end of the year in the far north

We stayed in a bach overlooking a breathlessly beautiful bay. Instead of tv, we watched the sun rise and the sun set on the deck and cooked everything on a BBQ or a makeshift campfire. In the afternoons, a lazy brown mutt would sometimes wander over, plop at our feet, and silently implore us for food and water. Time was so unimportant that we didn't even know it was New Years until the texts from friends started to roll in.  

The year ended and started in the Far North; where you can forget New Zealand for a while, and pretend you're somewhere undiscovered in the far Pacific isles. The sand dunes and the lighthouse perched like it was the end of the world. Spiky red pohutakawa trees blooming along a sandy, empty beach. And everywhere - a view to end all views, a horizon so seamless you felt your eyes were playing tricks on you.

{ Kaeo, Cape Reinga, Matauri Bay, & Te Paki Sand Dunes on Yashica Electro 35GSN, shot with Kodak Ektar and Portra }

matt and rita

Standing on the threshold with her father, she was seconds from walking up the aisle. I crouched behind the bride, melting into the shadows, the world narrowed into the viewfinder. She bent her head towards her father's shoulder and sounding surprised said, "I'm crying...I'm crying..." I took her picture just as she closed her eyes.

Moment gone. She was off. Eyes open. Into the bright sunlight.   

For more of our wedding photos - click here 

{ Film and digital Photos by Viewmore } { Venue: Tarureka Estate, Featherston }

road trip views

Hey you. Funny how these roads feel endless after a while. Bare feet on the dash, bad music on the radio. Those gum trees climb so high. Here, put those cherry pips here. We were speechless on the verge of the road. According to mythology, after we die, our souls will lift off from here. What a view to say goodbye to. The water was busy dropping off the end of the world. The sky rushing with it too.  

{Far North and the Bay of Islands, New Zealand - Kerikeri, Matauri Bay, Wainui Bay, Cape Reinga, Great Exhibition Bay }