Morning surfers and a tumultuous dawn over Norries Head at Cabarita Beach, NSW.
Cheers 🙂
Morning surfers and a tumultuous dawn over Norries Head at Cabarita Beach, NSW.
Cheers 🙂
A serene winters day at Cabarita Beach on the Tweed Coast of NSW.
All images in this post are via UAV (drone). The first two images are multi-image panoramic stitches.
Cheers 🙂
Aerial and terrestrial images of Cabarita Beach, Norries Head, Hastings Point, and Cudgera Creek – on the Tweed Coast of NSW.
Hastings Point, NSW – where Cudgera Creek enters the sea after it’s sinuous meander.
A collection of images from Lake Kununurra, Lily Creek Lagoon, Ivanhoe Crossing, and the iconic Cockburn Ranges – all proximal to Kununurra, Western Australia.
A delightful boat ride up Lake Kununurra – the dog enjoyed the trip, especially the breeze in its face.
A couple of the numerous and delightful inlets along the way.
The exposed geology is fascinating and stunning.
The Kimberley region has numerous sites with indigenous rock art; this particular location is very near to Kununurra.
The view from the boat ramp on Lily Creek where we began and concluded this trip up Lake Kununurra.
Lily Creek Lagoon with ‘Sleeping Buddha’ in the background.
Off on a road trip now, just outside of Kununurra…
A couple of images of vehicles crossing a small creek on El Questro where we stopped off for a refreshing dip (swim).
Not far past El Questro, on the famed Gibb River Road, is the Cockburn Range which is adjacent to the iconic Pentecost River but the river was flowing too much for us to make a crossing. There was an unfortunate couple stranded during their attempt at crossing – their front axle fell into a deeply eroded hole resulting in a cracked oil-pan or something similar, necessitating a tow out of these croc-infested waters.
Having captured this late-afternoon image of a man fishing for barramundi with a live bait on a hand line at the fast-flowing Ivanhoe Crossing, Kununurra, I moved on to shoot other nearby compositions. This area is accessible for the numerous salties of the Ord River and is also thick with barramundi. Soon after I moved I saw this fisherman in a mighty tug-of-war battle that, with the aid of the deep and rapidly flowing water, soon had him precariously close to taking an involuntary bath! Ultimately he was saved the ignominy as his large gauge hook was straightened, thus losing whatever was on the end of the line!
The Ivanhoe Crossing is no longer open to vehicles.
The next blog posting will contain images from Marlgu Billabong and Wyndham.
Until then, cheers.
Ah, I arrived at my destination – Kununurra – after 9 days of driving and bush camping. Here are some images around the greater Kununurra area from the first day or so.
Not far short of Kununurra, and the scenery, topography, and geology changes (after leaving Halls Creek).
Assorted roadside grasses…
The fishing is fantastic in the Kimberley; this is a 1.14 meter Barramundi (released immediately after photo) caught on the lower Ord River.
The ubiquitous estaurine crocodiles (“Saltwater Crocodile”) necessitate care around the water.
Iconic Kimberley vistas…
If you have watched the movie “Australia” then you may recognise this geologic feature, known as ‘House Roof Hill’ – it is the backdrop to the fictional “Faraway Downs” homestead.
This image was captured very early on another glorious Kimberley morning.
The next image is “False House Roof Hill” – neighboring bluffs along the Ord River.
The April 2014 Lunar Eclipse occurred whilst I was in this area. The following image captures part of this eclipse over a Kimberley range.
Lake Argyle is Australia’s largest artificial lake (by volume). It is part of the Ord River Irrigation Scheme and is a sight to behold. Unfortunately these “roadside” images are all I managed to capture of this vast and beautiful feature – I must return and spend time above and on the lake!
Lake Argyle 2AM_3131-3134 panoramic. © 2014 Andrew McInnes.
An alternate view of the Ord River Dam – construction was completed in 1971.
Grass in seed along the dam wall – beautiful April conditions.
During my recent >9,000 km road trip highway vistas like this one routinely had me in awe of the scenic beauty of this wonderful land.
Oh, how I enjoy the tranquillity of a sleepy river and the Australian bush. This is the De Grey River and rail bridge just off the Great Northern Highway near Port Headland, Western Australia. I didn’t camp here but I did enjoy the respite as I stretched my legs during the long drive.
Travelling is full of surprises…
The ubiquitous road train: some transport livestock, some transport supplies, and for others, like this one, it is iron ore.
Common colours of the Pilbara – red, green, gold. Autumn flowers on a red dune. © 2014 Andrew McInnes.
