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All seasons are nice and with their own merits. With that said, if I was to advise someone when NOT to visit if landscape photography is their main reason for going it would be between the months of January and March inclusive, to be honest. I have visited the South Island in every season, so although this is ultimately just personal opinion it's based on my own experiences.
In the summer the days are loooong and you'll be out very late for sunset, and up very early for sunrise. All but the highest peaks are devoid of snow, making it less scenic IMO (although I have been there in summer and experienced snow, it is not the norm.) It's also high season so places will be crowded and more expensive. The advantages of summer are that you can be sure all the hiking trails you may want to do, including any 'Great Walks' will be open (although these require booking.) In early summer (by that I mean, first two, maybe three weeks of December) you will get the lupin blooms which are magnificent particularly around Tekapo.
Winter is cold (obviously) but beautiful. As you come from Canada, winter photography may not hold the same appeal for you as it does for me coming from Australia. The peaks have loads of snow, the glacial lakes have lots of icebergs and may even freeze over temporarily and the sun rises and sets at a reasonable time. Ski areas will be busy, but otherwise it's low season elsewhere. Winter is an amazing time to visit for photography.
Autumn is lovely; if you can time your visit to coincide with the peak of the colours which in my experience start getting good mid April and peak towards the end of the month in areas like Wanaka, Twizel and Arrowtown which are some of the popular spots (but there are loads of other nice places to see it.) The timing can of course shift slightly year-to-year.
Spring, depending when you visit, can be a very different experience. Early spring will still be wintery conditions. Late spring, leading into early summer can be quite pleasant. It won't be too busy yet but it's starting to get warmer. In the last week of November (technically still spring) the lupin bloom will probably be close to peak and it will carry through into 2-3 weeks of December before deteriorating.
My most recent visit was late Nov and early Dec, the lupins were stunning and the cloud cover that trip was just crazy. Almost every day these amazing clouds would blow in for sunrise and sunset, then clear, then repeat. It was crazy windy most of the which may have contributed but I certainly got dynamic and interesting conditions.
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