Thursday, 26 June 2008

Akaroa Lighthouse.

There is no off camera lighting in this image unless of course you count the setting sun at rear camera left.
Akaroa is located on the Banks Peninsula just 80kms from Christchurch. The Banks Peninsula was formed following the violent eruptions of two volcanoes. A crater nurses the picturesque harbour of Akaroa with many smaller bays indenting the spectacular coastline. First sighted by Captain Cook in 1770, the Peninsula was then inhabited by Maoris of the Ngai Tahu tribe.
In 1840, French settlers arrived at Akaroa, which had just been claimed under the Treaty of Waitangi by the English. To this day, Akaroa remains unique as the site of the only attempted settlement by the French in New Zealand. Many streets have French names, and there are descendants of the original French families still living in Akaroa.
The original Akaroa lighthouse started operation on the precipitous headland of Akaroa Heads on 1 January 1880. One hundred years later, it was moved down to Akaroa Township, after being replaced in 1977 by an automated light. You can read it's full story here.
http://www.doc.govt.nz/templates/page.aspx?id=34194

Thursday, 5 June 2008

Marae.

In New Zealand Māori society, the marae is a place where the culture can be celebrated, where the Māori language can be spoken, where intertribal obligations can be met, where customs can be explored and debated, where family occasions such as weddings and birthdays can be held, and where important ceremonies, such as welcoming visitors or farewelling the dead (tangihanga), can be performed. Like the related institutions of old Polynesia, the marae is a 'sacred place' which carries great cultural meaning.
In Māori usage, marae is technically the enclosed space in front of a wharenui or meeting house (literally "big house"). However, it is generally used to refer to the whole complex, including the buildings and the open space. The meeting house is the locale for important meetings, sleepovers, and craft and other cultural activities. The Marae can have special occasions such as weddings and funerals held in it, a Marae can also differ in size with some being a bit bigger than a double garage and some being as big a a town hall or bigger.
This image is taken inside the meeting house of the marae in New Zealand's national museum 'Te Papa' in Wellington. An SB800 speedlight was placed in the background left to light the rear. The on camera flash is used to trigger this speedlight as well as providing some fill to the mask in the foreground. This shot was taken at 1/60th second, f/7.1, ISO1600. having just checked those numbers I was surprised to see that it was ISO1600. This is a testament to the useability of ISO 1600 on a D80. It was really quite dark inside the meeting house and I think I scared the wits out of some Japanese tourists when the remote flash triggered.