“Hannah’s View” from Kings Park

I took this photo (it’s actually a series of 6 photos stitched together) from the Lotterywest Federation Walkway in the tree tops of Kings Park last week when we were showing my Son’s girlfriend around. As it was her first trip to Kings Park I have named this image “Hannah’s View” after her 🙂

Hannah’s View, Kings Park, Perth (PCP1.4-V1-PH1)

What really grabbed me about this image is just how well it sums up life in Perth. Starting with the iconic Eucalyptus (or Gum) trees on the slopes of Mount Eliza showing the natural beauty that is all around Perth and the stunning blue skies with puffy white clouds that we can get all year round (this was taken in the middle of winter).

New Image – Green and Gold

This image is another one from the archives, taken way back in 2010 at John Forrest National Park up in the beautiful Perth Hills.

Green and Gold, John Forrest National Park, Mundaring (YPW2.19-V1-TH1)

The photo was taken outside the John Forrest Tavern where a group of roos we’re lazing about under the cover of the trees & bushes.

This guy obviously got a bit nosy about me taking so many photos so he stuck his head around the blanket of golden leaves hanging down from one of the trees and gave me a perfect view with those gorgeous gold & green colours from the late afternoon sun 🙂

A Walk Around Fremantle – The Bakers Garden

This was the final photo I took on my Walk Around Fremantle as we were heading back to the car park and it just goes to show that you never know what you’ll find in the back streets of Freo 🙂

Bakers Garden, Bread in Common, Fremantle (FCV1.4-V1-TV1)

We were walking along Pakenham Street when I saw what looked like a mini garden area on the side of the road. Mostly surrounded by commercial buildings this scene looked surreal with benches, lots of beautiful greenery and quaint bike stands at either end.

As we had a very hot and mostly patient teenager in tow I barely had time to grab a few shots as we walked past and it was only after a bit of searching on Google maps that I worked out exactly what this place was.

“Bread in Common” is a kitchen bakery which has only been in operation for the last year or so, in fact Google Street View still shows this building up for sale and looking very different. There was no red brick, no garden, just a boring old rendered workshop. Now this place looks amazing, they’ve done a great job renovating the building and turning it into a very successful cafe / bakery and they’re getting some great write-ups n Urban Spoon too. Urban Walkabout have a nice article about them here if you’re interested in reading more about them.

From what I’ve read & seen we will certainly be going back to “Bread in Common” with a bit more time on our hands to try out their menu 😎

For this image, as with all the images in this series, I have used a HDR style with some selective colour masking & local contrast adjustments to create a really punchy image with a bit of character, let me know what you think 🙂

If you’re looking for “Bread in Common” you’ll find them at this Google Map location, just bear in mind that the building looks completely different from the Street View.

A Walk Around Fremantle – The Railway Station

What stroll around Fremantle wouldn’t be complete without a visit to the historic railway station.

“Brick & Stone”, Fremantle Railway Station, Fremantle (FCV1.3-V1-TH1)

This building really is a beautiful example of early 1900’s architecture, though it’s very sad that the original gardens outside the front entrance have disappeared in favour of a parking & road system, but I suppose that’s progress for you.

The Fremantle Railway Station was originally constructed in 1881 on a different site and was rebuilt in it’s current location in 1907 to provide better access to Fremantle Port. Constructed from Donnybrook Stone (as used in Parliament House) & red brick the station is a fine example of Federation Free Classical architecture in Australia. The station building is currently undergoing restoration by Colgan Industries Stonemasons.

The building has a very contrasting look between the bright red brick and subdued limestone colours which I have accentuated slightly to give the image a real pop, especially when combined with the blue sky above. I have continued my use of HDR techniques that my other “A Walk Around Fremantle” images used.

I ‘ve had so much fun with this “A Walk Around Fremantle” series that I will be looking for another cool spot to stroll around soon 🙂

A Walk Around Fremantle – Cool Money

This is the third image in my “Walk Around Fremantle” series.

I must say I have always loved Fremantle but haven’t spent much time taking photos there and I’m just loving what I got out of 1 afternoons stroll around the town. Freo is just full of history, culture & quirkyness and the later is what this image is all about.

