It is with great anticipation that I share with you this photograph of a remote wilderness location, inaccessible by foot and completely untouched by man, deep within Fiordland National Park.

In May of 2017, I commenced a new ongoing personal project – capturing some of the most mind blowing, yet inaccessible parts of Fiordland National Park. This will be achieved by working closely with Louisa 'Choppy' Patterson, one of New Zealand’s most reputable helicopter pilots, boasting over 30 years’ experience.

In early May, a close friend Russ accompanied me on the first flight. We began with lift-off at first light, before flying to Mount Aspiring and Mount Tutoko for the sunrise.  With winter almost upon us, you can imagine just how cold it was hanging out of the chopper at 9000 feet. I learnt pretty quickly that putting my foot down on the icy skid below wasn't a great idea!

Unfortunately, the sunrise light was disappointing, but it was soon time for some reconnaissance work; exploring a variety of locations from the sky, under Louisa's expert guidance.

After flying through Fiordland for a few hours, Louisa offered to make a landing and take us to a secret waterfall. To the best of her knowledge, it doesn't even have a name.

It was an amazing feeling to land and step out of a chopper high in the remote mountains of Fiordland, knowing full well that we were the only humans for many miles. We walked only a couple of hundred metres through pristine, untouched wilderness before we were greeted by this incredible scene.

I immediately saw this photo on our arrival, the trees framed the waterfall and pool below beautifully. Thankfully, the light was perfect. I setup my gear and captured this magical scene in the highest possible resolution on my recently acquired digital technical camera; an ALPA 12 TC with 100MP Phase ONE iQ3 digital back. This is one print that I will definately be installing in my own home.

Before leaving, we all took a moment to truly appreciate the experience we were sharing.

We took to the sky again and headed back to base for a very welcome hot cup of tea.

With almost 3 hours in the air, it was by far the longest and most incredible helicopter experience I have had to date, Louisa is the most talented pilot I have worked with.

I can’t wait to spend more time exploring, capturing and sharing this incredible part of the world with you.