Turimetta Beach August Sunrise

Light with the Sharpened Edge

So yes, 3rd Saturday in a row I have headed out for a sunrise. We have had some spectacular weather this August, but lack of clouds is driving me a little something.. something…

So why are clouds so important you say? Well they create a diffusion for taking photos, and they also capture and produce amazing colours. This is helpful and a total bonus which can turn a dull morning into an amazing one. Unfortunately, on Saturday .. as with the last 2 weeks it has been dull. Only a small line on the horizon, which blows edges and creates a wobbly, funky and undesirable horizon line.

The Way It Is

This fantastic beach, which has a very untouched and rugged feel is north of Narrabeen and south of Warriewood. There are amazing rock shelves, which are exposed at different tides.. this was however the first time I had been to Turimetta at low tide.. when it is it’s best. The rocks have a gorgeous moss covered top and many funky lines to play with (as with the image above).

I suppose this will be a case of persistence pays off, I just wish it was closer to my house. I leave you with a shot of the strong tide and a bit of an indication of how wild it can get there with an incoming tide.

Turimetta Tides

The full set can be seen here.

Till next time..

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Week 34 – Humpty Dumpty Trooper

Week 34 - Humpty Dumpty Trooper

Stormy Stormtrooper decided to help in the construction of an elite paper force. Unfortunately, construction is not stormy’s strongpoint and he is now at the point where it looks like a Humpty Dumpty trooper. Needless to say, I think he may need to call upon reinforcements for this one.

Till next time..

Twitter – www.twitter.com/outsideinpixels

Darth Paper & A4 Stormtroopers

Darth Paper & A4 Stormtroopers

OCAU (http://www.overclockers.com.au) is a fantastic Australian based online forum. Originally created for the hobby of overclocking computers, this vibrant forum has expanded into many different hobbies and activities; one of these being Photography. In fact the forum is responsible for a lot of inspiration and also where I purchased my first DSLR.

So each month they have a themed competition in the Photography section. This is called the ‘Iron Photographer’ with the winner receiving a prize. Now i like to try and get creative with these themes, and I find it a good way to gain inspire and try something outside of the box. So this month the theme was ‘paper’ and after having a look around, I found some paper stormtrooper models. Going with the whole star wars theme and my current project 52 with Stormy Stormtrooper; I decided it was a great opportunity to try something new. Infact.. I think it has worked marvellously and the entire thing was done with paper and a printer (plus many hours of my hard labour, some paper cuts and lots of swearing).

Never the less.. I am very happy with the result and I hope I have earnt your vote this month!

Some more Stormy Stormtrooper coming this weekend 🙂 Here is a behind the scenes shot, of how I set the photo up.

Behind the Scenes – Photosetup

Till next time..

Mahon Morning Sunrise

Wave Watcher

Hello All,

As promised the rest of the shots from that sunrise morning. The Mahon Pool is just north of Maroubra Beach and you can find a big carpark just on the north side where you park and walk down to the pool. It is an ocean pool, fed by the water at high tide (not sure about fishing in there tho). There are some interesting rock formations in the area, along with a lovely rock shelf which at high tide all of the water cascades off.. I believe someone has named them the cathedral rocks. Just behind them there is a natural rock bridge.

Tired Eyes, Tired Tides

Dad came down (thanks for the first photo pal) and had scouted around a bit further than where I normally travel. This found a great spot, a little place in the rocks that has obviously been carved out over a long time.. it has a shallow section and has some great wave effects.

Water Slide

I mainly headed to the Mahon Pool due to the tide being right on first light. Unfortunately Sydney has been void of much cloud cover on weekends in recent weeks, and this has caused the sky to not colour up like one normally desires for a sunrise. Never the less, still a great time of the morning.

It is getting much warmer, and before I know it im sure ill be in my board shorts and up to my waist in water again 🙂 I think the Jumpin Jack theme is catching on… something I will probably try and execute on every shoot I get out too in the future. Could make for an interesting book one day.

Mahon Jumpin Jack

I would recommend a visit to the Mahon Pool (even in the afternoon). With a big swell the pool and the surrounding rock structures create many opportunities for seascapers.

And with that I will leave you with 2 more shots from that morning, that I popped on here earlier this week. I am looking to get out for another Sunrise this Saturday so lets hope the weather remains as forecast!

Emotion Sickness

Under the Waves

You can view the full flickr set here.

Till next time..

Emotion Sickness

Emotion Sickness

A little similar to yesterday, ive done some editing but not doing a bulk upload yet. This shot really just turned out fantastic in my eyes.. because its how I saw it in the morning, it has multiple elements to look at as well as what I would call some easter eggs.

I think this is something I would like to have printed on Canvas, if I ever get an amazing colourful morning I want it to be here.

I promise the whole set will come soon.

This goes out to Silverchair – Emotion Sickness.. a song I cherish still and from a time where I still really loved Silverchair (bring back the angst lads)

Till next time..

Sneak Peek… Under the Waves

Under the Waves

Hey All,

Shot a sunrise at Maroubra on Saturday morning but have not had the time to process, so I thought I would upload a sneak peek of one shot I loved from the morning and couldnt resist making the time to edit. Been listening to the latest Pendulum Album of late so decided to name it after one of the tracks, one that I enjoy very much.

