The Three Sisters Beach in New Zealand is a lovely part of the west coast on the North Island. Unfortunately, accessing the beach requires wading through water at low tide. On our recent road trip, the only time we could get in there was in the middle of the day or in the middle of the night. Originally, I thought a clear night could be worth the effort for some astrophotography; however, the clouds in this part of the world rarely thin out, and I knew it would be a midday shoot or nothing.

The day was overcast, but the midday sun was bright. We had about a 4-hour window to get in, take some photos and get out. So, we began the trek with a fully loaded camera bag, some sandwiches, water and a diminishing sense of hope.

I ended up shooting primarily with my circular ND filter. This helped reduce the highlights of the midday sun while capturing the energy of the water. I like using a circular ND as it allows me better control of the shutter speed. I can dial in the amount of density needed to get the required shutter speed. Unfortunately, as is always the case, using an ND filter on a wide-angle lens creates a vignette in opposite corners. Normally I would remove this in post-production, but I left it in with this image as I liked the contrast and mood it created.

The next time we plan a trip to New Zealand, I will plan it based on the tides to get some nicer light to work in the morning or evening.