Pink

Sometimes you just have to try and try (and try!) again. This is how I felt recently attempting to take this iconic Newcastle scene, but it really was worth it.

Mutee Head, Cape York - Our caravan is in the background of this shot, facing North towards the tip of Cape York. A very long exposure here has smoothed out the waves and the clouds, while picking up the beautiful backscatter of purple light from the sun setting.

 Captured while staying at Belmont Pines Holiday Park in the Lake Macquarie area over summer, this stunning sunset looking towards Belmont 16s over Belmont Bay is a calming idyllic artwork that the area depicts. I was spoilt for choice with the caravan park surrounded by water that I left it up to the clouds to decide which direction I'd be shooting this evening. 

After a great weekend photographing Autumn Colours in the Blue Mountains, Amanda and I were returning home, hoping to stop at a beach on the Central Coast for sunset on the way. (That was the plan at least!) We encountered heavy traffic transiting through North Western Sydney, and ended up stopping for an early dinner.

As we got onto the freeway, the sun was already on its last legs. I was resigned to not getting to shoot this particular sunset, which looked like it would be pretty amazing, lighting up several cloud banks and starting to go pink.

We were frantically trying to think of places close by that we could stop to shoot, when it hit me that we were coming up to the Brooklyn Bridge, on the Hawkesbury River. We turned off the freeway, headed onto the Old Pacific Highway and I made a frantic dash to the waters edge with the camera to setup the gear.

It was now that I discovered (of course) that I must have left my shutter remote actuator somewhere in Mt Wilson in the Mountains... Thankfully my camera has a time set mode that I frantically programmed to try and get the last of the colours being displayed.

I only just managed to pull it all together for this beautiful shot, featuring Spectacle Island as it sits on the Hawkesbury River, with the last of that amazing sunset lighting up the cloud bank behind, in this, one of the most easily and often seen (but least thought about) landscapes in the Hunter Region of NSW.

All that remains, a row of pylons emerging from the calm evening waters of Shoal Bay. This sunset was one that was beautiful in all directions, however the access to each different vantage spot was made extremely difficult as it was on a breakwall filled with large, slippery boulders. To change from one vantage to another was a painful, difficult experience.  

The main decision I had to make for this image during the composition process was the height that I wanted the pylons to appear, whether I wanted them above the horizon or not. I ended up choosing a composition that showed the pylons against the backdrop of the smooth waters of Shoal Bay.

This is a unique location, sheltered under Mt Tomaree, that has become a favourite picnic spot for my family and I.

What can I say about this image? It was a difficult one for me both physically taking it, and mentally editing it to get it's true potential out. The location is the Pinnacles, on Phillip Island, VIC.

The hike was pretty intense, a few hard km, rushed to try and make it before sunset. As you can see, we made it! The climb down past the "No access" sign was... Sketchy... and we had a few pant wetting moments on the way down. You can see the climb down in this photo, it's the grass on the far right. Looks a lot steeper in person!

The sunset looked pretty poor, we were getting frustrated that after the long climb we would be left without a great image.

Thankfully as I was setting up the panorama gear, Amanda told me to look up at the clouds. A hint of pink was starting to show through. I hurriedly finished setting up, and started to fire off shots for a panorama I had in my head. The light show we got was just amazing and really popped the colours of the cliffs around us in this epic location. I had seen other photographers images of this place, but I don't think any of them got as lucky as I did with the beautiful colours and clouds.

Stitching the image together was a whole other challenge! My quick setup and some poor execution on my part gave me days of headache getting this image stitched. It required some serious manual stitching work and almost did my head in! I've been sitting on this trying to get it right for weeks now!

The climb back up the cliff in the dark and the 4km hike back to the car was painful, but I was buoyed by the fact that I had captured an amazing scene.

This iconic Newcastle Landmark, the Nobbys Lighthouse, juts out in the Newcastle Harbour on this glorious sunset evening. We decided to have an afternoon splash at the beach before the cooler weather begins and of course whenever we head out for the afternoon the camera comes too.