We had lunch at Little Creatures and I just couldn’t walk past this ATM snugly squeezed into an old fridge sat right next to the fire hose without taking a few snaps.

The amount of bright red paint in one area was just so striking and the whole scene was as quirky as you can get.

Again I used the HDR technique to add a bit of a grungy feel and get the image to pop a little and then droped a 75% B&W filter over the top to de-emphasise everything but the reds.

The images I’ve been getting from this Freo trip are not my usual style of natural landscapes & wildlife but I’m really enjoying doing something a bit different.

Let me know what you think …

A Walk Around Fremantle – Whalers’ Tunnel

My second image from our walk around Freo is of the eastern entrance to the Whalers’ Tunnel under the Round House at Arthur’s Head.

The Whalers’ Tunnel was built by the  Fremantle Whaling Company in 1837 to transport goods between the original port at Bathers Beach & the town at Arthur’s Head. It was the first tunnel built in Western Australia and runs directly below the Roundhouse (which is the oldest remaining building in Western Australia). Whalers’ Tunnel is the only remaining structure of the whaling station.

I again used an HDR approach to editing this image as it really brought out the detail in the brick work & wrought iron 🙂

If you look really closely you can just make out the light shining off the old piano towards the other end of the tunnel!

If you want to know where Whalers’ Tunnnel is in Fremantle then check out this Google Map

 

A Walk Around Fremantle

Yesterday was our first day back at work after the Chrismas & New Year break and what better way to spend it than strolling around the Historic City of Fremantle taking snaps & enjoying the beautiful Western Australian weather 😎

We started of with lunch at Little Creatures where we took a look at Sandra Herd’s amazing exhibition from her recent trip around the world, if you find yourself in Freo then make sure you check it out.

We didn’t cover all of Freo by any means, the 39 degree weather didn’t make walking too far such a great idea but I did get a few interesting images which I’ll share over the next few days.

The first image that grabbed my eye was this one:

This shot was taken walking along Fleet Street from the ocean towards the Port Authority Building (which you can just see in the background), this view struck me because of the repeating geometrical patterns and the grungy industrial feel of the sheds. I also used to work in the Port Authority Building so getting that in the shot added a bit of a personal touch 😀

Grace Under Pressure!

Recently I was approached by a client to create a 60 inch canvas print of Joondalup Resort.

The client needed the print urgently and I had to capture the image as well as process, print & stretch it. They also wanted it mainly black and white with green and red colours highlighted around the image.

If Only Life Were This Simple

Last Friday Maggie and I went on a photo shoot to Carnac Island with a group of fellow photographers from around Perth. A big thanks to Mark Stothard for taking us out there on his boat 🙂

Sadly for Mark he was the only sailor amongst us and we sure did everything we could to cause him a few dramas 😉 but he was up to the task and proved why he is qualified to run a business like the True North

This is the first image release from that trip which, to me, represents how simple life should be … Sadly life is very rarely simple but walking on the beach on Carnac Island surrounded by Sea Lions certainly gave us a bit of a release from the complicated lives we lead 😀

Dave’s Print of the Month for July 2011

This is the second release for my new Print of the Month Special Collection. The image is a new release taken earlier this year at Mindarie Marina during another of our spectacular Western Australian sunsets.

My Prints of the month are available at a discounted rate (25% off) and include a special Print of the Month Certificate of Authenticity and free shipping within Australia.

More Information
All Prints of the Month are available as a Fine Art Glossy Print or Coated Canvas at our Studio size, which means a 10″ x 30″ print or canvas for an panoramic aspect such as this one.

My Print of the Month represents incredible value, especially during their month of release. More information about this Print of the Month can be found on my web site along with my personal comments on this image and links to purchase directly through PayPal with a credit card.

Of course if you prefer the more personal approach you are more than welcome to call or email us to arrange or discuss your investment.

New Image – “Love My Tree”

Getting good pictures of Koalas can be tricky, they sleep all day and when they do something exciting you can guarantee they will wait till you look the other way first …

But you’ve got to love em, they’re just so cute 🙂

The challenge is to combine good composition with a bit of character and some great colours, if you can look at the image and see a story unfolding then you’re starting to get there.

