The colours of Autumn

March and April are my favourite months here in the South Island of New Zealand. The mornings are cool and the days are bright and sunny. Well, generally bright and sunny. This year though the weather has been a bit unusual. We’ve had a fair bit of rain and cloudy days. Normally, March and April are gorgeous and you get some pretty warm days.

And what I really like is the changing colours of the landscape. The trees in Christchurch are stunning. Autumnal colours are everywhere: bright golds; cherry reds; russets; lime greens; sunny yellows.

On our property, we have some golden elms and Japanese maples that are starting to display their beautiful colours. So for today’s post I bring you the colours of Autumn in Oxford, New Zealand.

 

Blue skies

Hubs HATES (with a capital H) Sunday drives, whereas I love them. Growing up, it was the thing to do – get in the car with your parents and go for a Sunday drive. We used to drive north of Sydney and end up at some tea room along the Hawkesbury River. Scoff a Devonshire tea or two. Or we’d head towards Manly and walk along the promenade, enjoying an ice-cream.

Now everyone seems to spend their Sundays in shopping malls. If a shopping mall is new to me, I don’t mind checking out all the shops but, once I know what’s what, I really don’t like hanging around.

Last Sunday, the winds were blowing. The horses didn’t like it. The dogs didn’t like it. It was also a bit too warm to work around the property. So hubs suddenly announced let’s go for a drive. I looked at him quizzically because I know how he steadfastly refuses to get in the car and just drive.

But out we went. We packed up the dogs and headed towards Sheffield. Someone told us that if you take the back roads, there are lovely long-distance views. We also thought we’d stop off at Sheffield’s famous pie shop. We’ve been there before but totally forgot to drop in this time because we were side-tracked by the views.

My Nikon D40 battery wasn’t fired up, so along came the trusty iPhone. In Thailand, I snapped up a 1970s Soviet-era film camera – the Zorki 4k with a Jupiter-12 35mm f/2.8 lens. I like Russian film cameras and already have the Smena 8M. They’re sturdy and oh so Soviet.

The problem I’m finding is that what with horses, dogs, cows, sheep and goats plus being in Rome for months last year – well, I just haven’t kicked these cameras into action. It’s also difficult finding film although there is a camera shop in Rangiora that I’m pretty sure has 35mm and 120mm black and white film and can cross-process. I must get the Zorki into action – I’ve even found an old instruction manual for it.

Meanwhile, I know these photos aren’t fantastic but they’ll give you some idea of the wonderful blue skies and scenery that New Zealand enjoys in the Summertime.

 

French and fabulous

I took a weekend trip to Siena the other weekend and will blog about this soon. But whilst there, I popped into a book shop in the historic centre (where I stayed at the Grand Hotel Continental) and spotted a fabulous book about one of my favourite photographers, Robert Doisneau. In fact, I think he’s my very fave. He was a French photographer, best known for his work around the streets of Paris, using a Leica camera. Alas, the book is in Italian but who cares – it’s the photos I wanted.

I remember, way back when I was about 10 or 12 years old, I first saw this outstanding photo of his:

I was already into photography, as was my Dad. We used to photograph stuff together on weekends. Actually, when I get back to New Zealand, I’ll dig out my old photos and post them. I was so stunned by the above photo that I vowed to always try for minimalism and mood. I mean, just look at the photo – there’s nothing much to it really. A building, a cobblestoned road and a man turning the corner. But the power of this photo is extraordinary. Where is the man going or coming from? Is he in a safe area? Is it cold or just wet and misty? You almost feel like you are spying on this solitary walker as he goes about his business. Of course, the drama of the photo also comes from it being in old film black and white.

I think this is why I went back to film photography a couple of years ago and why I’m always busy taking street scene photos. It’s the influence of this extraordinary photographer who was born in 1912 and really pioneered photojournalism. Other photos of his that I love are below. The first photo of a couple kissing is probably his most well-known.

 

A beautiful sight

I love walking the dogs in the paddocks. The ones at the back of the property are large so it means they get a good run around and I get a great walk. Sometimes, we go out four times a day because English Pointers are energetic dogs and if you don’t give them enough exercise, you’ll end up with naughty canines.

Whilst they play and chase each other, you will often find me doing some 5BX exercises. I still remember this exercise programme, developed for the Royal Canadian Air Force during the 1950s, because my Dad followed the programme religiously. As a kid, I was expected to get up at 5.30 or 6.00am (can’t remember which) and be out in the back yard with my Dad, doing the exercises together: rain, hail or shine. I know this sounds like I was in some sort of boot camp but it was actually enjoyable, quality time with my father. Then it was back in the house to polish my school shoes. I still have a thing about making sure my shoes are bright and shiny. Doesn’t always work though when you live on a farm full of horse manure and mud.