My wife and I both haven’t been to this part of Stockton before, and it is always great to explore new places and get great photos at the same time. The sunset gave us a pastel rainbow style sky and the Harbour was quite calm, without many ships coming or going.

This Port Stephens sunset image captures the relaxing atmosphere of the peninsula perfectly.

I have never seen the waters of Tilligerry Creek, Port Stephens as calm as at Sunset on this winter’s afternoon. Sailboats and Houseboats alike sit moored at this calm inlet, as the sun sets away from them, leaving the simplicity of the vessels and their reflections to imprint my camera sensor.

The peach and apricot colours of this image are offset by the white of the skies edge and the pink blush starting to come through the glow.

Relax with this strikingly simple image decorating your lounge room, office or bedroom, and think about these peaceful vessels at sunset.

It was a breezy winters afternoon when my family and I headed down to the Bogey Hole, Newcastle, intent on capturing its unique beauty for a fine art photograph. Neither Amanda or I had been here before, so it was an exciting new venture for us.

As we predicted, there was some interesting cloud cover, and we were hoping they would hang around in the right place and produce one of the elements for making a great sunset. I risked slipping over when climbing some wet mossy rocks, to test various different compositions, until I settled on the one I liked and could use for my creative piece I had in mind.

After the majority of the sunset had been, I quickly returned to the main platform which is just above the level of the water and grabbed this vertical shot. This was the second creation I imagined which shows the layers of both sky and water, as the last of the sun lit up the band of clouds.

We imagine this art piece being featured at the end of an entrance way or hallway, due to the simple, clean composition and lively summer feel.

An early winter morning on the way to the Gallery saw me attempting to make my way to the beaches for what promised to be a beautiful sunrise.

This image was taken last night at the Dripstone cliffs in Darwin.

I was busy taking panorama's, when my wife messaged me and told me she had found some driftwood that had come up with the tide.

I quickly finished the Panorama I was working on, and we jogged down to this driftwood. (not great for my bad ankle!) but the end result was worth it.

If you look carefully you can see the clouds in the distance dumping heavy rain into the ocean.

What a magical moment, caught just before it was too late, thanks to my wife.

Story coming soon!

Story coming soon!

This image is taken at the aptly named "Wreck Beach", off the Great Ocean Road in Victoria.

The anchor is from a ship called the Marie Gabrielle, which wrecked on this spot in 1869, carrying a load of Tea from China. The anchor is all that remains of the wreck in this incredible location, a testament to how rough the seas can be in this spot, far from this idyllic but cold summers morning.

We parked for the night above the wreck, and made the trek down the 400 or so stairs at about 4am in order to be there for first light. Finding the anchor in pitch black conditions was no picnic, we weren't able to scout the location beforehand. Nonetheless, we made it and I set up for the image.

The sunrise was extremely dissapointing with minimal light, and the clouds above refused to fire up. I was just packing up my equipment to leave when Amanda pointed up and said excitedly, "It's happening!"

I set my stuff back up, slightly adjusted for the clouds and fired away as the clouds grew from pale grey to fluoro pink and then orange. It was all over in about 8 minutes, but it was just enough time for this shot. The walk back up the stairs was no picnic, apparently we climbed 22 stories in 340m to get back to the car.

These amazing geographical phenomenon are very interesting to photograph.

Set on a lonely windswept New Zealand Beach, we stayed the night in a nearby car park in our motorhome, before I woke up early to capture sunrise.

I didn't have time the previous afternoon to do any scouting, so had to wing it as I arrived. (Amanda stayed in bed with Aria until a bit later!)

I wasn't alone. Throughout the night we had heard vehicles arrive, and at Sunrise I was greeted with about 15 other tourists setting up cameras here.

I concentrated on myself and my composition, picking two compositions that I really liked and waiting for the right light to emerge. Emerge it did, Blue water and orange clouds combining to these spectacular colours in the wash of the waves.

One of my favourite images still to this day, this Mangrove standing alone in Fanny Bay is so surreal that I often get asked whether I faked it or not.

Careful framing and composition were required to give the illusion that the mangrove is completely alone, and a long exposure blurs the water as the sky floods with a soft pink, courtesy of the sunset.