Nature Photo Challenge

A little over a week ago, I was nominated by a friend to participate in the Nature Photo Challenge – a challenge that sees nominated people share their favourite nature photographs over 7 days. Ultimately, my love of nature directly syncs up with my love of travel, the desire to constantly be outside, exploring what unseen things are out there. I thought it’d be nice to share my favourite nature pics with you guys, so here goes:

 

Day 1: Belmore Basin, Wollongong, NSW Australia
The first picture I chose to share as part of the Nature Photo Challenge, is a picture I took a little over a year ago. I had just started learning how to actually use a digital SLR and had an assignment looming, so after much deliberation I chose to go down to the harbour one morning and attempt to capture the sunrise. Having been studying Ansel Adams and his association with the f/64, I was keen to take photographs keeping his legacy in mind. Luckily Mother Nature put on a spectacular show, allowing me to capture this (untouched) moment.

 

Day 2: Füssen, Bavaria, Germany

This picture was taken whilst on a family road trip holiday around Europe in January 2015. We were driving down Germany’s Romantic Route from Munich to Bavaria. We were staying in a sweet town called Hopfen Am See, just 10 minutes out of Füssen. I took this photo on the highway, just as the Bavarian Alps were coming into view.

 

Day 3: Seal Rock Beach, OR, USA

It’s funny how you sometimes find yourself in places that you know you’ve visited before. This was the case with Seal Rock Beach in mid 2014. Henry and I were riding around North America on a motorcycle and at this point were mid-way through driving down the 101 in Oregon. As we walked along this beach, I got the strong sense that I had been there before. The feeling gnawed at me for a while. The next time I called home, it was confirmed, I had been playing on this same beach some 15 years earlier as a little girl.

 

Day 4: Camp Zuiderzee, Victoria Island, BC, Canada

Another picture from the motorcycle trip. This time a little further north in Canada. On a whim, Henry and I decided that we’d spend two weeks riding around British Columbia’s Victoria Island. Without so much as planning where we were even going, we had boarded the ferry over. By some stroke of luck, we found this wonderful campground. Every evening the lake would mirror all the trees around it. That combined with the laughter of young children splashing about will always bring a smile and fond memories.

 

Day 5: Thirroul, NSW, Australia

Ever feel like you’re lacking in creativity and are unsure of how to retrieve it? This is how I was feeling a few weeks ago. I’d just landed my first career, 9-5 job and was feeling overwhelmed and tired. One evening, after realising how long it’d been since I’d taken a photo, I grabbed my SLR and headed down to the beach to watch the sunset. The colours that evening were amazing, and the crashing sounds of the waves were exactly what I needed.

 

Day 6: Lake Ohrid, Macadonia

This was one of the first pictures I’d ever taken whilst abroad. Dad was always the photography man on our family holidays. During a trip we did around Europe and America in 2007, I asked if he could show me how to take a decent photo. Whenever I saw something I liked, Dad would point me in the right direction. This picture was taken on an evidently windy morning at Lake Ohrid in Macedonia – a beautiful part of the world that I will always recommend you visit!

 

Day 7 : Lake Phewa, Pokhara, Nepal

I feel like Nepal has got to be the mecca for nature lovers. In 2011, I spent 5 weeks volunteering in this gorgeous country. On my final week in the country, my Mum came over to visit. We took the 8 hour bus from Kathmandu to Pokhara and were blown away. It’s crazy how much beauty there is in one country!

 

Picking just 7 photos was not an easy task. Although, I did have fun rummaging through my archives to find pictures that evoked happy, precious memories for me. I hope you enjoyed looking at my top nature pictures, selected over the course of a week. I’d love to see your favourite nature photos too! Comment your blog links below so that we can all share in the greatness that nature provides us with! xx