Day One of their itinerary (put together by the wonderful folk at Tahiti Tourisme) sees Chris behind the wheel as they take a rental car and circumnavigate the island of Tahiti Nui, with loads to see along the way such as Papeno’o Valley, Faarumai Falls, Taravao Plateau and Lake Vaihiria. Let’s hope Sesh’s navigating skills are up to scratch!

The following morning they will head out to La Taha’a, one of Chris’s favourite spots in French Polynesia with crystal clear waters and excellent underwater photography opportunities. Not to mention their very own overwater bungalow’s to stay in and enjoy at Le Taha’a Island Resort and Spa.

No doubt this is where Sesh will be keen to pick up some handy pointers on using his brand new Underwater Sport Housing provided by AquaTech as part of his prize package… I can’t wait to see the results!

From Taha’a they head East to the Tuamotus – the world’s largest chain of atoll islands – where they will be staying at Fakarava Lagoon, the archipelago’s second largest lagoon and a world UNESCO Biosphere Reserve for the preservation of rare species. Offering a rich and untouched eco-system that is home to rare birds, plants and crustaceans with an underwater world that is largely undiscovered, Fakarava will no doubt be a highlight of this year’s trip and a very special place to visit.

From there Chris and Sesh eventually return to Tahiti before heading home and no doubt making the rest of us jealous with their stories and photos of what is sure to be a fantastic week… Happy travels!!

Image Copyright Chris McLennan

Why don’t you grab yourself a nice cuppa, put your feet up and have a scroll through the winning and finalist entries for some stunning photography from places as far apart as Norway, New Zealand, Alaska and Tahiti.  Myanmar (Burma) was a hot favourite with a number of the winning portfolios from this unique and mystical travel destination.

In fact, the overall quality of entries received this year was incredibly high with many different interpretations of travel photography in general.  From stunning vistas through to intimate portrayals of the locals, unique cultures through to majestic wildlife, intrepid adventures and remote lifestyles…  Take your own “virtual” journey around the world as you browse through the many wonderful entries and read the informative captions provided by the entrants.

Only in its second year the awards received double the entries this year to last, four times as many registrations and a lot of social media activity and site visits from all over the world.  An impressive growth for a brand new competition pitting itself against the big guys in international travel photography competitions online.

First place winner in the Professional category was Lluis Salvado from Spain with his impressive collection of images titled “Faces of the Holi”.  Lluis wins a brand new Nikon Df camera with 50mm f1.8 lens.

Images copyright Lluis Salvado

First place in the amateur category was won by Sesh Sareday of the US, who takes out the highly sought after prize of a 7 night all-expenses-paid private photo tour of French Polynesia with Chris McLennan thanks to Tahiti Tourisme and Air Tahiti Nui.  Sesh’s image portfolio titled “My Luminous Diary – Myanmar” portrays the unique diversity of the region in a magical and captivating way.

Images copyright Sesh Sareday

To view the rest of the winning and finalist portfolios and see a list of the fabulous prices they have won visit the awards website at www.TravelPhotographyAwards.com.

And watch this space for an update on Seth’s fabulous trip to French Polynesia with Chris later this year!

Thanks to our 2014 Awards sponsors:

Nikon New Zealand

HP New Zealand

AquaTech Underwater camera housings

Lowepro backpacks

Lexar memory solutions

Tahiti Tourisme

Air Tahiti Nui

Paddle boarding is a huge sport that is taking off around the world and I am a keen fan myself.  Ever since getting my own boards I’ve been dragging them all around the world to include in photo shoots wherever appropriate.  Having worked in the islands of Tahiti before I knew the amazing clarity of the water over there, and of course the incredible sea life!  So on this trip I really wanted to showcase both, alongside someone on a paddle board.  And hence my idea to do a half under / half over image to feature the beauty below – and the beauty above!!

