Waiting for still water

No matter the skill, no matter the technology; when the image you want to capture relies on natural elements, sometimes the only thing that matters is patience.

One of the great features of Walter Burley Griffin’s design for Canberra, is the lake between the central business district and the parliamentary zone. This large expanse of water exists on what was once a flood plain, through which the Molonglo River meandered. Along its southern shore, landmarks including the National Library, Reconciliation Place and the High Court (pictured) reflect in its waters, along with vibrant golden and red foliage in Autumn.  To capture crisp reflections though requires the water to be very still, something that’s difficult to predict. Sometimes the water is still early in the morning, other times in the evening, and sometimes for days on end the water can be choppy.

The image above was captured on the third attempt. On the first occasion, the water was smooth but a film of fog hovering on the lake’s surface blurred the reflections, the result being quite attractive actually, but falling short of what I desired. The second attempt was frustrating; the water glassy smooth on arrival but becoming choppy a minute or so after setting the equipment up! Finally on the third attempt, and despite boat traffic occasionally streaking the water’s surface, there was enough time to get the shot.

For those who like the specs: 20 sec | f/16 | ISO 100

Australia Celebrates Live

On the lawns in front of Parliament House, thousands gathered for a concert on Australia Day eve, featuring Jimmy Barnes, Guy Sebastian, Timomatic and The Presets. This year’s stage design featured improvements on last year. Camera risers flanked the stage on each side, with a long walkway extending into the audience area, offering more flexibility for photographers and film crews. In particular, the new stage design allowed artists performing to be juxtaposed with the audience and Parliament House.

Guy Sebastian | © 2013

I used two cameras, one fitted with a Canon 24-105 f/4 IS lens, while the other had the faster and wider 16-35 f/2.8. Anything slower than f/2.8 isn’t ideal for concerts after dark, but with the ISO turned up, the 24-105 performed well, offering the ideal focal range for the working distance available and capturing most of the shots on the night ultimately. The 16-35 proved handy in situations like the one above, where I wanted to capture both artist and audience.

Black and white photography is a beautiful thing; it offers simplicity and emphasises textures and emotions in scenes. While colourful stage lighting is a nice element to incorporate in live music shots, I favoured a black and white process for quite a few images from the night, with a slight warm silver tint and subtle vignetting.

Guy Sebastian performs ‘Battle Scars’ | © 2013

Australian of the Year 2013

With camera and media pass in hand, I strolled through the foyer of the National Gallery into Gandel Hall, a function venue that has become a favourite for events in Canberra. Its deep red floors recall the dust of the Australian outback, and its massive windows overlooking manicured lawns, let natural light bathe the space during the day. Much of the hall was taken up by tables, each with an intricate floral display and covered in a starched and ironed table cloth.

At the back of the hall where space was set aside for the media, things were a tad less glamourous. Interviewers stood pensively, some already clutching microphones, waiting for attendees to arrive. A portly gentleman with a beard, bravely stood forward to model for the cameras so they could prefocus on where the interviewees would be standing. Technicians unpacking reels of cables and trolley loads of equipment, jokingly debated the merits of disk vs flash based broadcast cameras. The verdict one declared… ‘real men use disk.’ Flash’s cause probably wasn’t helped by the fact one technician was trying to troubleshoot a flash-based camera on the floor.

Just before the finalists entered the hall for the pre-awards lunch, a staff member announced there wouldn’t be time for individual interviews, only an all-in session briefly with each finalist for the media pack. I’ve learnt that all-ins are useless for anything more than trivial, 15 second soundbites for the evening news. They certainly don’t do justice to the issues people nominated for these honours represent, nor permit the insights they offer when given the chance. I resigned myself to taking still shots only, tucking away the list of researched questions.

Joining a couple of other photographers, we worked out our own hierarchy based on height, making sure not to block one another’s view nor the television cameras behind. I settled into a spot that let me jump back and forth between floor level and a camera riser beside Sky News for overhead shots. I suspect the spot was originally intended for the camera being troubleshooted earlier.

The photo-op went smoothly. Laurie Lawrence tried to muster all the Senior finalists into doing the high-five that has become synonymous with his water safety campaigns. While waiting for the pack interview, Kerry Stokes had a casual chat with photographers including myself about the night’s concert. ACT finalist Dr Tom Calma made some fantastic points about indigenous reconciliation and welfare.

Kerry Stokes surrounded by press | © 2013

When The Sky Turned Black

It was a typical Summer’s day; a warm Saturday in January, ten years ago. The straw coloured hills surrounding Canberra, scorched by a long hot Summer and an even longer drought, glowed under a vibrant blue sky. In the air though, the smell of smoke was unmistakable, and the charred leaves floating to the ground throughout Canberra, served as an ominous warning of what was to come. By day’s end, the straw coloured hills were black. The picturesque native bush and pine forests were reduced to a desolate wasteland and suburban streets lay in ruins.

January 18th 2003, is a day forever etched in Canberra’s history; a day whose scars remain evident in the landscape and whose memory is still vivid for residents of the bush capital. Today marks the tenth anniversary of the disaster, ranked among the worst bushfire disasters in modern Australian history. A disaster that took four lives, almost 500 homes and infrastructure including the Mount Stromlo Observatory. The story of the disaster is one of nature’s violent potential, of human error and of the capacity for the environment and a community to rebuild.

The Gudgenby River meanders though a valley in Namadgi National Park | © 2012 Adam Spence

On January 8th, lightning strikes sparked fires in remote parts of the rugged and picturesque Brindabella and Namadgi National Parks, to the West and South of Canberra. The fires were small and the conditions were calm. Rural property owners and researchers from the CSIRO monitored the largest of the fires at McIntyre’s Hut. They assumed it and the other fires would soon be put out, as did the firefighters who turned up to work that day, only be told they weren’t needed. Fire service managers had decided not to launch a response, believing the risk insignificant in the current weather conditions and the danger to firefighters too high.  It was a fateful decision.

Batemans Bay at Sunset

Welcome to 2013 – a new year!

It’s been a while since I’ve updated this blog. 2012 was a busy year, and for most of it I took a break from photography to work on other projects. Time off can be the best thing for stoking the fires of inspiration and creativity. An opportunity for new ideas to develop and time to look back at past work for any lessons to be learnt.

Batemans Bay is a regional centre on the New South Wales south coast. Not far from Canberra at the mouth of the pristine Clyde River and surrounded by beautiful beaches, evenings at the bay often feature picturesque evening skies over the ocean. Strolling around the bay on a recent Spring evening, I captured the panorama above from the old punt ramp beside the Princes Highway.

Completed in 1956, the iconic Batemans Bay bridge pictured, replaced the last punt service along the Princes Highway between Sydney and the Victorian border. The prominent towers in the middle of the bridge enable a span of the roadway to be raised using counterweights, allowing for the passage of taller vessels to the Clyde River. The bridge’s construction did more than remove a traffic bottleneck on one of the country’s main highways; it removed a key obstacle to the Bay’s development. A small community has since boomed, with new developments north of the river. Greater ease of access has seen the bay become a tourist hub in the summer months, particularly for Canberrans.

Batemans Bay | © 2012