Thanks for swinging by and I hope you enjoyed these photo’s of my travels.
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.
A mooring line and buoy – the cerulean water deepens rapidly here, making for fantastic swimming. © 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 Yardie Creek (Cape Range National Park) during dusk’s blue hour. © 2014 Andrew McInnes.
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.
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.
I recently undertook an express visit with my wife to visit friends who were staying in Halifax for a period. I only managed to get out and photograph on a few occasions but was enamored of the area. Magnificent vistas, abundant maritime history, so ripe with scenery and scenes; I would have thoroughly enjoyed more time exploring and photographing. Nevertheless, here is a sampling of images from the very few times I was able to go walkabout. I hope you enjoy!
This is the first image I captured – I love the posture, gait, and apparent enthusiasm of the youngster; the dog’s tail; and the fact that the father had a bright red sweater on (excellent for ‘pop’ of people out in nature).
Halifax 2AM-000802
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f4.5 for 1/800 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A chicane of sorts …
Halifax 2AM-000834
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f5.6 for 1/2000 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Although we witnessed some glorious fall color, it was the same old situation of “you should have seen it last week!” 🙂
the next two images include a birch tree – the bark and patterning thereof fascinated me.
Halifax 2AM-000851
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f8 for 1/800 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Halifax 2AM-000860
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f8 for 1/400 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Definitely much color still available around the area, even if the leaves had fallen.
Halifax 2AM-000887
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f4.5 for 1/1600 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Early in our visit our hosts took me out for a brief but wonderful excursion to Herring Cove. Although very overcast and gloomy, the light was lovely for scenes that didn’t include much, if any, sky. After this mini-hike it was time for lunch so we stopped in at “Now We’re Cookin’!” where I had the superb gastronomic pleasure of a dozen perfectly fried and ultra-delicious “Digby Clams.”
Here are a series of images from the Herring Cove Provincial Park Reserve from that visit:
I call this image “The Admiral” – hopefully you can deduce why 🙂 I captured one of our hosts overlooking a temporarily tranquil Atlantic Ocean – it was a fleeting opportunity to get the shot, so I did not have time to adjust the camera settings, hence the very slow shutter speed for a hand held shot. Thankfully I managed to be stable enough for a sharp image.
“The Admiral” – Herring Cove 2AM-000977
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/13 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Early into the gorgeous walk I found this scene and liked the various elements so much – hence this image to capture it 🙂
Herring Cove 2AM-000976
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/13 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Loved these rosehip berries!
Herring Cove 2AM-000982
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f4 for 1/100 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Herring Cove 2AM-001009
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/15 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Same general scene, different interpretation. My photographic mentor drummed into me to shoot and shoot and shoot a scene from numerous angles/interpretations, with a strict caveat that each composition/interpretation must be appealing to me, not just shooting a bunch and ‘hoping’ one of them will be ‘good’.
Herring Cove 2AM-001011
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/15 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A portion of the walking trail.
Herring Cove 2AM-001027
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/20 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
More of the meandering walking trail and a very typical scene of this splendid coast.
Herring Cove 2AM-001025
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/30 second at ISO 1000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
’twas a very blustery gloomy day and the smart one here (that would be me 🙂 ) decides to take a multi-hour exploratory walk around the Halifax waterfront to take in some of the history of this place. When I say it was blustery, it was really blowing! There is a bit of a tale from my home country that goes something like this: “Tie a brick onto a long piece of line and hang it so that it is free to swing. If the brick/string is vertical, there isn’t enough wind to go sailing; If the brick/string are horizontal, then perhaps there is a little too much wind for a sail; Anywhere in between = just right for a sail.” Well, the brick would have been darn near horizontal whilst I wandered around that particular day 😉
This block and blue line appealed to me as they hung and swung, suspended above the dark cold water. Hope you enjoy it too.
“Block and Blue” – Halifax 2AM-000914
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f8 for 1/160 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
I find the marine flora and fauna of cold water habitats fascinating, and Nova Scotia in early winter did not disappoint me.This image, and the mussel image following it, were taken on a bucking and rolling floating dock that was doing its non-level best to ensure that either I fell in the cold cold water, or dropped the camera into said water, or fail to get a sharp image of the subjects that were interesting me. I am very thankful that the 5D Mark III handles high ISO noise so bloody well!
