In June 2019, Marina Mathews (www.marinamathews.com) and I hatched a plan to complete a 10 stop ND challenge over the next 12 months. Our agreed “rules of engagement” for the challenge were that we had to use a minimum of 10-stop ND filter and, as a point of contrast, images will try to reflect the regions that we are living in. For Marina that was Queenstown / Southland region and for myself it was Auckland / Northland region. We had to post each month to our social media pages.

For me there was heaps of learning and I felt that it all finally began to come together in January 2020 - where I found I could capture water and movement the way that I was envisioning. One of my key learnings, however, was that it is counter intuitive to use a 10 stop ND filter at night - but it was fun trying to problem solve and get creative to make that work.

Below are the themes we selected and the images that I created during the last 12 months. Enjoy!

Starting simple with a landscape theme enabled us to become more familiar with the use of the ND filter and its effects on water and the sky.

Sunrise Howl at the Heads is of the sunrise at Wolf Rock, an iconic landmark, at Mangawhai’s local surf beach. A popular spot during the day (especially in summer) it is such a treat to experience the magic of sunrise alone. The long exposure was taken on an incoming tide on a calm morning. The waves billowing around the foreground rock were transformed into mist after just 73 seconds! Magic!

Canon 6D, 24-105mm lens, f13, ISO100, 73sec, P120 GND, 10 Stop ND Filter

Collision; Where water meets dirt. This image was taken on one of the many windy days that featured in the north during August. Taken from a very windy high point over the beach, I steadied the tripod by hanging my photography bag from its centre and asked my partner to block the prevailing wind. Once certain my gear would not blow over I zoomed in and focused on the beach and stormy sea. I then took advantage of the longer exposure created by the ND filter and zoomed the lens out part way through the exposure. The result was this surreal capture where the bush meets the sea. A creative and surprising way to shoot as you never know how it will appear!

Canon 6D, 24-105mm lens, f20, ISO100, 25sec, Cokin Nuances 10 Stop ND Filter

We both found this theme to be really challenging. At night the lack of light creates exposures that are already long, so adding a 10-stop ND filter into the mix in hindsight seemed to create more challenges, so getting creative was required.

Driving to Hyperspace is an interpretation of what it might be like to drive to hyperspace. The bonnet anchors us in driving position and the passing city streets send us to hyperspace. Using the 10 Stop ND filter at night required the camera to be opened right up to receive what light there was available, a challenge to figure out initially.

Canon 6D, EF 16-35mm LII USM lens, f2.8, ISO2000, 30sec, Cokin Nuances 10 Stop ND Filter

Pathway to a New Day was taken during sunrise. As I was shooting, the sun suddenly popped out from behind the clouds. I quickly moved so the light path was leading across the water and in between the rocks. The silhouette of Wolf Rock (an earlier shot I took in this challenge) is on the horizon. I like how the monochrome contrasts create a quiet sense of drama.

Canon 6D, EF 16-35mm LII USM lens, f22, ISO100, 30sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter, CPL and 3 stop reverse filter.

Reeding the Angles and Lines. The reeds in this pond were a bit of tangle and I spent ages trying to find the right composition of angles and lines. There was also a breeze this day creating movement in the reeds, which I liked. Of all the images I took, I chose this one because of the gentle sense of movement, strong lines and angles that jump out at you but also the more subtle ones that create a sense of depth in the image.

Canon 6D, EF 400mm f5.6L USM lens, f5.6, ISO200, 13sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter and CPL

Rain Squall over the Hen and Chicken Islands. This month I wanted to capture the movement of the sea rather than smoothing it out. When I arrived at the beach rain squalls were moving about on the horizon which created a point of interest. The tide was coming in, so I positioned myself on a high rock, framed the composition and then began playing around with different shutter speeds. I found that 2.5secs was effective to get the amount of movement I wanted.

Canon 6D, EF24-105 IS USM lens, f6.3, ISO 100, 2.5 sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter and CPL

Ascension. During January I found myself exploring parts of Northland that are off the beaten track. Many of the towns I explored had churches and I thought they would be a great subject for our architecture theme this month. In my mind this theme was about capturing the movement of the clouds with the ND filter, so looking up was my angle. I was attracted to this church because of the strong angles and wanted to make this the essence of the image. I like how they contrast against the soft cloud movement behind.

Canon 6D, EF24-105 IS USM lens, f22, ISO 50, 30sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter and CPL

Resting Place. I have always looked at this cemetery as I’ve whizzed by in the car and thought it would be a great spot to photograph, so thought I would try it for this month’s challenge. In contrast to the south, the weather in the north has been settled with minimal clouds or rain (please send us some!) which I think would have made this a more moody scene.

Canon 6D, EF 16-35mm USM lens, f22, ISO100, 81sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter, CPL and GND 3 stop filter.

Rain Lily. With being on holiday in the early part of this month, then lockdown in the later part of this month I have left this month's challenge to the last minute. Now restricted to the backyard and local neighbourhood I set my sights on the plants immediately around me. I did have ideas for another type of image but on stepping outside saw our rain lilies and wondered if they might be a good subject. Between the wind and the longer exposure I got a few interesting photos with this one being one of my favourites.

Canon 6D, EF 100mm f/2.8L Macro IS USM lens, f8, ISO100, 6sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter

We set the themes for each month back in July last year. Little did we know that when we set the theme for calmness in April 2020 it would be calm and quiet around the towns and cities we inhabit daily.

Still. The restrictions of movement during lockdown required subjects for this month's theme that were within walking distance. Luckily for me, 15 minutes walk from my house is the Mangawhai Estuary. Rising early one morning, I headed to the estuary to catch the sunrise. While the sunrise was fleeting due to cloud cover, it was high tide which provided an opportunity to use the ND filter to smooth out the estuary and clouds to create a sense of calm.

Canon 6D, EF 16-35mm USM lens, f8, ISO100, 209sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter, CPL, and GND 3 stop filter.

Light-Whirl. If there is one thing I have learnt throughout this challenge it is that it is counter intuitive to use ND filters at night! That said, I did enjoy the challenge of trying to work out how to make this month's theme work. Using a DIY light tube I played around in the backyard to see the different effects I could create. In the end, I opted for a bit of backlighting to light up the garden and rotated the light tube to create the light-whirl. Colourwise it was a bit garish for my liking so I tried it in black and white for something different.

Canon 6D, EF 16-35mm USM lens, f2.8, ISO25600, 63sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter.

Sentinel. So, to end this challenge, I finish with the subject that I started it with - Sentinel Rock. During the last year, as I have toddled about the beach learning the art of using ND filters, Sentinel Rock has watched. She has witnessed my photographic triumphs and failures. She observed the change in seasons, the storms, the sunrises, the dry summer days, the holiday-makers, the surfers and the swimmers. She watched during lockdown 4, when only a few could visit and she watched as we returned, when restrictions were lifted. She is an ever present icon that watches over, guards and anchors those who live in her surrounds. It will always be a pleasure capturing her moments.

Canon 6D, EF24-105mm lens, f11, ISO100, 25sec, Benro 10 Stop ND Filter, CPL, GND3 stop.