The Tones River, Middlehurst Station, New Zealand
Fujifilm GFX100S, 20-35mm, f11 @ 30 seconds, ISO 125

As I write this on a very wet Sunday afternoon in Sydney, I am not at all unhappy. Inclement weather is what creates mood and atmosphere in our photographs. This image taken at Middlehurst Station last year enjoyed some early morning fog, hiding the snow-capped mountains in the distance, creating a smaller, more intimate scene.

There are a number of ways to process this image and I'm still working my way through them. The current version has perhaps a tad more contrast than I need, but then again, for social media and the newsletter, a little more punch might not hurt.

Despite the original image being quite soft and flat, exposure and contrast can do marvellous things to a rainy-day photograph. Editing won't turn it into a sunny day scene and nor should it. I love shooting in these types of conditions exactly because they are quieter, more sombre, very moody.

However, there are a couple of tricks that come in handy. First, be careful with your overall exposure. If you leave the image too dark, the shadows lacking interest, the image can struggle. And if the image you're looking at here looks a little dark, then give your phone or computer a little more electricity and turn the brightness up! It's rechargeable!

Overall, the colour palette is quite grey - the background of the mountainside, the river bed and the sky. To add some interest, I selected very narrow slices of reds and yellows and pushed up the saturation and lightness. I then did a rough selection around the river and boosted the blue - noting that this left the sky a neutral grey. It's the neutrals that give the colour its boost.

What do I like about this photo? I love the mood, the atmosphere and the wonderful memories I have over the last decade or so. And that patch of frost on the river bank says it all: winter is the best time for photography at Middlehurst.