Sweet, delicious pineapples and the Glasshouse Mountains on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland.

Posted on May 31, 2017 by Andrew McInnes Photography

Fresh locally grown pineapples on the Sunshine Coast, Queensland = DELICIOUS.

This series of photos (the first three) includes a pre-dusk image, then a blue-hour image including light-painting, then a startrail and light-painting image.

Pineapples 2AM-004190
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Glasshouse Mountains 2AM 4405_16_18_HDR
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Glasshouse Mountains 2AM 4418-4532_stack
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Pineapple 2AM-008595
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Pineapple 2AM-008599
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Pineapple 2AM-008600
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Pineapples 2AM-8607-8612_stack
©Andrew McInnes. All Rights Reserved.

Cheers 🙂

Springsure, Queensland – including a light-painting episode.

Posted on November 11, 2015 by Andrew McInnes Photography

This is overlooking Virgin Rock and the town of Springsure in the Central Highlands Region of Queensland, Australia – as seen from Minerva Hills National Park. As is my want, I hiked in a few hours too early with all the required equipment and froze my bum off, waiting for dusk’s blue hour and the town lights to be on, in order to light-paint this scene…

This is the “before” image, taken on iPhone 5:

Springsure 2AM-000137 © Andrew McInnes

And this is the subsequent light-painting image.

Springsure 2AM 8300-8301 stack © Andrew McInnes

The remaining images here are different views of Mount Zamia escarpment, incorporating Virgin Rock:

Springsure 2AM 8353-8355 Panorama © Andrew McInnes

This is a light-painting of the entrance to Springsure Golf Club.

Springsure 2AM-008319 © Andrew McInnes

For the following shots it was 1 degree C, and silly me, I was out photographing in thongs (i.e. Flip flops, not the underwear variety), light summer fishing pants, t-shirt and an old hoodie! Brrr.
On the left is Virgin Rock – a feature of the Mount Zamia escarpment.

The following two images are essentially very similar compositions, but were taken 50 minutes apart.
different light = different feel.

Springsure 2AM-008332 © Andrew McInnes

Springsure 2AM-008359 © Andrew McInnes

Hope you enjoyed a brief glimpse of this beautiful area of Queensland.

Cheers.

“OMG – Mine Your Food Bowl?” Open-cut coal mines on the Liverpool Plains?

Posted on April 22, 2015 by Andrew McInnes Photography

I recently conducted a 36 hour reconnaissance drive up to Breeza and Caroona on the Liverpool Plains area of NSW to examine the area where several open-cut coal mines have been proposed – at least one of which, the Shenhua Watermark mine, is foreign-owned. The Liverpool Plains a highly productive region of Australia with vast acres in production of barley, chickpeas, faba beans, sorghum, sunflowers, soybeans, maize, wheat and cotton, plus grazing of beef cattle and sheep. I concur with the protesters slogan of “Wrong mine, wrong place.”

On the drive up I hoped to photograph the extensive raping and scarring of the land through the Hunter Valley but opportunities are not prevalent from the roadside due to significant concealing of operations and the resultant ramifications. I am not against mining, per se, however I do have issues with “the commons” being over-extracted for the profits of a few whilst the landholder has little recompense for the invasion, and the people of this nation see very little direct financial benefits.

The following two signs are in close proximity, located alongside the Kamilaroi Hwy, near Breeza.

Should they be able to mine this…

and turn it into this?

Here is a warning sign to the public (the same public who paid for the road) that as a result of mining activity in the Hunter Valley the public infrastructure is likely compromised…

Let’s Lock the Gate “to protect our common heritage – our land, water and communities – from unsafe or inappropriate mining for coal seam gas and other fossil fuels.”

To wrap this blog-post up here are several images capturing a very small portion of the scenery, productivity, and lifestyle of this magnificent agricultural region. I am very grateful to the property owners for their time and the access to their properties.

These first four images were captured as I arrived just prior to dusk at “Rossmar Park” near Caroona.

The next morning, along Coonabarabran Rd, near Caroona.

“Breeza Station” – Breeza.

“Drayton” – Breeza

Cheers 🙂

Posting #3 of my road trip from Fremantle to Kununurra, Western Australia.

Posted on July 5, 2014 by Andrew McInnes Photography

This post contains images from my express visit to Coral Bay and Exmouth, Western Australia.

Ah, the tropics 🙂

These next three images are from Coral Bay – a stunning and simple place.

