Midwinter Escape; Fiji Part One.

After eight days in Fiji, I arrived home to Auckland airport. The customs officer asked me how I was and I expressed that I wasn't looking forward to the cold weather.

"It hasn't been that bad actually, thirteen degrees today", he replied. 

... After a week in twenty five to thirty degree heat, thirteen degrees is far from 'not that bad'. 

Fiji was absolutely beautiful. It's difficult for me to fully convey how amazing the resort was where I first stayed except to say that it's five star and there was an infinity pool and I am now a huge fan of mojitos. Inevitably I will show you guys just what I got up to in my first four days all in good time, but I have a large amount of video editing in front of me.

Poolside for lunch ft. the famous Mojitos (real deal sugar cane!)

Halfway through this baby and I'm already keen to read it through again.

The pool of the hotel next door.

Following my incredible few days at the Intercontinental with the Tiumalu family (Congratulations, Juanita & Jeremy!), I ventured off into 'real Fiji'. I caught myself a taxi to the closest bus stop then a bus to Ba where I was picked up and taken to Navala. 

Chicken Express is sort of the KFC of Fiji. It was the only place open for lunch on Sunday before my bus ride to Ba.

View from the bus

This young girl and her family got on the bus not long before I had to get off but in that time managed to get me to take their photos, give me their address, and tell me to come and stay next time I'm in Fiji.

From what I gathered there was a very important soccer game between Nadi and Ba. Spotted this group of men borrowing the TV at a petrol station in Ba where we filled up before heading to Navala.

They spotted me snapping their photos, too.

Fiji bound.

This Thursday I'm jumping on a plane and heading to Fiji for eight days! A midwinter tropical getaway is definitely something I'm looking forward to. I'm spending Thursday through Sunday filming for a wedding and then spending Sunday night through to Thursday or Friday (we'll see how I go) in Navala photographing those that live there. 

Anyway, I've been trying to work out what gear I'm taking and it's looking like I'll be needing nearly everything I own to be honest! I decided to do a flatlay as a result. Will list the gear pictured below the photograph :) Excuse the average quality photo - was taken on my phone!

Gear:

• Tripod (from Photoshack, NZ)
• Nikon SB-910 plus filters
• Nikon SB-600
• Nikon 24 - 70mm f/2.8
• Nikon FM-10
• Nikon D600
• Nikon 35mm f/1.8
• Cleaning brush etc
• Nikon 85mm f/1.8
• 2 x Seagate external hard drives (1 x portable)
• Nikon ME-1
• Sony rechargeable batteries
• Kit lens for the Nikon FM-10
• Rode VideoMic
• Rode 3m extension cord
• Viltrox 162 LED light
• Nikon remote
• 3 x Nikon EN-EL15 batteries + MH-25 charger
• Nikon 50mm f/1.8
• Nikon MB-D14 battery grip
• Nikon D7000
• Macbook Pro 13"

26 Hours in Wellington

One of my pals, Katie, had her 21st birthday party this weekend. Alas, she lives in Wellington, but asked me to come and photograph regardless. I managed to score some pretty cheap flights (thank you, Grabaseat!) and so flew into the capital on Saturday for her "Americana" themed affair.

I had a really great weekend and it's always nice to get away esp when in good company. As you well know, travelling is one of my favourite things to do and so it was good to be able to stare out a plane window again, even if it has only been a month since the last time I did so.

Waiting. 

Boarding.

Embarking.

The boys.

Turning onto the tarmac.

Tongariro, Ngaruahoe, Ruapehu. 

Tea for one.

Landing in Wellington.

Waiting at the bus stop.

Katie's cake! Everybody was decked out in Americana gear which was awesome.

Dad's speech.

Katie and I.

21 shots.

Homeward bound.

Departing Wellington.

South of Auckland.

Thank you to Katie for having me! And Grandma (and cousins), if you're reading this - I'm sorry I didn't have the time to see you while I was down! I'll be back as soon as I can. 

New Additions and New Adventures.

Listening to: Catholic Girls - The Dangerous Summer

So I may be slightly out of pocket now due to a few purchases I've made in the last week. As some of you will know, I'm bound for Fiji in less than two weeks and I. Am. Pumped. I've been asked to make a wedding video which is something new for me and I'm really really excited. I've been wanting to make these purchases for a while now but could never really justify doing so until now.

The new members of the family.

As you know I've been working on self portraiture recently and the last remote I had (which was a cheap rip off one) broke after only a few outtings with it. So I've bitten the bullet and bought a proper Nikon branded remote, and am really hoping the investment pays off.

I've also bought an external microphone! The Nikon ME-1, specifically. I'm also looking into getting a second external mic for my other camera, and I've heard really good things about the brand Rode.

Finally I've upgraded my speedlight to the SB-910. I really just wanted something that looked the part on my full frame and realistically I do a lot of events and so having the best on the market is always going to be the best option. My SB-600 is still in good nick though and I won't be getting rid of it any time soon.

I've also ordered a film light (not pictured) which can attach itself to my hotshoe, and that should arrive soon!

Whilst nailing this wedding video in Fiji is my number one priority while I'm abroad, I've decided to push myself into doing something I've always wanted to do but never really knew how to go about doing it. Currently there is a competition running with World Nomads and National Geographic (you can find the details here, you should enter too!) that I'm desperate to enter and I feel this opportunity is perfect for me to attempt to produce an entry that is well thought out rather than something I've pulled from my archives. So, after four days of absolute bliss in Fiji (picture white sand, five star hotel, pork belly for dinner), I'm off on my own to a little place called Navala. Admittedly I don't know a lot about the place other than it's building restrictions and that electricity isn't a given, but I'll be spending four days there hopefully talking with the locals to capture some moments that encompass what they perceive Navala and it's residents to be. My three years of studying Anthropology and countless hours spent flicking through the National Geographic is absolute motivation to push myself into this and I cannot wait to see what this month brings for me.

http://gregvaughn.photoshelter.com/image/I0000jRxqT_8ycIQ

http://fijiphotos.net/sub_terrestrial.php

http://lightcapturer.com/portfolio/people/

to find myself inside of me

Listening to: Lonely - Strange Vacation

I'm doing my best to keep to my word about pushing myself this year, esp when it comes to self portraiture. On Wednesday I finished work earlier than expected and was really in the mood to take photos. It took me a while to work out what I wanted to photograph and so I missed golden hour, but after a couple of friends telling me to take self portraits I decided to go with it. 

Please note that I almost slipped over several times whilst shooting this series. I've ordered myself a remote so I can stop having to walk back to my camera between shots and am looking into an LED light source as well, so we'll see how we go. 

Test shot for using my phone's flashlight as a fill light