The Tall Trees

These are Pinus radiata at Kuitpo Forest, south of Adelaide. Kuitpo is farmed timber, and these trees are probably the better part of a hundred years old. The symmetry of the straight trunks struck me with its hint of a vanishing point, while the sun through the pattern they create was irresistible lighting. A simple photo, taken on August 31^st, 2017, on an outing to the woods, but it’s engaging in the sense of ‘you had to be there.’ I can almost smell the pine needles and hear the wind in the tops. Minor adjustments to colour and sharpness in Irfanview; Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Nature’s Symmetry

 As a photographer I’m fascinated by symmetries, whether man-made or natural, and here is a natural one—the long, straight trunks of pine trees creating a vanishing point when viewed directly upward. I took this photo on the 8^th of April, 2017, probably somewhere in the Kuitpo Fortest region, though I couldn’t swear to that as there’s no record, and other parts of the same expedition are down around Mount Compass and environs. No matter, the symmetry’s the thing, and its always interesting to see parallel lines in nature. Some enhancement was done, contrast, colour and sharpness. Fuji FinePix S5600, automatic. Image by Mike.

Colonial Memories

Click here to view at 1000 pixels wide.

The Adelaide Hills are dotted with little sites like this, reminders of the colonial past are everywhere. These farm houses were built between the late 1830s and the turn of the twentieth century, and some of them were still inhabited in the 1960s, even though there was no electricity wired in, and you carried water from your well! (A friend of mine raised five kids in a house just like this, near Victor Harbor! They were a sturdier breed in those days.) These structures were built to last, and will be around a great deal longer, even though they're now derelict and some, like this one, are no more than ruins. This farmer's cottage stands at the edge of the Scott Creek Conservation Park, South Australia, and this image was captured in the fall of 2007. The grass is green ... we've clearly had some rain! Photo by Mel, 2007.

How the other half live ... wow!

Click here to see the whole panorama at 1000 pixels wide.

I got interested in panoramic shots a while ago, while traveling overseas. Some locations offer the most amazing mid-range material, while the top and bottom of the frame are ... blah. Like this one. It's the line of millionaires' houses and Norfolk Island pine trees that are the interesting segment of the photo. The upper third is just sky, and the bottom third --? I was standing in the water to get this, so you can imagine what the bottom third was all about. The best thing to do is photograph the whole scene at the max resolution you have ... 6MP is just fine; 10MP is superb, but you'll need one of the newer cameras to get this. (Incidentally, check the Digital Kosmos Store, to the right of your screen: you'll see the new Fuji at a good price -- and it would do this job perfectly.) However, this shot was captured with 6MP, and I don't have a problem with it. In your imaging software, just crop the wide shot out of the whole frame, then size it to what you need, sharpen, and adjust color, brightness, contrast and color saturation, if you need to or want to. The results? Beautiful! This photo was taken from the waterline at Seacliff, Adelaide. Photo by Jade, 2007.

Lone Sapling

Click image to view at 800 pixels wide

There is something amazing about the tenacity of life, and this fir sappling, fighting to grow in the coarse upland soil of a place called, prosaically, "Rocky Paddock," a popular hillside camping area with amazing natural rock formations off the side of Mount Crawford, north-east of Adelaide, seems to epitomise it. The texture of the shot's light and shade, the carpet of pine needles and the organic hues, create an appealing mosaic that underlines the environment in which life can flourish: harsh and exposed, but then, that's a pine tree's place in the world. Fuji FinePix S5600, automatic. Afternoon sun, May, 2008. Photo by Mike.