The front of the image is shallow water over a sand substrate; this then abruptly drops off into a deepish lagoon which is protected by Ningaloo Reef (Australia’s “other” reef) in the background. © 2014 Andrew McInnes.

Unfortunately I only spent about 8 hours in Exmouth which is nowhere near sufficient. Nevertheless, here are some scenes of this fascinating area.

A light-painting of the retired (non-functioning) Vlamingh Head Lighthouse – Exmouth. The evening air was thick with moisture from the Indian Ocean as it pounded Ningaloo Reef so I thought I’d make an image to suggest how the light from the lighthouse may have appeared to mariners of yore. During the 30 second exposure I mimicked a beam of light from the lighthouse by aiming my spotlight on the structure for a few seconds, allowing the moisture in the air to appear as a beam.
This image includes the Southern Cross (and pointers), along with a portion of the Milky Way.

Vlamingh-Head-Lighthouse---Exmouth-2AM-002554

Vlamingh-Head-Lighthouse---Exmouth-2AM_no-base-image_lighten_startrails_b

Star trails caress the retired (non-functioning) Vlamingh Head Lighthouse – Exmouth, on a blustery and balmy autumn night. This is a stacked image consisting of 61 images (each image f4 for 30 seconds at ISO 800). © 2014 Andrew McInnes.

More posts from this road trip to follow this.

Posting #1 of my road trip from Fremantle to Kununurra, Western Australia.

Posted on July 2, 2014 by Andrew McInnes Photography

I recently embarked on what turned out to be a quite a drive with the purpose of visiting an old mate from my teenage years whom I have not seen for more than 20 years! My old vehicle (1984 Toyota Hilux diesel) logged 9,193 km (5,712 miles) doing my return trip from Fremantle – Kununurra – Fremantle, Western Australia.

With an esky full of water and assorted sandwich-construction material, plus spare diesel, oil, etc., I essentially drove until it was time to find a bush-camp for the night. I’d awake early and continue northward, repeating as required until I arrived at Kununurra.

Subsequent blog postings will present more images from the trip to the north of this bloody big state.
Theses images document my travels up and back – I hope you will find them appealing.

It isn’t long until these emblematic signs present themselves, with varying fauna presented.

Having previously visited and photographed The Pinnacles (click here to view these) at Nambung National Park, near Cervantes, I chose to revisit and shoot more images from this amazing ‘moonscape’ before moving on and finding a place to camp for the night.

This leaning tree is but one of many around the Greenough area. These River Gum/eucalyptus trees (Eucalyptus camaldulensis) have horizontal trunks due to exposure to strong and near-continuous southerly winds.

Should you find yourself anywhere near Geraldton or Walkaway, I thoroughly recommend a visit to Ellendale Pool, be it for a day trip or a place to camp – as I did for an evening.

Lovely spot to set up a caravan!

The ubiquitous and raucous Little Corella

Hope you enjoyed the early portion of my trip, if vicariously 🙂

More images from the trip to follow soon.

Cheers,

Andrew

Experimenting with steel-wool in photography – plus a Jeep Wrangler.

Posted on July 2, 2013 by Andrew McInnes Photography

Last weekend I went with a mate to San Luis Pass, Galveston, Texas to experiment with molten steel as an element/feature in photo’s, and ended up combining formed steel in the image too 🙂

We had a blast experimenting with this – thanks to Jeremy Caton for his self-sacrificing work “spinning the fire” (his hands are all torn up from the rotating cable – there will be gloves next time). NOTE: The use of this steel-wool technique requires locations that will not be conducive to ignition and subsequent fire!

As this was the first time either of us had tried this technique I have included the initial “practice” images – practice for Jeremy with the steel-wool, and practice for me as I figured the required metering for this molten steel. The final image is the result of the shoot.

Steel-wool experiments 2AM-116079
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 5 seconds at ISO 100.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Steel-wool experiments 2AM-116083
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f11 for 13 seconds at ISO 100.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Steel-wool experiments 2AM-116091
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f8 for 30 seconds at ISO 400.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Jeep-Wrangler-and-Steel-wool-2AM-116085-1106087_stacked

Jeep-Wrangler-and-Steel-wool-2AM-116085-1106087
Three image stack.
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. ISO 400.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Same scene, different interpretation – Garner State Park, TX.

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Andrew McInnes Photography

I recently traveled to the beautiful Garner State Park, Texas to photograph night shots which were to include light-painting.

