Murray Neill: KAP

The Muriwai Moose Meet 2009

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:15:57 GMT

Solitude

Wed, 22 Apr 2009 07:32:23 GMT

A walk on Wharariki Beach with my kite... my paradise.

Collingwood Township

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 09:18:40 GMT

Estuary to the west, ocean beach to the east, Collingwood is neatly packed onto a little point beside the estuary mouth in the middle of Golden Bay.

It's recent claim to fame is becoming the first town in New Zealand to ban plastic bags. www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/features/feature-archiv...

Totaranui Inlet

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 07:48:57 GMT

A small gap at the very end of the golden beach at Totaranui is only breached by the tide at its height to fill the inlet behind.

I've just spent 8 days touring around Golden Bay on by pushbike carrying my camping and kite aerial photography gear (4 kites and one SLR rig). I got several 'flights' during the tour. Totaranui in Abel Tasman National Park was the first.

It's easy to see how Golden Bay got it's name. The beaches throughout the area are comprised of this Golden Sand.Totaranui Campground (the area to the right of the road) was well worth the bike ride over the windy gravel road to get there. The only other way in is walking the coastal tracks from either end of Abel Tasman National Park.

The Boat Wreck

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 08:14:29 GMT

This boat wreck has been in the estuary near the Maitai River mouth for as long as I can remember. The sign next to it simply warns other vessels, "WARNING: Wreck covered by high tide.", not thats theres much left of it to avoid. It just looks like a huge boot print in the sand from my kite.

The view south-west taken while over the wreck.

North Nelson - Sunday Afternoon

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 08:13:05 GMT

There was a perfect sky for photography on Sunday afternoon. I launched a kite from Akersten street and took this 3-shot stiched panorama of North Nelson, looking across the Haven at low tide.

Sport Kite Delight

Sun, 08 Feb 2009 22:07:14 GMT

I have just spent three days at Murwai beach, west of Auckland, New Zealand. The trips purpose was to photograph the 2009 range of Peter Lynn foils. I had the privilege of working with a handful of the most skilled kite buggy pilots in New Zealand. This shot is the new Hornet. Buggy pilot is Perrin Melchior of Kite Works in Auckland.

I've tried to get this kind of pictures of kite buggiers before. It is surprisingly difficult, particularly when the buggy pilot isn't working with the photographer. This time I think we nailed it though.

I've got 1200+ other shots to go through now of beautiful kites in this stunning location, so there's more to come!

The Core piloted by Craig Hansen of Peter Lynn Kites. His tracks tell the story of the jump he's just landed. I love the green/white/grey colour scheme of this kite. Craig called it the toothpaste kite because of it's minty-fresh look.

Ever since I first began thinking about how best to photograph my favorite passtime of kite buggying, this is the angle I wanted. It's taken me many years to get there. There-in lies what I think is one of the many secrets to photography; the willingness... no, stubbornness, to spend years chasing 'the' shot you've already taken in your imagination.

Up & Away

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 08:28:19 GMT

Today was the 18th annual Nelson Kite Festival. The weather was very changeable. The wind kept coming and going, changing direction. There were periods of warm sunny weather, and torrentail downpours, all in the same afternoon. I got a few aerial photos, had a bit of a spin in my kite buggy and flew my little stunt kite for a while, so I was happy.

The Riwaka River Mouth

Fri, 16 Jan 2009 10:54:50 GMT

Wakapuaka River

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 08:58:46 GMT

Paramata Flat in the last sun of the day

Fri, 09 Jan 2009 08:07:19 GMT

Back to the Skate Park

Mon, 05 Jan 2009 08:03:47 GMT

I revisited Nelson's newest skate park this afternoon. The first kite aerial photography shoot there turned up a couple of keepers, but it's always worth going back to a subject like this, on another day, with different wind, different light, and experience. Today I used a different camera as well. I put the SLR rig up there and got some high res shots.

Pan? Check. Tilt? Check. Shutter? Check.

Mon, 29 Dec 2008 09:46:03 GMT

My KAP (kite aerial photography) rig captures its own shadow as it begins its ascent.

