Mushroom Madness

We were lucky enough to be invited down to Mittagong by Shane Arrold whose dad manages a mushroom farm in an old train tunnel built by the convicts. It was the perfect venue for some long overdue light paining with Michael Lynch and a great experience all round. Richard Dudley's daughter Cassie was our most obliging model and we were all able to come away with some great shots thanks to Micky's organisational skills and knowledge of techniques.

ANZAC Autumn

Not able to make the dawn service this year I decided to head to Mt. Wilson for my own contemplation. As luck would have it, the weather alternated between fog and rain. Fog produces amazing atmosphere but the constant drizzle had made the fallen leaves a skating rink. My childhood holidays were spent breathing the invigorating mountain air and striding along paths to lookouts. There was an aura of excitement when surrounded by so much natural beauty, and of course, a child's life is carefree. I yearn for the mountains of my youth, unlike today's tourist mecca. I should have known better than to attempt a visit during such a popular time but I'll know better next time and ensure I arrive before dawn and leave before the first onslaught of visitors. The fog created an otherworldly atmosphere with many of the trees looking as though they belonged in some prehistoric landscape.

In spite of the noise and colour pollution created by the picnickers, I still enjoyed my rambles and was able to rejoice in reasonable solitude once again in Breenhold Gardens as I'd done the previous year in almost identical conditions. The bonus this year was the fog and a chance encounter with the gardener. He divulged the location of some giant red spotted toadstools beneath the chestnut and pine trees. Toadstools are something I'd not yet captured successfully so I'm guessing this was Nature's bounty for the day. As I explored beneath the giant chestnut tree and uncovered toadstools of all shapes and sizes, childhood memories of Noddy and Big Ears surfaced. 

How I yearned to experience living in a cosy little toadstool or midst the roots of cavernous trees. To be able to emerge with the fairies at night. I often think longingly of those days before political correctness soured childhood perceptions, and I am thankful that I experienced a safe, free childhood and that my memories allow me to relive those moments with incredible clarity.

High Tide At Yena

 

 image: our shadows reflected on the sandstone rocks just as the last of the light welcomed the new morning

Carolyn and I ventured down to Yena this morning in an endeavour to catch the elusive sunrise which always appears on work days but rarely during my holidays. It was another early start and I was prepared to be disappointed and wake to a cloudy sky, but the weather was perfect, just a touch of an Autumn breeze to disturb the still air. The waves were high and loud and from first light we were thrilled with the colour on the water and rocks. It is an arresting sight looking back towards the city of Sydney, the juxtaposition of Nature's water and craggy rocks against the Man's modern skyscrapers. There are many places to explore with a seemingly endless number of compositions possible. The natural colours are so spectacular that there is really no need to process the images other than a crop or resize.

image: the city can be seen above the breaking waves in the distance

 I'm no longer one for deep red sunrises, preferring the less saturated colour combinations. We spent more than two hours photographing the location as the light lasted for an extended period and bathed the rocks in the most beautiful golden light. It is my favourite time of the morning and there were so many interesting subjects and compositions: a tiny tug guiding in the large tanker;  seagulls cavorting in the rockpools filled to the brim with clean rainwater;  waterfalls cascading down the rockshelves in between waves;  golden light shining on the windows of the city skyscrapers giving it the appearance of a golden city; a spectacular cloudy sky and natural vegetation reflected in the clean and clear rockpools: fluffy white and pink clouds floating in a rich blue sky; the iridescent sheen created on the rocks by receding waves; and of course those magnificent rock formations with the morning light sculpting large stone faces on the hillsides.

Battling The Elements At Bombo

Excitement was high when some of the Focus group arrived at Bombo Quarry. We were expecting an EPIC shoot with some steel wool spinning courtesy of Mark Silva our lightpainting guru, followed by a magnificent sunrise. The swell was a predicted 4.8 metres, double the usual height, and high tide was due an hour after sunrise. We arrived at 4 a.m after an alarm rise at approx 2.30 as the trip down South from Sydney takes about 1 hour and 15 mins. Due to a cyclone up North the wind factor was almost gale strength and blew us up the path towards the quarry. No sooner had we reached our destination than the first drop of rain descended and it was all downhill weatherwise from then on. Mark packed his whisk away as spinning sparks would be a surefire disaster. Each of us scuttled off to a different vantage point to try and capture at least one shot of some great wave action. It drizzled and blew for the next 3 hours.  Mike Hobbert, one of our buddies, had ventured just around the other side of the cliffs to Cathedral Rocks for an alternative perspective. He experienced worse conditions than we did and was pretty much car bound for the entire session. Nevertheless, he still managed to grab a great shot.

 image: A shot taken by me of one of the rocks in the Cathedral set a few months back

It was so windy I dismissed all notions of finding my way to the best vantage point behind a natural rock barrier. My usual path was inaccessible, blocked by thorn bushes, and the alternative route over large sharp rocks was not an option as the wind wrought havoc with any attempts at balancing. David,  Brendan, Jeff  and Mark made their way to the barrier but were soon climbing around like mountain goats on the rockface. That wasn't to last long before they decided it was safer to be behind the barricade. I stayed playing in a relatively safe spot while I waited for that elusive sun or at least one large wave to make all the effort worthwhile.

My first image is pretty lacklustre as far as images go but I was determined to capture something different this time around. I needed to get down low to avoid the wind so my I've attempted to apply some effects to create some eerie images which are so suited to Bombo. In the pre dawn light there was no contrast in the sky and the basalt walls were dark sentries bordering the quarry, the only light source supplied by my headlight.

Using a similar composition, the mood generated by the rocks is dependent on the processing selected.

Visions of breakfast called us towards Kiama as most of us were drenched by this time and regretfully made our way back to the carpark. There was a short break in the sky and we were rewarded with a double rainbow and the lush green hills of Kiama Downs. Such  a contrast to the dark deliciously foreboding aura evident in the quarry. The evidence of a few lingering raindrops on the lens can be seen near the stone wall. 

Many people would deem this a failed shoot because there was no steel wool spinning, the sun never really rose, there was minimal opportunity for long exposures given the strength of the wind, and the intermittent rain made lens cleaning a real chore. However, we unanimously agreed,  we had an unforgettable time as witnesses to the power of Mother Nature and that we were energised rather than demoralised by our Bombo experience. Plans are afoot.