This blog contains two images; though they were the exact same composition, and both taken after twilight, these are two very different images.

The first image is your “standard” light-painting and was taken after humanly visible light had vanished:

Garner State Park 2AM-115918
A single capture with light-painting.
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f5.6 for 40 seconds at ISO 1600.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

The second image also includes light-painting, and the process of capturing this image was started about 10 minutes after the photo above. However, this second image is a “stacked” image – I took 61 photographs, the first of which was the light-painting on the trees and “Old Baldy” then a further 60 images were taken without any light-painting (the last image is a “blank” which helps reduce the digital noise). Total exposure time equates to a little over 40 minutes. Each image had the exact settings of the first photo posted (above) and I compiled them using software that is dedicated to stacking images.

Garner-State-Park-2AM-115920-115980_stackedImage2
61 image stack for a total exposure time of ~40 minutes.
Each frame/picture had the following settings:
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f5.6 for 40 seconds at ISO 1600.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

I could have (and should have) taken a single, 40 minute long-exposure image as this would also have a slightly different interpretation of the scene. That longer exposure would have had more digital noise but smoother star-trails.

So from the same scene and the same composition we can get multiple interpretations/photographs by using different photographic techniques.

Hope you enjoyed these images 🙂

I have previously posted blogs showing this location (Garner State Park, Texas) in Fall color:

https://2amphotography.wordpress.com/2011/11/09/a-wet-and-colorful-weekend-near-utopia-tx/

https://2amphotography.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/fall-rotation-thanksgiving-2011-garner-state-park-tx/

A very brief trip to the Texas panhandle – Palo Duro Canyon, Cadillac Ranch, and Wind Turbines.

Posted on March 19, 2013 by Andrew McInnes Photography

The Texas panhandle is a fascinating region and I spend too little time there unfortunately. Recently I fit in a very quick trip to recharge. Here are a few images from that trip.

Prints of my images are available if you click on the Licensing/Purchasing images tab on this blog or click this link: https://2amphotography.wordpress.com/licensingpurchasing-images/

All images Copyright Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography.

Wind Turbine 2AM-114791
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f5.6 for 1/5 second at ISO 1600.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Cadillac Ranch 2AM-114850
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f22 for 1/2 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Hoodoo at Capital Peak - Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114814_7D_blog

Hoodoo at Capital Peak – Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114814
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f11 for 1/800 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Capital Peak - Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114896_7D_blog

Capital Peak – Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114896
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/13 second at ISO 100.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Capital Peak - Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114897_7D_blog

Capital Peak – Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114897
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/13 second at ISO 100.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Golden-fronted Woodpecker 2AM-30656_30D_blog

Golden-fronted Woodpecker 2AM-30656
Canon 30D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens and Tamron 1.4x teleconverter. f5.6 for 1/320 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

White-winged Dove 2AM-30604
Canon 30D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens and Tamron 1.4x teleconverter. f5.6 for 1/160 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

The Lighthouse - Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114886_7D_blog

The Lighthouse – Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114886
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f22 for 1/250 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Hoodoo at Capital Peak - Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114844_7D_blog

Hoodoo at Capital Peak – Palo Duro Canyon 2AM-114844
A light-painting.
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f8 for 30 seconds at ISO 1600.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

That is the end of this little adventure. Thanks for visiting!

Light-painting: before-and-after shots in West Texas.

Posted on February 20, 2013 by Andrew McInnes Photography

I have a fondness for photographing so-called “light-paintings” and sometimes they are the only keeper shots I return with if the available light doesn’t have the magic quality. Here are two different scenes illustrating why sometimes a light-painting can bring an otherwise flat scene to life. (NOTE: for these particular images the moon was in its first quarter and therefore contributed to the overall scene – I prefer no moon for these shots but sometimes my free time doesn’t align with those preferences).

DISCLAIMER: In no way do I present myself as an expert on this technique – or anything photographic. Rather, I present these images and technique to illustrate how I capture light-painting images. Hope you enjoy 🙂

This first pair of images of boulders (1a and 1b) were taken roadside – I desperately wanted to shoot this from the private ranch on which they are located but was denied permission. Nonetheless, I found the subject/scene sufficiently interesting and returned and found this composition, without trespassing 🙂

The second pair of images (2a and 2b) were taken later the same evening as the pair above.

Image #1a:

A ‘blank’ shot (no light-painting) to determine the exposure I wanted for the sky and to check the composition. VERY ordinary!