In this image the sun was just starting to take on its “magic” golden quality as it started to set and this guy just sat there in the crook of the tree oblivious to the world around him and hugging his tree.

I just love watching wildlife like this guy. Is he dreaming? Is he aware that I’m taking a picture of him and ignoring me? What is important in a Koalas life?

Well, one thing is for sure this guy certainly loves his tree 🙂

Are you a Koala lover too?
You can have this guy hanging on your wall, click here to visit our web site and purchase a Fine Art Print or Canvas that will love you back for the rest of your life …

New Image – Natural Chaos

Here’s another image I overlooked from several years back. What really struck me when I came across this image again was the complete lack of any real patterns, and the total chaos of the water being blown from the top of the wave by the strong winds.

In fact it’s so chaotic I find it mesmerising and the contrast of the beautiful shades of green, blue and white just add to that chaos.

It’s just one of those images I can sit and stare at and appreciate the chaotic nature of the world around us and how little control we really have over our lives.

I love images that make me think, and this one makes me appreciate what I have in this chaotic world of ours. It reminds me to make the most of life while I can and help others do the same.

No doubt this image will invoke different emotions in different people, that’s the great thing about art it’s objective and it’s never bad, just different 🙂

New Image Releases – Fun in the Dunes

These images are from our Australia Day trip to Lancelin, they show the sand boarders and motor bikers having a blast at opposite ends of the what is otherwise a very large pristine sand dune.

The images are actually the two ends of a large stitched image of the whole dune but I thought they would work better as a companion pair in a panoramic format though they could equally be printed as a very wide narrow single print.

All of our images are available for purchase as Fine Art Canvases or Prints through our web site, click the images above for more information.

Technical Details (LCP1.1): Canon 5D Mark II, 6 Image Stitch, Canon 17-40mm f4L USM @ 40mm, hand held, 1/320 sec, f11, ISO 100. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

New Fine Art Image Release – “The Green City”

Just before Christmas we received a request for a daytime photo of Perth City which prompted me to look back at some shots I’d taken from Kings Park a while back. This was the image that was chosen and within a week we had another order for the same image, I guess you just can’t have too many pictures of the most beautiful city in the world 🙂

All of our images are available for purchase as Fine Art Canvases or Prints through our web site, click the image above for more information.

This image really shows the just how clean and natural Perth City still is, we are so lucky to be living in a part of the world still unpolluted by the destructive hand of man.

Lets hope we can keep it this way for many years to come 😎

Technical Details (KPP1.1): Canon 5D, 2 Image Stitch, Canon 17-40mm f4L USM @ 17mm, tripod mounted, 1/100 sec, f11, ISO 100. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

New Release – “Hidden Fires”

This new release is from a set of shots I took from the beach just north of Mindarie Marina.

The cloud formations were incredible and there were enough breaks in the clouds to let some of that fiery orange sunset through.

The whole scene reminded me of some great furnace burning in the sky with the clouds majestically drifting across the opening, hence the name “Hidden Fires”.

Technical Details (MCP1.8): Canon 5D Mark II, 4 Image Stitch, Canon 70-200mm f4L IS USM @ 144mm, tripod mounted, 0.4 sec, f20, ISO 50. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Summer Nights – Hillarys Boat Harbour

This is a new Fine Art Print release for our Landscape Photography gallery from a photo shoot back in February 2010. It was one of those spectacular Perth summer evenings in the perfect location. Hillarys is a such a buzz of activity in the Summer and it has everything you could want from a seaside destination – beach, cafes & restaurants, bars, shops, and that exotic marina feeling.

On this particular evening I was just wandering around the harbour as the Saturday Markets came to a close. There were just enough clouds in the sky to make it interesting and the sun was just starting to hit the horizon and cast that incredible golden light on the beach and fairground. The clouds had a just a hint of colour from the sunset and the scene was just so peaceful.

