West Coast Wilderness Photography Tour – Experience the untouched beauty
Join us on an unforgettable seven-day photography journey along the South Island’s wild and untamed West Coast. Timed for winter, when the light is crisp, low, and atmospheric, this tour offers an extraordinary chance to capture the rugged beauty of New Zealand at its most dramatic.
The West Coast is a land of striking contrasts — where ancient rainforest meets windswept beaches, and where the soaring, snow-clad peaks of the Southern Alps rise sharply from the edge of the Tasman Sea. Nowhere else in the country will you find such a rich combination of untouched wilderness, dramatic seascapes, glaciers, and mountain vistas.
Your adventure begins in Christchurch and winds its way down the West Coast before finishing in Queenstown. Along the way, you’ll photograph rugged, wave-battered beaches, cascading waterfalls, and lush forest, all framed by sweeping views of the Southern Alps. Each day brings fresh inspiration and countless opportunities to create images that capture both the wild energy and timeless beauty of this remarkable region.
Tour Starts: Christchurch – 8th June 2026: After early morning hotel pickups in Christchurch, we’ll begin our journey with a drive across Arthur’s Pass, the highest road pass over the Southern Alps, stopping to photograph its waterfalls and lush native forest.
We arrive at Punakaiki to explore and photograph the fascinating limestone formations — sculpted over 30 million years ago and uplifted from the seabed by earthquakes. Exploring the Paparoa National Park to capture exquisite limestone and river landscapes, along with its exceptionally wild coastline, where huge waves crash against vast, deserted beaches.
We’ll spend two days exploring the magnificent rainforest of Te Wāhipounamu, a UNESCO World Heritage area rich in landscapes and biodiversity. Panoramic views of the Southern Alps rise beyond vast tracts of rainforest and shimmering coastal lagoons. We’ll also head south to Fox Glacier to visit the iconic Lake Matheson, renowned for its mirror-like reflections of Aoraki/Mt Cook and Mt Tasman.
For those who wish, there is also the option (at additional cost) to take a helicopter flight onto the Franz Josef Glacier, offering an unforgettable aerial perspective.
Based in Haast for two nights, we’ll explore Southern Westland’s dramatic coastline and forested landscapes. This area offers some of the best forest photography in the country, with opportunities along walkways, coastal lagoons, and wild beaches. Haast is also renowned for its fiery sunsets, with endless wild vistas backed by the distant snow-capped Alps.
Travelling inland via the spectacular Haast Pass, we’ll photograph a series of remarkable waterfalls, including a stunning 30-metre cascade nestled within stately beech forest. From our lakeside base in Wānaka, we’ll capture sweeping vistas of mountain ranges and the lake, with shifting light playing across rugged peaks and valleys.
Tour Finishes: Queenstown – 14th June 2026: After travelling from Wānaka, the tour concludes in Queenstown. We will arrive at Queenstown Airport by 3:00 pm, in time for domestic flights departing from 4:00 pm. Please book only flights departing after 4:00 pm to ensure sufficient time for check-in. For international departures, allow for the airline’s required check-in time when planning your onward journey.
Glen has worked as a travel, documentary, and landscape photographer for over 30 years. As an educator at Massey University, The Photo School, and through photography workshops, he’s passionate about helping others discover and develop their own connection to photography.
Accommodation Type: This tour uses comfortable lodge accommodation and mainly 4 star hotels.
Sole Occupancy/Twin Room: Please select sole occupancy or twin share room when booking.
Food:The price tour includes breakfast each morning, this is normally at the hotel but sometimes a local cafe. Lunch and dinner (apart from any listed as being included) are at your own expense. We will stop at a cafe/shop for lunch and book a table for the group for dinner each day at a local restaurant. Sometimes evening meal times might be early/late to fit around the time of sunset. New Zealand has great food and caters well for any preferences like allergies, vegetarian etc.
A 15% deposit is required to reserve your space (deposit is non-refundable). The remaining balance is due 45 days prior to the start of the workshop.
Booking and Cancellation Policy: Please click here for our booking and cancellation policy.
Our exact schedule each day will be determined according to the weather to allow for the best shooting, we may choose to swap out locations for others that are better suited to the conditions and we keep a flexible itinerary to accommodate this. We focus on spending as much time as possible out shooting, often from before dawn until sunset. During the tour, we will make time for some image review and processing session, we will fit these around times that are not optimum for shooting.
This tour runs with a maximum group size of 8 and 2 tutors, offering 1:4 ratio of tutors to guests. Limiting group sizes ensure we provide you with expert guidance, instruction, and personal attention according to your learning style. Smaller groups of up to 4 may only be led by one tutor.
A minimum level of physical activity is necessary to enjoy this tour. A lot of locations we shoot require a short walk (10-20mins one way) along the forest tracks or the coastline. These are sometimes uphill, over uneven ground, or rocky beaches and you will be carrying your own equipment. On this tour, there may be a couple of longer walk options (30-45 min one way) but if these are difficult for the group, we do have the option to split the group at these locations. If your fitness or mobility is an issue please let us know.
Camera Equipment: Our tours focus on how to use your camera, not your type of camera. A basic list of recommended camera equipment can be found here
Clothing: A list of recommended clothing to bring on the tour can be found here