Converging Reflections

Anywhere there’s water, there are reflections, and Playford Lake, at Belair National Park, is a place one can photograph over and over, as the changing weather and differing times of day and year conspire to make the precise nature of the pictures different every time. I took this one on a fairly blah day, May 9^th, 2023, an expedition that took us a few interesting places in the Hills region. The weather had been cloudy and the light soft until the sun broke through at this point, and I was able to grab some studies with far more substance—better colour and contrast, with defined shadows and, above all, reflections. These are the trees on the small island in Playford Lake, a haven for waterbirds, and surely one of the most-photographed islets of its sort. Minimal enhancements, via Irfanview. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Pastel Skies

Been very busy and two weeks have gone by since I posted—so this will be a two-post day. First up, one of these shots you just have to be there to get—this is part of a sequence of images taken out the window at my side on the last leg of my journey home in 2010, capturing the changing tones of the sky and light on the aircraft as the sun came up The sun was rising on the other side of the plane, but I got to see the delicate graduated colours in the sky. Luckily, the temperature and humidity conditions conspired to give me a clean, ice-free window at this point. The view is over the starboard wing of an Airbus A-330, the QANTAS plane Noosa, heading into Adelaide on November 17^th of that year. The frame is almost exactly as it came off the camera. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Blue and Gold—A Whitby Twilight

 

This is a longer view toward the Gothic church in Skinner Street, Whitby (I posted a close up almost exactly a year ago, “Cold Stone, Warm Light,” on July 20^th, 2023) which I captured around November 6^th, 2010, during an afternoon and early evening stroll through the quaint seaside town on the Yorkshire coast. The sun never rises very high at that time of year, so time of day is often difficult to pick from a photograph. This was probably not much after 4 in the afternoon, but the streets are filled with shadow, very blue against the golden light catching the upper parts of the church. It’s a magical place and a magical time of year, just after Guy Fawkes’ Night, when autumn slides quickly into winter. I remember having a drink at The Granby Freehouse, at right of the picture, still a very traditional pub at that time—I’m not sure if it has succumbed to development and updating in the 14 hears since. I set a scene in my first vampire story right there in that street (appearing soon in an anthology with Hiraeth Books!) Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Colour Therapy 3

Blue sea, green grass, perfect compliments in a pallette of colours meant to bring tranquility. This is the view south toward Cape Jervis from the cliffs above Morgan’s Beach, in the south of the Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia, taken on July 21^st, 2017. That's Kangaroo Island on the horizon. I got a fair few interesting shots on that day, as the weather and sun angle were being kind. Simple composition—I let nature do the work. The frame was squared-up a touch with fine-rotation; contrast and colour were tweaked slightly. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

 

Colour Therapy 2

 

Following the theme of colour for its own artistic sake, here is a study of the trees at Mylor, South Australia, which I took on July 13^th, 2017. The sun was beautiful on the foliage, and while some trees were still showing their autumn reds so late in the season, these perennials were in their full winter green. The two shades of green against the blue sky made an irresistible melange of colour. This is the image just as it came from the camera. Fiji FinePix S6500 (one of my learning outings on this camera), automatic. Image by Mike.

Colour Therapy

A couple of days past the solstice of winter here in the Southern Hemisphere, things have been pretty cold—sunny days before rain is due, but some very cold nights. So at this time of year I thought it would be nice to post an absolute contrast, a spring photo . This blossom is on a tree in the front garden, frame grabbed on the 8^th of September, 2017. Basic tweaks only. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Roman Corner

I’m sure there’s a wealth of history about this exhibit at the Victoria and Albert Museum, South Kensington, London, but I think of it simply as ”Roman Corner.” One walks through here between one part of the classically-appointed museum and another, but this particular area recreates ancient times—the statue is probably original, and the marble probably all comes from Italy. If you look in the right direction for a moment, you could be two thousand years ago, in a well-to-do house of a lost civilisation. I took this photograph on November 1^st, 2010, my one and only (to date) visit to this amazing museum. Contrast and colour were increased a little, as was sharpness. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

 

Glittering Waters

The sun broke through and made merry with these fountains, so they were recorded from multiple perspectives. These are the fountains in Hyde Park, London, photographed on November 2^nd, 2010. This was my second day in England on that trip, and I took a walk through Hyde Park from the north side, down to the Albert Memorial and Hall, taking in the Serpentine, the sky mirrors, the Peter Pan statue and more. I have a few other frames from this batch that are well worth a look. Colour and contrast were tweaked—the day was generally overcast and fully embodied the different quality the light has in those latitudes at that time of year, such a marked contrast to here in Australia. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Depth Perspective

Here is an interesting telephoto depth compression. This is the Adelaide city centre seen at max zoom from the gardens of the Carrick Hill mansion in Springfield, above town, taken on January 25^th, 2023. It was a pleasant, warm afternoon, just right for a picnic in the grounds, and the gardens were wonderfully photogenic. Views out over the city and sea certainly underline why the well-to-do would choose to build up there. This shot was simple enough, it was the lineup of the foreground foliage and the nine kilometres-distant city towers that cried out to be captured. The image was squared-up using the fine rotation tool. Minor adjustment to contrast, colour and sharpness. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

Deceptively Mild

I only posted three images in May—I meant to do four, so I’ll make sure there’s at least five in June. This is the jetty at Brighton, South Australia, photographed on November 24^th, 2014. I’ve featured a frame or two from this shoot before, as the changeable conditions were most interesting. Looking north, it seemed like a perfect early summer day, and west, like this one, was still bright and clear. Looking into the south-west, a heavy weather front was moving in, creating dramatic iron greys behind the sunlit foreground. This is a simple snapshot, but the colour and vanishing point symmetry are pleasing, and the shoot is an ever-fresh reminder of a day nearly a decade ago. Minor adjustment to contrast, colour and sharpness. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

In the Garden of Calm

This is another frame from Himeji Garden, Adelaide, South Australia, which I captured on October 20^th, 2016, when I took a day in town with my sister in law, on a visit Down Under. Nothing clever from a photographic aspect here other than composition perhaps—just a beautiful place that’s always so nice to see. Minimal enhancement. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.

River Frontage

Here’s a deceptively simple image that’s part luck, part skill. A reflex shot—the scene presented itself and I grabbed it—from the window of a train on Tuesday, November 16^th, 2010, on my journey south from Sunderland to London, to head back to Australia. This is maybe 90 minutes after I got the pics of Durham Cathedral through the haze, and several hours before I framed up the neon lighting at Heathrow Airport (see older posts). The train ran through considerable fog, through towns, past great steam-belching power stations, and by the time I was around the latitudes of Birmingham, the weather cleared to sun and blue sky. This is the River Nene, where it flows through Peterborough, and I managed to catch it through a clean patch of window, with the sun angle right for the scene and not to make every speck of dirt on the glass flare. Some adjustments were done—it was squared-up using custom rotation, and the contrast and colour were tweaked just a little. Fuji FinePix S5600. Image by Mike.