  

 

 

BEECH TREE ROOTS

ROUTEBURN TRACK, NEW ZEALAND

Image Number 171

In 1850 a Dutch botanist recognised that beech trees in the southern hemisphere were different from those in the north. He named them Nothofagus, meaning false beech. Southern beech trees can be found on slopes around much of New Zealand; their inaccessibility means that many forests are still intact.  This beech forest on the Routeburn Track in the South Island of New Zealand features in the "Lord of the Rings" movie.

TECHNICAL NOTES

The image was taken with a tripod-mounted Contax 645 Camera at ISO 35. Exposure of 11 seconds and aperture F22.  80 mm Zeiss lens.   The image was captured on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  Photographed just after sunset in failing light. 

 

Ferny Creek

This is an image of a still pool in a creek flowing from the western face of Mt Cook. It was captured at midday in September in a deep fern gully.

TECHNICAL NOTES

This image was captured on a Contax 645 camera fitted with an 80 megixel Phase One digital back.  ISO 35 and an exposure of 1.4 seconds at F8.    A Zeiss 80mm lens was used.

TSS EARNSLAW

The TSS Earnslaw is a 1912 Edwardian vintage twin screw steamer  plying the waters of  Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown.  It is one of the oldest tourist attractions in Central Otago and the only remaining commercial passenger-carrying coal-fired steamship in the southern hemisphere.

The ship works fourteen hour days in the summer months and cruises for eleven months of the year, despite being over 100 years old. Visitors can undertake a 1.5 hour cruise on board the TSS Earnslaw and view the workings of the steam engine and stokers.

TECHNICAL NOTES

This image was captured on a Contax 645 camera fitted with an 80 megixel Phase One digital back.  ISO 200 and an exposure of 1/250th second at F8.    A Zeiss 350mm telephoto lens was used.

TREE FERN BARK

Image Number 245

The most famous of New Zealand’s many ferns is the silver fern, which is found only in New Zealand and can grow up to 10 metres high. This plant is a national icon—the national netball team are called the Silver Ferns, and the New Zealand All Blacks wear the fern on their jerseys.    The Maori used to use the fern leaves to guide their path at night, by laying them silver-side up on the forest floor where they caught the moonlight.

The fern bark is home to a wide variety of moss and small plants.  This image, complete with dew, was taken close up with a Zeiss macro lens.

TECHNICAL NOTES

This image was captured on a Contax 645 camera fitted with an 80 megixel Phase One digital back.  ISO 35 and an exposure of 1.4 seconds at F8.    A Zeiss 120mm macro lens was used.

TASMAN GLACIER

At 27 klm in length, Tasman Glacier is New Zealand’s longest glacier.It is as much as 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) wide and 600 metres (2,000 ft) thick, and lies entirely within the borders of Aoraki/Mount Cook National Park.  The glacier covers an area of 101 square kilometres.

The waters from the glacier pool at the end of the glacier in Lake Tasman.  This image was shot from a dinghy on the lake in early morning.

TECHNICAL NOTES

This image was captured on a Contax 645 camera fitted with an 80 megixel Phase One digital back.  ISO 50 and an exposure of 1/700th seconds at F5.6.    A Zeiss 80mm lens was used.

JET BOAT

The jetboats which carry tourists through the canyons of the Shotover River outside Queenstown have set a pattern for jetboats throughout the world.  It is estimated that since 1970 they have carried over three million passengers.

TECHNICAL NOTES

This image was captured on a Contax 645 camera fitted with an 80 megixel Phase One digital back.  ISO 200 and an exposure of 1/350th second at F11 was used to stop the action whilst retaining some depth of field for the view of the canyon.    A Zeiss 120mm lens was used.

MOUNT COOK, NEW ZEALAND

Image Number 231

Mount Cook is the highest mountain in New Zealand, reaching 3,754 metres (12,316 ft). It lies in the Southern Alps which run the length of the South Island.  It is a favourite challenge for mountain climbers.

The mountain is in the Aoraki / Mount Cook National Park, which was established in 1953 and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park contains more than 140 peaks standing over 2,000 metres.

Sir Edmund Hillary made his first ascent in January 1948.  To celebrate this, the South Ridge was renamed Hillary Ridge in 2011.

TECHNICAL NOTES

Captured by Atticus Webb on a Zeiss Contax 645 medium format camera with Zeiss 210mm lens with an exposure of 1/16 of a second at F16   The ISO rating was 35, thereby ensuring comprehensive detail.  File size 490 meg, 16 bit.  The colours correspond with transparencies exposed at the time on the same camera for reference purposes.

The image was registered on a Phase One IQ180 80 megapixel digital back.  The combination of sensor size and megapixels from this back captures approximately five times more detail than the highest resolution 35mm SLR camera currently available – and explains the high resolution of the image.

Signed and numbered by the photographer in a limited edition.