I have always been fascinated by sharks (from the reef sharks of the tropics to the Great Whites of Africa – I have photographed both).  So my idea was simple, have someone paddleboard amongst the sharks and create a stunning half under / half over image.  Creating the image in the camera took a little longer than creating it in my head, there are a lot of challenges involved when shooting split images – especially when your subjects move at their own free will!  (For some tips on how to shoot half under / half over images, read my blog post about it here).

But in the end getting these shots was just as much fun as imagining them – snorkelling in these crystal clear waters amongst these gorgeous black-tipped reef sharks was definitely one of the highlights of my trip.  And the resulting images were exactly what I wanted.

And just in case you were wondering, these images were created exclusively in the camera – they are not composites.

To capture your own images just like these, why not enter my photographic competition – the 2014 Travel Photography Awards for your chance to win a trip to French Polynesia with me this October!!  Check it out online at www.TravelPhotographyAwards.com.

Images copyright Chris McLennan

Visit the new website here – www.travelphotographyawards.com.

French Polynesia Awaits you!  1st place winner (Amateur category) will be jetting off to French Polynesia for a personalised photo tour of the region alongside renowned travel photographer Chris McLennan.  Includes flights, accommodation, meals and all activities.

While the 1st place winner (Professional cateogry) will bag themselves a brand new Nikon Df with 50mm f1.8 lens.  The fantastic new, classically styled digital SLR that everyone is talking about.

Other prizes from HP, Lexar, Lowepro and AquaTech complete the lineup.  Visit the site to see exactly what’s on offer in this year’s competition.

For an even better idea of what’s in store for the travel package prize winner, why not read our previous blog post about Dana Allen’s trip to Tahiti with Chris in October 2013.  Dana was the award’s 2013 winner with his fantastic portfolio titled “African Safari” and he joins us as one of 2014′s panel of judges.

So don’t miss out!  Time to start putting your entry together.  Gather up your best travel images, visit the site, enter your portfolio online and start spreading the word!  The HP People’s Choice prize is up for grabs and the portfolio with the most votes will take away a brand new HP DreamColor II professional graphics monitor.  Get your entry in early for the best chance to win.

And what’s more?  Up until the 10th of April the entry fees are reduced, which makes it even more worth your while to enter early!

We look forward to seeing your images online soon, and then this could be you…

All images taken in Tahiti during the 2013 Award Winner’s Photo Tour and are copyright Chris McLennan.

I touched base with Dana recently to hear how their adventure went, and to see some of the amazing photos he captured on his journey around French Polynesia. Having traveled from Zimbabwe to meet up with Chris in New Zealand before continuing on to Tahiti, I know Dana was probably suffering from some fairly hefty jetlag on arrival in the islands. In his own words, he was “Exactly half way around the globe from (his) home!”

But that didn’t stop him from enjoying the trip, saying he was “excited and honored to be selected to travel to such an iconic destination, and with such a fantastic photographer”. On arrival in Tahiti Chris and Dana enjoyed a night at the Manava Suite Resort before continuing straight on to Bora Bora. “Flying into Bora Bora was really exciting, it is an amazing view of the island and the reef as you land, it really takes your breath away with the intense colours and scenic beauty.” High praise from someone who travels fairly regularly himself throughout Africa (and further afield). Prior to his trip to Tahiti Dana was in the Congo photographing gorillas, you can see some of the images from that trip on Dana’s blog page here.

From Bora Bora they travelled on to Taha’a Island – added to the itinerary last minute due to changeable weather at their scheduled location in Tikihau. Taha’a was definitely one of the highlights of their trip says Dana, “Gliding through the reef and being able to capture the amazing beauty of the underwater world there was definitely one of my favourite photo opportunities.”

It was here they swam and snorkeled with stingray, black tipped reef sharks, large moray eels and hundreds of tiny reef fish. All providing the perfect opportunity for Dana to test his new underwater equipment from AquaTech, part of his prize package as Grand Prize Winner. (You can see more of Dana’s shots at the bottom of this post).