Halifax 2AM-000931
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f8 for 1/40 second at ISO 3200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Halifax 2AM-000937
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f8 for 1/30 second at ISO 5000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Some scenes need capturing, despite the quality (or lack thereof) of available light; I thought this public art installation the Halifax Waterfront Boardwalk to be such a scene. This public art installation is a collaboration between Chris Hanson and Hendrika Sonnenberg. One of the lampposts (at rear in this image) is peeing in the ocean. The other two are on their way home after drinking too much – the closest has stumbled and fallen, the other is bending over to check if all is okay with the fallen one.
“Drunken Street Lights” – Halifax 2AM-000946
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f8 for 1/30 second at ISO 5000.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Boardwalk boards (and nails)
Halifax 2AM-000958
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f4 for 1/100 second at ISO 500.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Whilst she isn’t particularly old, this yacht is reminiscent of a time apparently long gone, when vessels actually had lovely lines! Plus, what’s not to like about bowsprits, jib-booms, bowlines, and vertically seamed sails with stitched lines along the leech?
Halifax 2AM-000968
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f16 for 1/125 second at ISO 500.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A new day, and, well, there were some trees still shedding their colorful leaves, and a stunningly sky, so why not?
Halifax 2AM-001342
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f8 for 1/3200 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Halifax 2AM-001400
Canon 7D with Canon 10-22mm f/3.5-4.5 lens. f8 for 1/2500 second at ISO 800.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Dusk was rapidly descending on a bloody chilly day when I happened upon this lovely little yawl at rest on its mooring in a secluded and tranquil inlet.
Halifax 2AM-001083
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/10 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Sometimes “hard to figure out at first” is intriguing – to me at least 🙂
Halifax 2AM-001084
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/10 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A revisit to Herring Cove because the light was “cleaner.”
Herring Cove 2AM-001036
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/15 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A little ‘overflow’ creek from Powers Pond to the Atlantic Ocean (via Herring Cove).
Herring Cove 2AM-001043
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/10 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
To me these next two images typify coastal fishing hamlets.
Herring Cove 2AM-001038
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/20 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
To my eye, when strolling around town, this image was very appealing. Initial concerns about it being “too busy” rapidly dissipated – likely due to the location of the colored elements, the reflections, and the leading line of the dock. Perhaps I am mistaken?
Herring Cove 2AM-001108
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f16 for 1/250 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Speaking of reflections… here are two more from the walking trail at Herring Cove Provincial Park Reserve.
Herring Cove 2AM-001115
Canon 7D with Canon 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L lens. f16 for 1/60 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
A stunning blue sky, granite, and grass.
Herring Cove 2AM-001062
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/25 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
My final image from Herring Cove showing one side of the entrance to Herring Cove; the great blue yonder is the fabled ornery Atlantic.
Herring Cove 2AM-001066
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/30 second at ISO 200.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
On the coldest day of the winter thus far (it having snowed the first snow of the season the previous night), we ventured on a quick trip down to Peggy’s Cove – a gorgeous sunset, some ice in the rocky depressions of the granite headland, and it was blowing stink, and we were right on the edge of the Atlantic. Not blowing quite strong enough for there to be whitecaps in the toilet, but darn near!
The following images were all captured within roughly one hour, and again, I present 4 images with the lighthouse in it, each sufficiently appealing to me.
There were some strange light behavior happenings last evening during dusk at Peggy’s Cove – one with my lens glare (this image), the other some neat atmospherics (the next image).
Peggy’s Cove 2AM-001471
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f16 for 1/200 second at ISO 500.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
The three of us who were there together all were mesmerized by the vertical shaft of light – normally I expect to see crepuscular rays, but this instance had only the vertical element. As it was developing I was scampering around trying to find any element for foreground interest. “Beam me up” or perhaps a “batman-like beam.” 😉
Peggy’s Cove 2AM-001488
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1.6 seconds at ISO 100.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Peggy’s Cove 2AM-001474
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/25 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
Peggy’s Cove 2AM-001485
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f22 for 1/8 second at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
And to wrap up this visit to Halifax, Nova Scotia – Canada, here is a light-painting of the lighthouse at Peggy’s Cove – the primary purpose of the quick evening trip to Peggy’s Cove. I hope you enjoy this light-painting image – is was certainly the most difficult to make: my wife and our host said I looked a bit like a mountain goat running around over the rocks and boulders in the dark whilst painting the scene with my trusty Q-beam II Million power flashlight.
A light-painting – Peggy’s Cove 2AM-001515
Canon 5D Mark III with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. f5.6 for 30 seconds at ISO 400.
© Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All Rights Reserved.
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
Three image stack.
Canon 7D with Canon 24-105mm f/4L lens. ISO 400.
Copyright © Andrew McInnes/2AM Photography. All rights reserved.