Trouble is I really couldn’t decide on the best crop to use. The final image is a from a 3 image stitch so I had enough pixels to play around a bit but I wanted to get enough clouds in the image to see the incredible cloud structure, keep the foreground tree on the right and rocks down the bottom whist maintaining a 3:1 ratio.

As it was not possible to keep all these elements in the one image I decided to release 2 different crops as you can see here.

I’m still not sure which one I prefer …

Technical Details (HHP1.10): Canon 5D Mark II, 3 Image Stitch, Canon 17-40mm f4L USM @ 17mm, tripod mounted, 1/60 sec, f11, ISO 400. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Pet Cat Portrait & Fine Art Print

I don’t do a lot of pet portraits but I could resist this shot of our pet cat “Mist”. He was climbing a tree in our front yard and I caught him peering round the branch and looking straight at me.

This image reminds me a little of a print I have of one of Jim Brandenburg’s wolves titled “Brother Wolf”, of course it’s not a wolf nor was it taken in the Alaskan wilderness but we all have to start somewhere 🙂

I have created two versions of this image, one with a slight soft focus effect and one in black and white (except for those yellow eyes) with a heavy white vignette. The black and white one (see above) is definitely my favourite, those eyes just look straight into your soul.

Mist is a real enigma as a cat, he is incredibly shy and skittish yet once you get his trust he is very affectionate. My son and Mist have very special relationship, for such a shy cat he took to Paul even as a young kitten and they are inseparable now.

We also have a 20 month old Border Collie cross (called Saber) who was introduced to the cats as a puppy and Mist has also formed an amazing relationship with Saber. For such a shy cat he will allow Saber to do almost anything to him without a worry in the world whist Shadow (Mists much braver and more forward brother) has Saber in constant fear of another nose swipe 😀

Technical Details (NPP1.1 & NPP1.2): Canon 5D, Single Shot, Canon 70-200mm f4L IS USM @ 17mm, handheld, 1/400 sec, f4.5, ISO 400. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Click on the image to see a larger version or make a purchase.

White Thunder ~ A Series of Wave Images

Looks like I’m on a roll with wave images (pun intended, sorry).

It’s definitely the time of year for those big rolling waves so I ‘ve been down to Mindarie Beach getting some new images (and getting wet).

This is a series of 4 images I took recently down at the beach Beach of a wave breaking on the shallow rocks near where the surfers meet.

I was going to put a dark vignette around the images but the white just seemed to complement the white of the surf and the aqua colours in the water.

Although these images are fairly similar I love how they portray the motion and changes in the shape of the wave as it breaks on the rocks.

Technical Details (IOW1.1 to 1.4): Canon 5D Mark II, Single Shot, Canon 70-200mm f4L IS USM @ 200mm, handheld, 1/1250th sec, f9, ISO 400. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Click on an image to see a larger version or make a purchase.

Rolling Waves – Bunker Bay

I’m continuously getting requests for more wave pictures, lets face it who doesn’t appreciate the power and tranquility or the ocean 😎

Here’s are a couple of new images from a trip back in 2008 to Bunker Bay in South Western Australia.

Technical Details (BBW1.3): Canon 5D, Single Shot, Canon 17-40mm f4L USM @ 40mm, handheld, 1/200th sec, f13, ISO 100. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Technical Details (BBW1.4): Canon 5D, Single Shot, Canon 17-40mm f4L USM @ 40mm, handheld, 1/250th sec, f13, ISO 100. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 3 and Photoshop CS5.

Click on an image to see a larger version or make a purchase.

Solitude – New Image from Shark Bay

A lone Pelican, the sparkling ocean and the distant cliffs … the Natural World is a beautiful thing and something we should cherish.

This is another shot from our trip up the Coral Coast, taken from the beach at Monkey Mia as the sun was setting.

It’s going to take a while to get through all of these Coral Coast images but I can’t think of a better way to spend time in front of the computer 🙂

Technical Details (SBS1.1): Canon 5D mark II, Single Shot, Canon 70-200mm f4L IS USM @ 200mm, handheld, 1/800th sec, f9, ISO 200. Image processed in Adobe Lightroom 2 and Photoshop CS5.

Click on an image to see a larger version or make a purchase.