New 5D Mark II Christened

Well I finally did it, my new Canon 5D Mark II has arrived and it’s already giving me some great shots. I’ve been trying it out while walking the dog and getting some interesting shots with the weather we’ve been having recently. Ironically, the one thing I have failed to capture is any lightning, not that I haven’t been trying but it seems it’s just not meant to be.

I took this image last night on the way to the beach with wife, son and dog in tow. The orange glow in the sky was just spectacular and I only just got this shot in before the heavens opened up and well and truly soaked all of us along with my new camera. Needless to say the family were not impressed with getting drenched in the name of photography and the dog never got his walk but the camera seems to have survived without any problems and at least I got one good shot

I actually took a few more shots after this one without realising that there was a drop or two of water on the lens, oops.
Note to self: “When it’s raining so hard that even the dog is complaining there’s a good chance your lens is getting wet and it’s time to go home …”

Now, it’s time to go process some of that video this damn camera is making me take

P.S. A new firmware has just been released for the 5D Mark II allowing full manual control whilst taking movies.
As if I don’t have enough to do without having to learn all this new movie stuff too. If only I had a twin brother to do it for me …

Bunker Bay

I’m finally starting to get through some more images from my last trip down south. As we were staying at Bunker Bay I got some great opportunities to stroll along the beach at sunset and then stroll back in the serene darkness . You really can’t beat a walk on the beach just after the sun has set on a remote empty beach.

On our first night the sky was pretty clear of clouds so we took the opportunity to pay a visit to the bar and sample a few cocktails. After all if you’re going to stay at a resort it’s only polite say hi to the bar staff and enjoy the view

This image is from our second night and the sunset was spectacular. I walked all the way to the east end of the bay and was rewarded with some incredible skies as the sun set behind the tree line.

This image is a 3 shot stitch using my soon to be retired 5D and 70-200 (at 200mm). At 13secs the exposure has a lot of movement in it which really accentuates the clarity of the tree-line and rocks on the point.

I dare anyone to find the stitching lines in the water

Sunset over Sugarloaf Rock

We were down South staying at Bunker Bay again a week ago and we were rewarded with some beautiful sunsets. Almost every time I go down south the weather is dismal, but this time we had a great combination of blue skies and cloud cover.

This one was taken about 30 mins after the sun set and is a single shot image. I also took quite a few stitched images as the sun set behind the rock so hopefully there will be some nice big panoramas to come from those.

Perth from Kings Park

I was down at Kings Park last night after dropping off my sister-in-law at the airport and was lucky enough to capture a somewhat dramatic sunset after a day of rain and storms. The colours over the city were spectacular and there was even a bit of lightning in the Perth Hills.

This is one of the last pictures I took last night (no lightning in this one unfortunately) but still some dramatic colours in the sky. This one is just a 2 image stitch but I also have some 6 to 8 image stiches from earlier which I will post soon.

Stringybark Winery Bushfire Fundraiser for the Victorian Wildlife Carers

Stringybark Winery in the Chittering Valley are holding a fundraiser this Sunday Evening for the Victorian Wildlife Carers assisting in the rescue and rehabilitation effort in Victoria’s devastating bushfire areas.

Many locals have donated their time/services/products for this fundraiser. There will be a Raffle and Auctions on the night (including a framed print of one of our Blue Wrens and a hamper of chocolates from Chocolate Drops) as well as a Juke box, face painting and much more for the family to enjoy. There will also be a Sausage Sizzle and Counter Meals available with full bar facilities.

So if you have nothing to do on Sunday evening then pop up to Chittering Valley and have some fun whilst helping the Victorian Wildlife and their carers.

Stringybark Winery Fundraiser
2060 Chittering Road
Sunday 1st March 2009 6.30pm
Tel: (08) 9571 8069

Wildflowers

I thought I’d try something a bit different to landscapes, puppies and lambs so I’ve gone back to some of my Kings Park Wildflower shots from a few months ago.

The fields of Evelasting Daisies are so stunning and I think they lend themselves very well to a white border and a silver / white frame or just a large canvas.

New Assistant …

As of last Monday we have a new addition to our business/household, Saber is an 8 week old Border Collie cross who is too cute for his own good.

So far we’ve had 1 unexpected visit to the vet to discover that he has an intestinal bug which explains his ongoing stream of diarrhea since we picked him up. And so the vet bills begin

Saber has just started his intesive Puppy Training classes which will hopefully turn him into the perfect photographer’s assistant. I must say that puppies get it good, training seems to involve a continuous supply of yummy food making it’s way into a puppies mouth followed by lots of praise and a bit of playing with his new friends …

It really is “A Dog’s Life”

Smiley Moon

No doubt many of you saw the “Smiley Moon” on Monday night but for those of you that missed this extraordinary astonomical event here is a pic

As it happens I only saw it myself because a friend phoned up and told us about it (thanks John)

Now, what are the chances anyone will be interested in purchasing a Fine Art Print of this little masterpiece …

Margaret River

I was back down at Margaret River a few weeks ago staying at a friends place in Bushy Lakes. It’s a beautiful location with untold opportunities for photography and the two incredibly cute new born lambs next door gave me some great subject matter without even having to leave the property.

Managed to catch up with Christian Fletcher for a chat while I was there, though the conversation seemed to involve a lot of talk about the end of the world. I wonder if Christian knows something we don’t …

We also went to the Margaret River Show which was OK if you like farm equipment, bulls and show bags, otherwise not the most exciting part of the weekend. We did watch the sheepdog trials for a bit though which made it worthwhile

Over the weekend we also had lunch at Laurance Winery and Wills Domain Winery, both are superb locations offering a relaxing lunch in beautiful surroundings. It’s always nice to find places like these which offer such great customer service, something too many businesses lack these days.

Melbourne Cup at the Indi – Gallery Available

The Gallery for the Melbourne Cup party at the Indy is now available for viewing. If you would like to purchase images from the event here is a list of the formats available and prices.

Click here to go straight to the event gallery …