Coast

Sun, 28 Dec 2008 08:53:57 GMT

A kite aerial photograph over Rabbit Island Beach this afternoon.

Seaview

Sun, 16 Nov 2008 08:13:06 GMT

Setting Sail

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 09:19:00 GMT

Learn 2 Sail lessons are a strong memory of a New Zealand childhood for me and many other kiwis. The little 'optimist' sailing dinghies were easy to handle and just the right size to teach kids the fundamentals of sailing. Future Americas Cup contenders below...

TR250

Sat, 25 Oct 2008 01:37:59 GMT

The happy KAPer

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 06:35:46 GMT

Myself happily engaged in some kite aerial photography on Nelson's waterfront.

Photo by Ragged Poet

Cataramans

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 06:16:07 GMT

KAP over Nelson's new skate park

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 06:18:29 GMT

It's been age since I've been able to get out and do some kite aerial photography. I was feeling a little rusty, but once the kite and camera were in the air.... well, it's like riding a bike really.

Started last summer, they recently finished building a skate park in Neale Park (Nelson's premiere kite flying ground and home of the Nelson Kite Festival). In my some of my photos of the last kite festival you can see the beginnings of the park in the background. To get back into some KAP after quite a break I decided that this would make a good location for a shoot. Late in the afternoon with nice long shadows and a strong gusty south-west wind, I launched my little 16 square foot flow-form with two long fuzzy tails. The tails were needed to give the kite some stability in the bumpy conditions up there. It took a lot of patience to get any steady shots.

Even though I got a few 'keepers' that I'm happy with I feel like there's plenty more good photos in this subject. Lucky they built it in such a good kite flying spot. I'll probably revisit it sometime over summer.

I miss kite flying

Thu, 12 Jun 2008 05:53:48 GMT

I'm at home with a cold today. I was flicking through some old photos, when I came across this. I realised this was the last time I flew a kite; way back in the middle of February, a kite aerial photography shoot over Mapua Wharf on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Now well into winter the usable wind is a rarity and I miss those afternoon sea-breezes.

Mapua Wharf on Sunday Afternoon

Sun, 17 Feb 2008 07:41:50 GMT

Sunday afternoon at busy little Mapua Wharf. There's several cafes doing a good trade, fishermen launching their boats, kids swimming, people biking and walking the waterline... and then there's me, apparently just flying a kite. No one seemed aware of the camera.

This is a 2-shot stitch-up. There's a bit of distortion going on which I didn't bother to try and fix because I kind of like the odd effect it has on the picture.

Shrunken Post Office

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 05:34:42 GMT

So I took all those photos of the Post Office yesterday so I could study it, and make a perfectly detailed, scale model of it on my kitchen table.

; )

The Middle of Town

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 08:27:43 GMT

My first attempt at some seriously urban kite aerial photography. This is the very center of Nelson's Business District. The Nelson Central Post Office building and clock tower is (imho) one of the ugliest, but it's ours. Even though its been there for a couple of decades (give or take), I think most Nelsonians are still wondering when they are going to finish building the tower and take the scafolding down. My kite in the middle of town attracted quite a few curious spectators. The camera was directly over the busiest intersection in town, but all safety checks had been down and the wind was steady and strong.

The suburb by the city. Just across the Maitai River is "The Wood". That's Neale Park in the distant background where we had our kite festival a couple of weeks ago.

You can see me in this picture flying my kite from the Maitai River bank, next to the bridge. That's my friend Ted on his Xtracycle crossing the bridge (my Xtracycle is parked just off-camera on the river bank, having transported me and all my KAP gear to the location). I didn't know he was there but he had followed my kiteline to say hello. It often happens when I'm KAPing; someone I know will spot my kite and find me. Kind of a neat spin-off of the activity.

I like this intersection because I am a cyclist and cyclists get priority here (at least from one direction), as the green lanes show. We're ALLOWED to queue-jump and when the light goes green, we get to go first. Nahhh-na-na-nah-na! I think it's a bit of an experiment to see if it works. I hope it catches on.

Last Light (from a kite)

Mon, 21 Jan 2008 07:10:25 GMT