Pendulum – Under the Waves

I lie still as the water
But my visions are broken
Head caught in the tide as
Cruel as the ocean
Dreams are made in the distance
I will not be among them
Silence is killing me
And I can hardly touch the ground

We descend
We reach the end

Should have the rest up early in the week.

Till next time..

Week 33 – Sweety Sweettrooper

Week 33 - Sweety Sweettrooper

Well now you have found the secret of Stormy Stormtrooper.. he has a sweet tooth. But what is this, someone has only left him the peppermint boiled sweets! But what can Stormy do, time to get creative little buddy.

Till next time..

http://www.twitter.com/outsideinpixels

Anniversary Sunrise

AS promised 🙂 A visit to 1 year after my first sunrise at the same beach. Coogee Beach in Sydney is a lovely beach, with some natural and man made ocean pools available for swimmers. On the south side of the beach there is a surf club with an ocean pool which has these strange castle like pillars, that make for great subjects in the morning light.

Sun Jumpin Jack

Everytime i visit Coogee the ocean has changed the shape of the land. With the built up area being filled to the top with sand, or massive holes have been emptied out. To my delight this time the ocean has swept clear some rocks next to the ocean pool, which I havent shot before.. and it had a magical layer of moss that just picked up the light beautifully.

Eyes on Fire

A great spot, one I think ill have to go back and visit often in the coming years. If you want to head there yourself, I recommend a visit to by parking along Carr St, then checking out the weather on www.willyweather.com.au to see what it will be like. I quite like low and high tide, low tide gives the opportunity to shoot a longer smooth pool, where as high tide gives the opportunity to crash waves over the ocean pool.

Flood

So whilst I was there I wrote a message in the sand, perhaps something I can continue where possible.. a where’s wally approach perhaps.

Outside in Pixels

And ill leave you with one of my favourites from the morning.

It was warm enough I hope to get out for a few more, a jersey and a jacket was enough.. tho the water was bitterly cold and I got very wet.

Till next time..

First Sunrise

First Sunrise

Tomorrow marks a small milestone for me, 1 year since my first sunrise in terms of photography. It is an important date as gives me a measureable time, to see what I have done and where I have gone in the last year. I have changed some gear, I have travelled specifically for photography (not just taken a camera) and I have learnt a lot about the hobby and myself.

Surf Club

Where will the next year take me? I do not know… tomorrow I will write about my celebration of this date, with a trip back to the original beach.

Ocean Pool

Back then I was sporting a small Lowepro bag, D40, 18-105mm VR, National Geographic Plastic Tripod and no Filters… I think I did pretty well.. apart from sleeping in.. getting there late and feeling very out of place! My my how times have changed (although I still feel out of place)

Ill leave you with some more shots from that first sunrise, I hope you enjoy.

Beach Tracks

Shoes in the Sand

Till next time..

Amsterdam. Trams, Dams, Frites, Mayo.. All things DUTCH!

Lone Bike

Stop number… six on Euro Trip 09 is Amsterdam.. known for it’s colourful history, architecture, culture and people.. this amazing city had been very well hyped up.. and it didnt fail to deliver. Unfortunately in terms of photography, I was inspired but I think I failed to capture what I saw (whilst i retain all my memories, unlike most people’s visits to Amsterdam).. i certainly did find it to be a magical place.

Bikes, as indicated by the first photo is definitely one major part of Amsterdam life and culture.. they are everywhere.. they have right of way.. they scare the bejebus out of you! We headed around on one of the bike tours offered by New Europe and it was a great way to see a lot of the city in a short amount of time. We actually chose a beautiful day as well, which was handy.. but I decided against taking the camera due to logistics, and boy I was sorry after wards 🙁

So what to do in Amsterdam? Well everyone says go visit the coffee shop.. and what does that look like? Well here is one method of coffee.. Amsterdam style (wow it is really coffee ;))

And what do you eat? Well Chips and Mayo of course!.. ok well we were on a backpacker budget and food in Amsterdam is certainly not cheap! One of the best (and also claims to be the best) Chip shops in the world we found on Damrak between Dam Square and the railway station. Infact.. i think we ate there twice in a row (within an hour of each other).

Chips & Mayo

Of course.. I should say Frites but im sure you can overlook that part of this article. There is just so much to do and see.. Amsterdam has beautiful parks.. the Vondelpark and Flevopark as well as the gorgeous canals that surround the center of town.

We ventured into the Heineken Brewery Tour, Van Gough Gallery, Windmill Brewery & Bar and we walked past the Anne Frank Huis.

Downtown

So why did I leave the red light district to last you might say? Well.. what more can be said.. what an interesting and colourful part of the town.. but one I certainly wouldnt take my camera to. If you actually were able to manage to take a decent photo between the drunken bucks parties or people sniggering at the talent in the window.. then the bouncers might jump out and kindly relieve you of that burden you call a camera.

All in all a very photogenic place, and somewhere I would like to spend time to really capture some amazing photos in the future. I leave you with a shot from the platform, around 6am .. the day we left for Berlin.. and the place I will write about next.

Departure

As usual you can view the full set here.

Till next time..