City Reach revisited

I know that I have posted City Reach previously with an image from almost this same spot, but with a new camera and some time on my hands, what was one to do?

I had some spare time when on my way to collect my daughter from a school outing and was going past the Kangaroo Pt cliffs. This was really an excuse to continue to learn some of the characteristics of how the Canon 450D reacts to some long exposures using the kit 18-55mm lens towards its longer end.

Not much more to say really, so I hope you enjoy.

Oxley Creek Windmill

Had a chance to use the new 450D for some sport shots (swimming) this weekend and it seems to be quite satisfactory for the task at the Chandler indoor pool.

Bailey's running group was at Oxley Creek Common rather than UQ this week, so I took the camera in the hope to learn more about its performance and see what I could see.

A prominent feature of the area is the Southern Cross windmill. These are a symbol of rural life and are dotted all over the country. I find this one particularly interesting because it is not just decorative and has a working pump attached to draw water for the amenities at the park.

With a stunning blue sky as background and late afternoon sun on its face, I thought that I would try out the shutter priority mode to get the vanes in motion but all else still ... I know that I should carry a tripod for these types of things, but leaning against a pole is almost as effective, if not quite as convenient. (Canon 450D, 18-55mm zoom)

UQ Walk

These three images complete complete the initial set of shots taken with my new toy.

Whilst my youngest trains for cross country at the UQ track on a Sunday afternoon, we tend to take the dog for a work among the stately buildings and tranquil gardens that make up the campus.

I never tire of the way the light at different times of the year and on different days plays its merry game. It often highlights to me the idea that I am not shooting a subject, but merely capturing the light. (Canon 450D, 18-55mm zoom)

Forgan Reflected

It has been quite some time since my last post to MB, so I thought that I would break the drought by formally announcing that I have crossed to the dark side. Yes, that is correct, I have bitten the bullet and put some cold, hard credit down on the counter for a Canon 450D Twin lens kit.

Of course, I will not be parting with the older gear in the short term. I think that my daughter will be monopolising the Canon in the name of school work, so in the name of research and to familiarise myself with this new world I took it for a walk around UQ this afternoon.

Not sure if I feel comfortable with it yet, but it is an interesting experience.

Tourists in our own town - Part 2

When Boyd first mentioned the topic of our group shoot, I thought immediately of the shiny new 'Brisbane Eye'. I took this photo before attending a play at QPAC and decided that a tourist's view would want to encompass the entire wheel. So here it is in all its dizzy glory!

Tourists in our own town - Part 1

One of the reasons that I have enjoyed posting to Monochrome Brisbane is because it forces me to see things from different perspectives. In setting an assignment to produce an image that a tourist might take away as somehow capturing the city was another way of forcing a different point of view.

My selected shot captures a view of the Story Bridge taken looking west from atop the cliffs near Newfarm. The buildings from the central business district rise in the background and the foreground shows the river that winds its way through the city from east to west.

I admire the majesty of this old steel span bridge and have featured it in a number of other posts. For this assignment I thought that a night shot revealing its twinkling outline with the more modern structures behind and languid river below would tell a tale about Brisbane life that tourists might recognise after only a day or two. (Mamiya 645pro, Sekor 80mm f2.8, f16, HP5 @ 400, scanned from 10X8 wet print)

Mt Cootha Sunset

Continuing on with a water theme, this sunset was taken from Moreton Bay using a Finepix 5600 at the long end of its telephoto lens. I'm rather amazed that the camera's meter was able to cope and provide quite a reasonable picture.

Apart from cropping and some minor sharpening, the image is an unmanipulated grey scale copy of the colour version. The Mount Cootha television towers are clearly visible on the left.

Forest Lake

Well, here is the eponymous feature of the suburb that I call home. (Eponymous, I’ve been waiting to use that word in a post...)
I was doing a shoot to capture reflections recently and this one didn’t quite make the cut due to the surface being disturbed by wind and ducks and whatnot.
Can’t really do those big sweeping vista shots. I’m more of a detail photographer. But by abstracting this image into fairly contrasty b&w, maybe it works just as a study in tones and shapes...

Frieze

Probably few visitors to the Greek Club in Edmondstone Street South Brisbane would fail to notice this wall frieze in the foyer.  I took this in May 2008, but unfortunately this image turned into a "sleeper". One of those photographs you think has potential but you are just not sure what to do with it. Initially I thought it looked better in colour but obviously I have since changed my mind - hence its posting on MB. Taken with my Leica and a monopod, with flash I think.

I reckon he's trying to balance the family chequebook under her gentle but insistent guidance.

Natural Hues - Magnificat

For those who live locally, "Natural Hues" is a photographic exhibition by our very own Nicole. Ten beautifully shot macro images of her favourite subjects, of which "Magnificat" is one. Running 1st -30th September at the Graceville Gallery (10am-5pm Mon to Fri and 10am -4pm Sat and Sun). The gallery is located at 463 Oxley Road Sherwood (Tel: 3379 1288). Image taken with my 5MB Leica using bounced flash.

