This is the first time I’ve been out shooting since the end of lockdown. It felt good to be out concentrating and putting my total attention on one thing. I’ve wanted to photograph this roundabout for a long time now, well, since 2016 after I successfully captured the Ko We Kara roundabout for a local contest. I finally got my image but…

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… the view point is all wrong. I think the better spot, and I can’t confirm this as it’s in a closed off area, would be on top of the hill located on the other side of the roundabout to the left. From that vantage point I’d have a view of the roundabout and the Belle Vie shopping mall behind it and not to the right, out of sight, like in this image. I will check that hill out again in hopes of finding a spot to reshoot this roundabout.

ABOUT THIS PLACE

Belle Vie roundabout is a major intersection in Noumea. From it you can head into the city, the southern suburbs, northern suburbs or head out of the Noumea altogether. To the left, just out of sight, is the Néobus depot, our new bus line that runs from Koutio to the City centre. To the right, just out of sight as well, is the Belle Vie shopping mall. In the mid-right of the roundabout is Magenta Discount and Magenta Bazar. Behind the trees and roundabout is Cheval Distribution, a pet and animal shop. Beyond the left and right of the image are petrol stations and cemeteries. Check out this blog post for a photo of the beautiful cemeteries we have here and, if your interested, a time-lapse over the same cemetery.

HOW I GOT THE IMAGE

This image was made from three photos. A main photo which included the foreground, most of the light trails and the mid-ground. The second photo was taken five minutes before the main photo and used to replace the sky. And the third photo was used to add light trails at the bottom left of the road and over the ghost cars. The blending was done in Photoshop and the editing in Lightroom.

Though I wanted a blue hour image, I start shooting at sunset and straight through blue hour. Glad I did because the photo I used for the sky was shot at the end of golden hour and the beginning of blue hour. Two out of the three images were 30 second exposures and I achieved that by using LEE Filters’ Little Stopper, a 6 stop neutral density filter. I needed the Little Stopper to get the light trails but as you can see in the photo, the cars were stopped long enough to be captured as ghosts. Love that effect though.

As I mentioned above, I think a better shot would be from the other side of the roundabout but I also think a higher perspective and wider angle lens would make for a better, more captivating image.

I’ve been talking about Baie des Tortues (Turtle Bay) on my last couple of posts and once or twice before that, but they’ve been detail photos, except for one that was taken from this exact spot but at night, so I thought I’d share a day image of the beach of Baie des Tortues (Turtle Bay).

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The luck I had was that it was almost low tide when I took this shot, revealing the tunnel of the cliff, the Pierced Rock (la Roche Percée). Situated smack bang in the middle of the image with it’s own tiny beach in front of the entrance. At low tide you have access to the tunnel from the beach. The hole goes straight through the cliff to the other side where you join the other beach and peninsula, la Roche Percée, which you can see behind the cliff and to the right of the image. The tunnel is quite narrow and is part of the Sentier des Trois Baies (the Three Bay Trail) which includes Baie de la Roche Percée (Pierced Rock Bay), Baie des Tortues (Turtle Bay) and Baie des Amoureux (Lovers Bay). A beautiful walk if ever you have the time.

The beach behind the cliff is where I took the photo from my last post, Le Bourailais. This rock formation at the end of the cliff, known as le Bonhomme (the Man), is a landmark in New Caledonia with spiritual importance in Kanake culture. Hop over to my last post for more information on the Bonhomme de Bourail.

On the left side of the Roche Percée (Pierced Rock) cliff is an amazing 280° lookout point with a shrine dedicated to Notre Dame des Flots (Our Lady of the Waves), who watches over the ships. Magnificent views up there.

And of course, just below that is the beach of Baie des Tortues (Turtle Bay). Well known for it’s turtle nesting season in late January, early February. A beautiful little beach, very popular with the locals and tourists for picnicking. Not a bad spot for a romantic sunset either.

This shot was taken from the Route de la Baies des Amoureux (Lovers Bay Road). This small section of the road is part of the Sentier des Trois Baies (the Three Bay Trail), mentioned above. Two photos were taken to make this image. A long exposure of 10 seconds to smooth out the clouds and water, and a shorter 1/8th second exposure to capture the cliff side when the sun shone on it. It was cloudy and rain was on it’s way, as you can see from the top left of the image, but the sky opened long enough on the horizon to provided me with this beautiful light. I blended the 1/8th exposure on to the 10 second exposure in Photoshop and finished editing in Lightroom. Mainly just accentuating the cliff side, beach and water.

So there you go, the gorgeous Turtle Bay in Bourail, New Caledonia. This whole area is worth a visit if ever you’re round the corner.