Hokitika Gorge

The star of Hokitika Gorge is the impossibly vivid turquoise water, a result of glacial rock flour suspended in the Hokitika River, and your main challenge is doing justice to that color in camera. The swing bridge is the most iconic composition, giving you a narrow frame to work with and a strong leading line over the water below; shoot from the bridge itself or from the rocky banks on either side to get the water filling your foreground. Overcast days are actually ideal here because they reduce glare on the surface and let that turquoise really saturate without harsh highlights. A polarizing filter is worth having to cut surface reflections and deepen the color further. The short loop trail through native bush takes around 30 minutes and opens up several additional angles along the gorge walls. The car park is about 33 kilometers from Hokitika town on a well-maintained road. A wide-angle lens works well for capturing the gorge walls and water together. (Kokatahi, West Coast, New Zealand)