City Reach

This is a departure from my ususal postings and is inspired by Martin's 2006 post called Monochrome Brisbane. I had to make a trip across town the other evening and decided to take the opportunity and stop at the top of the Kangaroo Pt cliffs with camera and tripod. The original colour versions of these are posted at another site, but I decided to desaturate them and also post here. I will need to revisit this location with some trusty HP5 loaded to experiment more with exposure and composition. (Mamiya 645pro, sekor 80mm f2.8, f11, Kodak Portra 400vc @ 400)

Brisbane Art Deco Part 6

The geometric deco design of stylised shape and form replaced the the equally stylised but organically based geometrics of the Art Nouveau period. Initially a luxurious style using expensive materials such as ivory and jade, later artefacts benefited from the the introduction of Bakelite and plastic, which significantly reduced production costs. The style itself was named from the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels Modernes. Art Deco developed rapidly and its influence is readily seen in period fashion, jewellery, sculpture, the graphic arts and of course architecture, (which provide the most enduring and commonly recognisable examples).

The subject of this post is a French Art Deco table lamp (circa 1930), which contains a not atypical contradiction of simplistic and detailed forms, often found in lamps and glassware from the period.

Brisbane Art Deco Part 5

For my reading of Art Deco I wanted to capture a grittier, more industrial feel for the application of the style. I knew of some buildings in South Brisbane that I thought might make reasonable subjects, and found Substation No.58.

My preferred image of this subject captures some of the iconic shapes, but also shows that not everyone now keeps the Art Deco remnants in pristine condition. I particularly like the textures here, but also that the essence of the style are still recognisable through the grime and the decay.

I have included some shots below of the subject that I thought didn't quite make it, but help to convey that this very plain building had touches that combined different materials, textures and lines. (Mamiya 645pro, sekor 80mm f2.8, HP5 @ 400)

Brisbane Art Deco Part 4

I am making no apologies for posting something in colour as the mint green interior of the Tattersalls Arcade has to remain intact to show it at its best. And since the overall scheme of this image is still monochromatic, I think my fellow bloggers will humour me!

The Tattersalls is a marvellous blend of Neoclassical and Deco from the early 1920s. The medallions and friezes of the interior are set off by the sweeping curves and colour schemes. They embody a common theme in Art Deco where amidst all the clean lines one might find an isolated spot of ornamentation obviously influenced by Classical or even Rococo styles.

The Queen Street facade of the arcade is more Deco than Neoclassical as evidenced by this window (captured in a return to black and white!)

Brisbane Art Deco Part 3 - Pseudo Deco

This is one of three photographs I have taken in support of Nicole's interest and probably the most appropriate to post first as it not only compliments the previous image theme wise, but also steers us back to Nicole's art deco focus. No prizes for guessing where this is. I must say I'm a little surprised that this door hasn't been nailed by Boyd in his wanderings. The title refers to the style I think it's trying to portray, although whether that's deliberate would require a query of the designers, whoever they may be.

Knights of the Cross

I took this image some time ago, in 2007 I think, when I was deliberately wandering the streets of Brisbane looking for subjects of the type taken by my colleagues. If it isn't obvious from the history of my posts, I am not a big fan of architectural photography, it is a highly specialised area which my friends are exceedingly good at but causes me no end of frustration. However with the recent "burst" of door posts, I thought I would submit this image. I quite like the Moorish curves and points over the doors. I could almost imagine a Crusader in battle armour, white tunic with red cross, standing with drawn sword on the steps.

Brisbane Art Deco Part 2

The Manor Aparments building on Queen Street is likely to be the first that springs to mind at the mention of Art Deco. This extrovert structure bursts with every kind of adornment and one day I hope to find a crane and capture the menagerie of weird and wonderful American style gargoyles. These few detail shots will have to do for the present.

Brisbane Art Deco Part 1

I am going to beg my fellow bloggers' indulgence on this particular topic. Art Deco is an era that fascinates me. The age of beautiful cars, fountain pens, home furnishings, and of course architecture. The western world was breaking away from the mould of recreating the past and pushing forward to something new. Punctuated by war and just between the flamboyance of Art Noveau and the depression of Utilitarinaism, the Jazz Age stands as a final fling at societal originality that permeated life in its entirety.
My flagship in this exploration is the key example of Deco architecture in Brisbane, the University of Queensland.

308-322 Queen Street

This is one of the most stunning neoclassical buildings in the CBD and I pass it nearly every day in the rush to work. Boyd has captured gorgeous detail images of the severely styled door so my take on it is to step across the street and catch it in its frame.

Something's Brewing

To answer the question, 'Does Nicole ever take a "messy" shot?' Here is my reply, 'Once in a blue moon'.
Somewhat in the same style as my laneway shot, here is a fairly busy - but still contained - image from a well known Brisbane landmark...