EP10 – Kayaking A Drowned Forest

In Episode 10 of Adventure Photography On Location I’m taking you along on an overnight kayaking trip to Kangaroo Valley where we camp near a sunken forest and capture some incredible night shots as well as kayak down a drowned forest.

What I loved the most about capturing these shots was that it takes 2 days to actually get to this location. Well… 1 day in and and then another out. Anyway, the more effort a location requires the more rewarding it becomes when you actually get a few good shots too.

I didn’t end up getting the conditions I had in mind for the shot. I was actually looking for low hanging mist and was hoping to capture a very atmospheric / moody shot of a kayaker paddling through this sunken forest.
I had done this same 2 day trip at the exact same time of the year a few years ago and got those misty conditions I was hoping for. But the weather must have been too dry this time around. All I got was unusable light within 2 minutes after sunrise… there’s something incredibly harsh about the Australian sunlight that makes it really difficult to capture decent shots at golden hour.

So I had to improvise…

The night was clear and I woke up several times staring at bright stars and a moonless night. So by 4AM I was up and shooting the night sky.

Soon the stars started fading and the dark night’s sky gave way to blue hour.
So I got into my kayak and started paddling around the drowned forest in the search for reflections as I noticed the early sunlight covering the distant mountain side in a deep orange tone. I tried to paddle as calmly as possible to not disturb the reflections and started capturing the magic.

As the sun rose further over the mountain I was suddenly blinded by the bright, harsh light of the new day. A dead tree blocked off the bright light and I immediately had the idea for the next shot. Now on the hunt for shapes that could block the sunlight: Holes in the trees, branches, trunks etc.

And with a high aperture I could turn the bright sunlight into a star bursting out of these shapes. Perfect!

What I love about Kangaroo Valley? Free camping and no reception. It’s the perfect place to switch off and forget about the modern world for a few days.

And be sure to check out our guide to our favourite places for an active getaway near Sydney over The Sandy Feet.

Most of these images were edited with my Autumn Preset Pack as a base and the tweaked to achieve the final look.
My Lightroom Preset Packs are the perfect tool to speed up your editing workflow and add a certain look to your images.

Africa!
In early February 2017 I’m heading to South Africa and Namibia for 6 weeks on 2 road trips to explore some of the best sights and locations these amazing countries have to offer.
So stay tuned for new adventure from a different continent and subscribe to my Newsletter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram if you don’t want to miss out.