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Vivid colours, artistic lighting, and marine projections brought with it the challenge of photographing a light festival in Auckland at night. Bright Nights brought Viaduct Harbour alive with a light and sound spectacular curated by international award-winning light artist Angus Muir Design. As always, New Zealand knows how to throw a party.

“The waterfront means a lot to Auckland City, and creating a light art experience that interacts with the water itself was always the goal. The opportunity to use Viaduct Harbour as a canvas to launch a full-scale lighting festival for everyone to enjoy is pretty much a dream come true,” says Muir.

Light Festival Photographs (Photo tips below)

Auckland Bright Nights

Celebrating nothing in particular, this year’s theme focuses on clean seas and sustainability. It followed a path of light beginning at KZ1, the 1998 America’s  Cup Challenger Yacht that sits on display outside the Auckland Maritime Museum. Here we discovered an ever-changing projection that showed geometric patterns when we first arrived and then a fabulous sealife creation.

A whale projected on a hull in Auckland New Zealand
Called Undersail this whale ‘swam’ across the hull of KZ1.
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Light Field in the background at Bright Nights Light Festival in Auckland New Zealand
Next, we looked across viaduct basin at Light Field and it’s colourful reflection in the water.
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Former New Zealand Americas Cup boats seen during the light festival in Auckland at night.
Enjoying the colour change of Light Field, we can see two former New Zealand America’s Cup yachts, now sailed daily to allow visitors to experience the thrill of racing.
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Next, it became an interactive light festival

The next exhibit, called Square Dance Discotheque was fascinating to watch. Coloured lights rotated on the ground while people danced to silence. The music played via Bluetooth headphones. We had to try it, and the queue moved quickly, possibly because the choice of music was loud and unpleasant (or maybe I am just getting old).

Square Dance Discotheque was lights and bluetooth headphone music in Auckland New Zealand
Square Dance Discotheque
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The Interactive Earth let visitors alter various things and see their effects on the planet. While we watched, a member of the Futuristic Vospertron performance team joined into the fun.

Bright Nights An Interactive earth in Auckland New Zealand
Left: Member of Futuristic Vospertron team. Right: Various results of an Interactive Earth 
Shutter Speed: 1/60, Aperture: f/5.0, ISO: 1600 (last earth photo had aperture: f/1.7)
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The Fortune Fountain is a modern wishing well at a light festival in Auckland New Zealand
The Fortune Fountain is a modern wishing well with proceeds going to the charitable trust.
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Burrow provided an opportunity to pass under the lights
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Trees lit up at Viaduct Harbour in Auckland at night, New Zealand
These lights seem to always be at Viaduct Harbour.
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More Light Festival Fun

Mountain of Light at a light festival in Auckland at night - New Zealand
I silhouetted the children to both give perspective and keep the focus on the Mountain of Light.
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Cubezoid’s colour movement was mesmerising.
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A close up look at Light Field a Light Festival in Auckland New Zealand
The Light Field looked much different from close up. (I liked it better at a distance like in the photos above.
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Water Fun at Bright Nights a light festival in Auckland New Zealand
Water Fun 
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Maori light posts in Auckland New Zealand
Pou Rama (meaning light posts)
Shutter Speed: 1/60, Aperture: f/4.0, ISO: 1600
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If you enjoyed these images, please click on the image just below and then save to your favourite Pinterest board:

The ever-changing colours of most of the lights are captured in this promotional video from the city.

General Tips on Photographing a Light Festival

  • Know your camera’s limits. I shoot with an Olympus OMD em5 Mark II, a compact, mirrorless camera that is not only the ideal lightweight travel camera, it also offers very high ISO options and shoots beautifully in low light situations.

⇒ If you live in USA or Canada, check pricing of the OMD em5 Mark II at Olympus

⇒ Worldwide, check pricing of the Olympus OMD em5 Mark II at Amazon

  • Set your camera to manual mode.
  • Use a high ISO for hand-held shots, the lowest for tripod shots.
  • Use a wide-angle lens.
  • Adjust your settings for the event, try to not overexpose the light.
  • Bracket your shots.
  • If possible, go on a preview or media only night.
  • If light installations are large, try to include silhouetted people or well-known objects for size perspective.
  • Another great way to improve your night photography is with a semi-private Auckland and sunset and night photography tour. A maximum of two people per tour, the reviews indicate lots of hands-on tips.

⇒ Check pricing and availability for an Auckland and sunset and night photography tour

Want more tips, get a copy of my free ebook:

Practical Information on the Auckland Light Festival

Don’t worry if you missed this year’s light festival, there are plenty of interesting things to do in Auckland at night. Don’t miss this list:

⇒30 Fun Things to Do in Auckland New Zealand at Night⇐

Where to Stay in Auckland

If you visit Auckland New Zealand for a night festival, you will want to spend the night.



Booking.com

What’s your favourite thing to do in Auckland at night? Have you visited Bright Nights or any light festival?

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. Thanks for sharing these tips for taking photos at night! This light festival looks like it was so much fun, especially love how interactive it was.

    Reply

  10. That looks like a lot of fun for the whole family. Its also really pretty to all the different lights and all the different shapes they can do.

    Reply

  15. Rhonda, I’m amazed with all these beautiful pictures and colors. They are so vivid. I think of boring my town has for me. The only beautiful place is the Navy Yard off the river. But you have so much. Lucky you! Thank you giving me the opportunity to view all of these wonderful pictures. See ya.

    Cruisin Paul

    Reply

  20. I love light festivals. I have been to a few in Australia and Ecuador. I haven’t had issues with photographing it, even by using a phone only. It can be a bit challenging if it is too dark. I love your photos in this post. I hope to visit Auckland soon. I love travelling places and experience local festivals and events like this one. Thank you so much for sharing.

    Reply

  22. Oh wow! This looks like such a cool experience. I just have my iPhone camera at this point, so night photography is out of the question! Your photos turned out great!

    Reply

  25. What an incredible list festival you have here, Rhonda. And very colorful as well. We have similar things as well in Indonesia, particularly in Jogjakarta and Semarang

    Reply

  26. What a lovely light festival to see and also capture. I especially like the tips you give, as I’m very much an amateur photographer. Your photos are wonderful, and really show off the best of the lights and the art on display. The one of the children and the colourful cubes is my favourite!

    Reply

  27. This looks so fun! I’ve been to light festivals in a couple different cities and they’ve all been very much worth going to. It’s great to see so many people of all ages out in the downtown after dark and the installations are always great. It looks like Aukland has a particularly good festival!

    Reply

  28. I loved all the shots. Amazing lights. Always a beautiful sight at night.

    I’m with you. If the music is loud I’m gone. I can’t do it anymore.

    Have a fabulous day. ♥

    Reply

    • I don’t actually know how people could stand and listen to it playing right in their ears so loud. I thought our hearing gets worse as we get older, maybe this is why.

      Reply

  29. What a cool thing to experience! It’s like street art come to life. I also love that you provide photography tips so that others can make some nice captures. Mountain of Life was my favorite display for sure.

    Reply

  35. Auckland is a beautiful city Rhonda. We had a night there 2 months back and 1 more night there on the way out, a month from now. When we return to NZ we will spend a few weeks there, a proper visit.

    Ryan

    Reply

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