Rolf Pieren, 35, earlier pleaded guilty to two charges of making an intimate visual recording, but successfully argued in the Invercargill District Court yesterday he should be discharged without conviction.
The court heard Pieren hid a GoPro in his room to record intimate relations with the first victim.
He stored the video on his laptop before moving it to his phone and the footage automatically backed up to his Apple ID account.
The woman was not aware of the camera, and never gave Pieren permission to film her.
Another woman became a victim of Pieren’s undisclosed filming when he set up a camera in a bathroom and downloaded footage of her showering.
He saved the video and it automatically backed up.
Pieren gave the first victim his laptop and when she unlocked it, a notification caught her eye.
She opened the notification and four short video clips were revealed.
Two were of her and Pieren having intimate relations and the other two showed the second victim showering with him.
When she confronted Pieren about his secret stash he said he was "so ashamed".
He clearly had issues at the time and he thought he had deleted the videos, he said.
The woman told the second victim what she had discovered, and Pieren apologised to her too.
In statements to the court, the victims described their shock when they found the videos, and the lasting impact the crimes had on them.
"The concept of consent is fundamental, not optional," one said.
When spoken to by police, the defendant made full admissions and was remorseful.
Yesterday, counsel Fiona Guy Kidd KC said if her client was convicted it was "highly likely" he would be deported.
That would be "life-changing" and "devastating" for Pieren, who has lived in New Zealand for more than six years and was a permanent resident.
The defendant was a chef on a boat in Fiordland and his deportation would affect his employer who was supporting him in court.
They described the defendant as an "indispensable asset".
However, they had found a temporary replacement for him as he planned to take time off for a sailing trip.
Ms Guy Kidd said her client was not likely to offend again and he was aware of the "huge consequences" if he did.
Judge Mark Williams said the offending was moderately serious, deliberate and "highly intrusive".
"Mr Pieren offers no real insight into why he committed this offending, other than stress at work and anxiety."
Judge Williams granted Pieren a discharge without conviction "by a very fine margin" and ordered him to pay $5000 emotional harm reparation to each victim.