“I had done a bit of underwater shooting in the past but it was very informal and with pretty simple equipment. It was exciting to use the new AquaTech housing with my D4 and to work with Chris to achieve the optimum settings and techniques to get great results”. We think he definitely achieved that, as you can see in the fantastic images he has shared with us! (View them below).

Last stop was Moorea where they spent their days swimming and paddleboarding with more sharks and rays and exploring the amazing landscapes of this region. Their tour ended with a fantastic meal on the final night hosted by the wonderful teams at Tourisme Tahiti and Air Tahiti Nui who had put this amazing travel package together for us.

The end result? A great time had by both, some great new images and some memorable new experiences to share. Says Dana “It was really great to work with Chris, learning and sharing ideas and techniques and just making great images”.

Thanks to all of our fantastic sponsors who donated their incredible prizes for the 2013 awards: Tahiti Tourisme, Air Tahiti Nui, Nikon New Zealand, HP, AquaTech**, Lowepro and Lexar.

**If you fancy a bit of underwater photography yourself and want to get your hands on an underwater housing – or any other gear – from AquaTech, make sure you use our Promo Code when ordering to get 5% off the retail price.  Just enter this code (all lowercase) when you make your online order – aquatech cm2013 – happy shopping!!

Watch for our announcement when the 2014 Awards open early in the New Year. It could be you next time!

All images copyright Dana Allen.
Underwater photos captured using an AquaTech sport housing for D4, Nikon D4 camera and Nikkor 14-24 f2.8 lens.

All images copyright Dana Allen.
Underwater photos captured using an AquaTech sport housing for D4, Nikon D4 camera and Nikkor 14-24 f2.8 lens.

That’s right, on Thursday Chris and Grand Prize Winner Dana Allen from Zimbabwe jetted off (courtesy of Air Tahiti Nui) on the Airbus A343 heading for the gorgeous islands of Tahiti. How lucky are they?

Their destination? Seven nights in French Polynesia courtesy of Tahiti Tourisme. But it isn’t all going to be about sitting around the hotel pool sipping cocktails (though I’m sure there will be a bit of that going on too). Tahiti Tourisme have put together a fantastic itinerary especially designed to allow Chris and Dana a chance to photograph some of the best that Tahiti and her islands have to offer. Check this out:

Wednesday 23rd October (the time difference means Chris and Dana arrived in Tahiti “before” they had actually departed from New Zealand)!

Manava Suite Resort (a bit of cocktail and pool activity to start things off with I’m sure)…

Thursday 24th and Friday 25th October

Hilton Bora Bora Nui Resort & Spa, including Tupuna Safari 4×4 excursion and Lagoon Service Ray and Shark feeding private excursion including a motu picnic on a private islet!!

Saturday 26th October

Tikehau Pearl Beach Resort including Vaiarii Lagoon private nautical excursion to see the Pink Sand and snorkel the Coral Garden.  Time to get out the prize winner’s brand new AquaTech underwater housing kit…!

Sunday 27th and Monday 28th October

Sofitel Moorea Resort including dolphin encounter at the Dolphin Centre and a private lagoon tour with Moorea Mahana Tours.

Tuesday 29th October

Radisson Plaza Hotel, Tahiti. Cocktail anyone?

Wednesday 30th October

Time to re-pack and get ready to head home. By now the prize winner will have been using and enjoying his brand new Lowepro Rover Pro and Passport Sling II, and will have been firing off some exciting new imagery on his brand new Lexar 32GB 1000x memory card.

Whew!! They will be exhausted I’m sure, but a great way to see so much of French Polynesia on the one trip. What an adventure!

Watch this space to hear how their trip went, to see some of the amazing images they are sure to have taken while over there, and to hear Dana’s feedback on his big win in the Travel Photography Awards 2013. It could be you next time!!

 Images copyright Chris McLennan.

The Travel Photography Awards 2013 were sponsored by:

 Tahiti Tourisme

 Air Tahiti Nui

 Nikon

 HP

 Lowepro

 AquaTech

 Lexar

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