Rockpile Ranch 2AM-114640_7D
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f5.6 for 25 seconds at ISO 3200.
© Andrew and Allison McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

Image #1b:

Resultant light-painting image.

Rockpile Ranch 2AM-114641_7D
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f4 for 30 seconds at ISO 1600.
© Andrew and Allison McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.

For the fence posts ‘painting’ I used a MAG-LITE ® with a home-made snoot to reduce light spill on the surrounds – approximately 3 seconds of light-painting. The boulders were ‘painted’ for approximately 27 seconds using a Brinkmann Q-Beam ® 3 million candlepower spotlight (rechargeable and inexpensive at approximately $40). This image was taken at 7:50 PM. Color temperature for 1a and 1b was 4000.

Image #2a:

A ‘blank’ shot (no light-painting) to determine the exposure I wanted for the sky and to check the composition. As such no light was added to the scene. Again, VERY ordinary!

Davis Mountains State Park 2AM-114643_7D_2a

Image #2b:

Resultant light-painting image.

Davis Mountains State Park 2AM-114647_7D_2b

After the ‘blank’ shot I made a slight adjustment to the composition to reduce foreground and increase sky/stars. For the external ‘painting’ I used a MAG-LITE ® with a home-made snoot to reduce light spill on the surrounds – approximately 25 seconds of light-painting. The interior was ‘painted’ for approximately 2 seconds using quick pulses from a Brinkmann Q-Beam ®. This light was used because of its inherent warm color, to simulate the glow from a fire. This large light is what I typically use when the subject is not immediately proximate. This image was taken at 9:20 PM. Color temperature for images 2a and 2b was 3200.

Any comments or thoughts are appreciated. My appreciation to Ken Zoller for his locations “guiding” by cell-phone 😉

I am soon to post a photo-blog that highlights some of my light-paintings – please stay posted 🙂

Margaret River Region – Australia’s South West

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Andrew McInnes Photography

A region of diversity famous for its premium wines and stunning wineries, picturesque rural vistas, stunning forests, spectacular coast with both tranquil beaches and world-class surfing, plus fantastic views and proximity to the southward migration of humpback and other whales. Welcome to the Margaret River Region of Australia’s South West.

This is Canal Rocks under heavy swell.

A lovely “chute” with abundant epiphytes – an offshoot of the “canal”.

The view as you descend to Canal Rocks.

A lovely drive through a karri forest.

Boranup Karri Forest.

The now ruined Hamelin Bay Jetty was built in 1882 to service the local timber mills.

Proximal to the jetty ruins is a small public boat ramp.

This is the other portion of Hamelin Bay.

If you are lucky (and perhaps brave), you might be fortunate enough to have the local stingrays pay you a visit – as they did here to my lovely wife. Although massive, these are “gentle” creatures – the worst you may experience is them nom-nomming (chewing) on your toes 🙂

Smooth Stingray - Hamelin Bay 2AM-113560_7D

The “business end” of a massive ray (and another coming in from the back).

Smooth Stingray - Hamelin Bay 2AM-113530_7D_Facebook

Sugarloaf Rock, Cape Naturaliste.

Injidup Point, not far from the mouth of the Margaret River.

Injidup Point.

Dune and clouds at Moses Rocks.

Yallingup, a world famous surf-break which was quite that day, at dusk just before we nestled among the boulders to enjoy a quite beverage and hors d’oeuvres – magical.

A little color and softness among the colorful rocks at Yallingup.

Meelup Beach, a glorious place to take a dip.

Picnic table with a view – Meelup Beach.

Castle Rock, just around the point from Meelup Beach. Climbing the point nearby allows for unfettered views of Geographe Bay and the Indian Ocean.

Same feature, different view/feel.

A ketch at anchor in the tranquility afforded by Geographe Bay – viewed from “whale lookout” at Castle Rock.

This lovely tranquil beach with its clear and clean water also has portions dotted with boulders, some of which are partially submerged.

More rocks, first by daylight, then after dusk – with light added by flashlight.

Hues of blue – a light-painting.

Dusk at Castle Rock.

Ah, the primary image I originally went to Castle Rock for: A light painting with stars and meteorite.
I had to rock-hop in a mad dash once I set the self timer for the exposure in order to position myself such that the shadows/light source were creating the feel I wanted. Thankfully no falls or broken ankles!

Andrew McInnes Photography

Imagery © Andrew McInnes

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