Anyway. Often whilst I’m breathing in, stretching and so on, I glance towards the foothills and Mt Oxford. Now that Winter is here, Mt Oxford is boasting a white tablecloth of snow and I can catch a glimpse of it over the macrocarpa. Beautiful sight.

 

Winter leaves

So we’ve hit Winter. And so far, there’s been a fair bit of rain. Last year, was my first Winter in New Zealand. In the South Island to be precise. And it was a tad depressing. Rain. Rain. Rain. I’ve said many times I don’t mind the cold. I like the snow (hey, I’m from Oz so snow is still a novelty). But rain? Well, a bit of it is fine but when it goes on for days, I get fed up with it. Rain, rain GO AWAY.

The paddocks turn into mud baths. The horses look miserable. The goats escape into their corrugated iron houses. Zeph and Zsa Zsa get restless because they want to be running in the paddocks. The sheep and cows stand fornlornly under dripping trees.

There have been some sunny days and the paddocks start to dry out. But just as you think okay, the heavy rain might be over. Wham. It comes back. The word is that this Winter isn’t supposed to be as wet as 2010. Ah, think the Heavens didn’t get that message.

Anyway. The best part of Winter for me are the colours. The trees and plants around Oxford, Cust, Rangiora and in Christchurch boast gorgeous russet reds, fiery oranges and lemony yellows. So for someone who likes to do a lot of photography like me – it’s bonus time. And my usual obsession has returned: LEAVES. I continue to be fascinated by the colours and patterns Nature produces. When I take the time to explore the garden and look at leaves, I momentarily forget the rain.

 

 

 

Fire sky

When I was working in soulless organisations, I had to rush out the front door around 6.00am or earlier to catch the train to Sydney (from just short of Newcastle). So I never really had time to just sit and watch a sunrise.

Now, I have all the time in the world and one of my favourite things to do is stand at one of the bedroom windows and watch as the sun colours the sky on its climb up the horizon. Really, there are the most gorgeous colours: fiery oranges; apricots; tinges of mauve; canary yellow. I continue to be amazed at the beauty that surrounds us. If we could just stop for a moment and see it and appreciate it.

So if you’re stuck in soulless organisations or need a bit of cheering up, here are some photos of a magnificent New Zealand sunrise. I have not processed the photos – what you see is straight out of the camera. Honestly, sometimes I think I’m looking at an Impressionist painting.

 

Snap du jour

The North Canterbury region, and specifically Oxford, can be very beautiful even in Winter. Usually, there’s overnight frost and so the grass is covered with little bits of ice in the early morning. Then the sun slowly climbs its way up the horizon. It starts off low, with golden sun rays bursting through the branches of the macrocarpa hedges. The day is bright and sunny, with a gorgeous duck egg blue sky.

Alas, sometimes there are days of rain and mud. But usually, when I go out to the paddocks to greet the horses, this is the sight I see in the early morning.

 

Snap du jour

Zsa Zsa is growing up right before our eyes. We shipped both Zeph and Zsa Zsa off to the breeders for a couple of nights last week. And when we picked them up, I thought that Zsa Zsa looked more “dog like” (as opposed to soft toy-like!).

Yesterday, I turned around to find her doing what Zeph loves to do – sit in the sun.

 

Rubies and emeralds

Well, hopefully my NZ readers didn’t hit the Unsubscribe button after yesterday’s post. I thought today I’d be a little less controversial and show you rubies and emeralds. Alas, not real ones but the colours in my garden. I have not Photoshopped these photos in any way. The colours you see are straight out of the camera.

I vividly remember my time in the New England area of the United States. I was there working for an American technology company for a few weeks and I had some time to explore Connecticut and Massachusetts during Autumn/Fall. It was a privilege to see the colours of Fall in the US – magnificent trees flashing their foliage of russet red, burnished orange or golden yellow. To some extent, Autumn/Fall in the South Island of New Zealand is similar to the Fall colours of New England – gorgeous emerald greens, bright orange-reds, fiery russets.

So gorgeous, I can’t help rushing around the property taking photos. We arrived on the property in mid-June 2010 (although we arrived in NZ in early May, we were house-sitting for six weeks). So this is the first time I’ve seen Oxford during Autumn. Sad as it is to see Summer go (which is truly gorgeous in NZ), Autumn is bursting with glorious eye-catching colours.

 

More mushrooms

I was telling you about the mushroom circles the other day. Well, I’ve now discovered MILLIONS of mushrooms in the shady areas of the front lawn. I spotted a few last year. Baby ones. But this year, there are some humongous mushrooms sprouting. No idea if they’re poisonous but I’m taking no chances. They’ve already been sent to mushroom heaven.

The property can get quite damp, particularly the front lawn area, which is shaded by large trees, a cherry blossom and a willow tree. After days of rain, the lawn can be spongy to walk on – so it provides the perfect conditions for pesky mushrooms. But before I disposed of them, I decided they were quite beautiful and so deserved some photos.