That Frozen Moment: The Story Behind a Favourite Lake Tekapo Shot
My fingers felt like they were about to shatter into a million pieces taking this shot of Lake Tekapo. It was next-level cold.
I’m on a snowboarding trip in New Zealand with a bunch of mates, and we’re on this epic road trip from Methven to Wanaka. After a pretty massive day of driving – we pulled into Lake Tekapo for a quick break.
The second we rolled into the car park, my eyes locked onto the scenery in front of me. I raced to snag a shot before we had to bail again.
Meanwhile, I hadn’t even noticed the cold. But the moment I stopped legging it and crouched down, bang! That bitter chill hit me like a tonne of bricks. My fingers pretty much seized up, making it a near-impossible mission to screw on the polariser. It was almost comical…
It was a classic case of “shoot and hope” – I fired off a series of shots super quick, then made a dash back to the car, hoping I’d nailed what I was after. I didn’t even dare to properly check the shots; just went with my gut feeling.
Fast forward a few weeks, back on home in Australia, and I finally got to see the images on a big screen. When I saw this shot, I was stoked!
To this day, it’s still right up there as one of my all-time favourite landscape shots. And it’s not just because the scenery is incredible, but for the whole story – the adventure, the mad dash, and that properly frozen moment that led to it.
Location: Lake Tekapo, New Zealand
Date: 22nd August 2007
Camera: Canon EOS Kiss Digital N
Lens: Tamron 11-18mm F/4.5-5.6
Exposure: 1/50 at f5.6
ISO: 100
Focal Length: 11
