The Laughing Kookaburra

This is one of my wife's favourite birds, the kookaburra. Wikipedia states that "Kookaburras are best known for their unmistakable call, which sounds uncannily like loud, echoing human laughter – good-natured, but rather hysterical, merriment in the case of the renowned Laughing Kookaburra and maniacal cackling in the case of the slightly smaller Blue-winged Kookaburra."


This one is a Laughing Kookaburra that I saw close to the Story Bridge in Brisbane. Many mornings we wake up with their "laughter". It is very cute, except when it happens at 4:45am.

Pick me! Pick me!

If these three little Chinese girls entered a cuteness contest it would be a three-way tie. I snapped their picture somewhere in the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum.

Heineken

Heineken, as seen from above...

This is an abstract image of the inside of a Heineken bottle that I took with my iPhone one afternoon at a company function. The green one at the top left is the original picture that I cropped to a square and I then played around with some funky colours.

The Silent Street Trader

I took this photo while visiting Shanghai in February 2009. This street trader was sitting alone in silence with his few colourful toys and trinkets. I never saw anyone even pass by him, let alone stop to have a look at his toys. I couldn't help but wonder how much he would sell in a day and how he manages to make a living.

Race Day

Race day in Oxenford. I drove past one Saturday afternoon and saw these energetic young people on the Cove Park Lake and decided to stop and take a few pictures. It was a school meeting where a few of the private schools from the Gold Coast and Brisbane competed against each other.

Little Day Dreamer

This is my little day dreamer, Nadia. She went with me to Cove Park Lake one afternoon where I took some pictures of a rowing competition. Strangely enough many of the pictures I took that day didn't feature any rowers... :)  

Portraits from a Protest March

On May 16, 2012, the members and supporters of the Brisbane "Tent Embassy" held a protest march to Parliament House demanding, as I understand it, their own sovereign state. During my lunch break I went along with my camera to see what I could capture of the event. The night before I went to their Tent Embassy and took some photos there. I posted some of the young didgeridoo player here, and will post some more pictures from the Tent Embassy later.

Beaming the pictures on Channel 7 News.

Keeping a watchful eye on the proceedings...

This is probably what I looked like, walking backwards in front of the protest while snapping pictures all the time. The guy in the foreground is also an amateur photographer like myself whom I met the night before at the Tent Embassy.

An imposing figure showing a lot of dedication to his cause.

Keeping the peace during the precession.

Brisbane's Beautiful Buildings

Brisbane has a few beautiful and interesting buildings. This is the view overlooking Post Office Square from the War Memorial on Ann Street.

After looking at this picture again I noticed something odd, zoomed in a little and was surprised to see two guys hanging from the side of the one building. Thought for the day? "Whatever you do, don't look down!!"

Mission Girl

As I walked down Queen Street Mall during my lunch break yesterday I came across four friendly girls busy taking photos of this colourful still life display. This, I learned, was part of the pre-launch of their Mission Girl initiative. I think it's an excellent project, and I'm not just saying so because they gave me a choc-chip cookie! :)

To see what they're all about, why don't you visit their Facebook Page.

Who's the boss?

This is the statue of Major General The Honourable Sir William Glasgow, with his companion... The statue was erected in recognition of the work he did in serving his country as a military leader in the battlefields of South Africa, Gallipoli and France, and later serving as politician in the Australian Senate representing Queensland. He held two ministerial portfolios ("Defence"  and "Home and Territories"). In December 1939 he was appointed first High Commissioner for Australia in Canada and also served as director in a number of companies.

St Paul's

This is a night shot of St Paul's Cathedral in Melbourne. St Pauls is an Anglican cathedral that was built in 1880 on the site where the first public Christian church service was held in Melbourne. For a different kind of photo of this church, have a look at this blog entry.

Didgeridoo

This young didgeridoo player and his sister posed for these photos at the "Sovereign Embassy" in Musgrave Park in Brisbane. The "Sovereign Embassy" was one of the Aboriginal tent embassies, similar to the one that was established in Canberra in 1972. This tent embassy in Brisbane was dismantled by the police the morning after this picture was taken after a dispute between them and the Queensland Premier Campbell Newman.

Warp Speed!

So what do you do when you book into your hotel room at 11:45pm? Take photos out the window of course. As you can see, with these I had some fun and tried something new. The effects were created with my 300mm zoom lens. I would zoom out completely, release the shutter and while the photo is being taken quickly zoom in. The result is something that looks rather cool. :)

These pictures were taken from the tenth floor of the Mantra Hotel on 100 Exhibition Street in Melbourne, Australia.

Autumn in Canberra Part Three: Golden Trees

These pictures were taken on the campus of the Australian National University, close to Sullivans Creek. I edited the second photo a little, removing the Telstra Tower, a communications tower built on top of Black Mountain.

There is also a Part One, Part Two and Part Four of Autumn in Canberra.

Golden Threads

I took this picture at the South Bank Station in Brisbane while waiting for my train. I steadied the camera against a railing but it is still slightly out of focus - I'll attempt this picture again in future using a tripod.

The Wheel of Brisbane

The Wheel of Brisbane is a 60-metre (197 ft) tall transportable Ferris wheel installation erected as part of the 20th anniversary of World Expo 88 and the 150th anniversary of the State of Queensland 1859–2009 celebrations. It was initially scheduled to be an attraction of South Bank from 2008 to 2010 but has now been extended to remain until 2012. Each of the 42 air-conditioned capsules can seat up to six adults and two children providing a total passenger capacity of 336.

-source: Wikipedia: Wheel of Brisbane

Emma...

When I first saw this picture I knew it had to be on my blog. This photo was taken by a friend of mine, Gary Leicher. I've looked at this picture a few times now, wondering what it was that drew me to it. A few things stood out; the vibrant colours, her pose, her expression, the atmosphere. I then realised that it was all of those things, but mostly the fact that he was able to capture the innocence, vulnerability and beauty of a child. A great picture!

Not only is Gary a great photographer but he's the managing director of a great web design company. If you need someone to design your next web site, give the guys at Smudge a call - their details are on their website: http://www.smudge.co.za/

Autumn in Canberra Part Two: Vibrant Red and Orange

I was pleasantly surprised at the vibrant Autumn colours that greeted me when I arrived in Canberra. These colours are impressive when looking at brightly glowing yellow and orange trees, but no less so when looking at an individual leaf. Here are two examples of many that caught my eye.

There is also a Part One, Part Three and Part Four of Autumn in Canberra.

Australian Darter

The Australian Darter (also known as the Australasian Darter) - that's the name of this interesting and beautiful bird. I photographed this one in Canberra on the shore of Lake Burley Griffin while it was busy drying it's wings in the warm afternoon sun.

Gone Sailing

This is the life...

Autumn in Canberra Part One: Under the Swamp Cypress

This is a Swamp Cypress growing on the bank of the Sullivans Creek that runs through the grounds of the Australian National University. This tree (like so many others) displayed the most amazing autumn colours.

There is also a Part Two, Part Three and Part Four of Autumn in Canberra.