Good Weather is Bad | Blue Lake, St Bathans

There are at least five Blue Lakes in New Zealand. But this is the only man-made Blue Lake, created as a result of dredging for gold in the 19th Century. Located in a remote corner of Otago, this relatively small lake is circled by unusual clay cliffs.

Here is a panoramic image I made from my recent road trip in July 2017. With a slight breeze, there were no reflections in the water. While the weather was pristine, it meant the blue sky was boring. Sometimes, good weather is a bad thing.

Rewind two years, to my first foray here. The grungy sky had a hungover look, and the clay cliffs were reflected, doubling the impact. Here are an assortment of compositions from this casual visit.

I composed a mirror image, then contrasted it with a square-edged wooden platform which floated in space. In the next shot, I placed the platform off centre, to break the symmetry. The monochrome colour palette evokes a tonne of mood, which the blue sky shot lacked.

YOU can learn how to do this on the ultimate landscape masterclass, LOCATIONZ. Or just enjoy our road trip video series on YouTube: EPISODE SEVEN | Queenstown & St Bathans.