Photographer captures a tui forming in the clouds over Aoraki

Susan Blick, a landscape photographer, has captured what appears to be a tui forming in the clouds over Mount Cook.

Blick was at Tasman Lake at the Glacier Lookout Lookout Friday night hoping to capture photos of the sunset.

While waiting for the sun to set over Mount Cook Blick, he said “heavier and rainier clouds” appeared and made their way.

Clouds passed through the sky and a tui-shaped cloud formed.

But in “five seconds” it was gone.

Blick said that he is lucky to have his camera in hand, as it was so fast.

“I turned around, fired two shots and then it was gone.”

Blick told the Herald that she turned to her partner and said “Holy hell it’s a bird.”

At that moment he did not think much about the photo he had just captured and waited again for the sunset.

Blick has been a landscape photographer for over five years.

“I’ve never seen a cloud as perfect as an animal before,” Blick told the Herald.

“This was the god who was smiling at me,” he said.

Blick said people have told him they see a Tui, others say they see a penguin, and some even say they see a Weka in the clouds.

But definitely see a tui even though the beak is a bit too straight.

Unfortunately Blick did not capture the sunset photos he was looking for, he said Tui’s photo will do.