STREET NARRATIVE

The main street of Queenscliff in Victoria, Australia on a quiet Autumn morning after a spot of rain. In 1850, Queenscliff on the coast of Port Phillip Bay was a pastoral run. It became a shipping port by 1860, fishermen moved in and the goldrush brought an influx of migrants seeking their fortune. Later the railway accelerated further growth to the area and a paddle steamer moved holiday makers and high society from Melbourne. Today, the commercial centre of Queenscliff is characterised by historic shop fronts and buildings from that era along with a few more recent ones from early last century.
[link 1] [link 2]

COLA ROASTER

This amusement place was closed when I visited so had to settle for some shots outside the fence. It's at Luna Park in St Kilda, Victoria - Australia. I went there several times when young but never had the nerve to have a ride on the roller coaster - it still looks the same to me - scary. Although the structure is old and appears flimsy, presumably it is safe because it is still in use. Built in 1911 and known as the Scenic Railway, it's the oldest continually operating roller coaster in the world and is one of only two (the other being in Plymouth, UK) that require a brakesman to stand in the middle of the train. Information derived from Wikipedia.

ABANDONED FARMHOUSE

This old abandoned farmhouse in South Australia has most of its walls constructed with cut limestone blocks which would have been white when new. The building would seem to have been added on to at various times, with a timber clad link between two sections. [link 1] [link 2]

GRUNGEFEST

Walking the backstreets and alleyways of cities offers many photo opportunities. I don't photograph derelict people because of their sad plight but old dilapidated buildings and the things that are rejected from them can be interesting. And of course such places are rarely without a smattering of graffiti because they offer good cover for defacers who wish to express an opinion or merely apply a mindlessly executed tag. Still, it all adds character another layer to an already existing rich patina. [link]

DREAMSCAPES

Ephemeral artwork in a city lane. The images on these walls keep changing over time as different artists add their bit or completely cover what was there previously. Tagging is minimal so presumably there is a certain amount of respect for other's masterpieces. I have photographed in this area many times and am always fascinated by the ever changing scene. All credit is due to the various artists involved. [link 1]  [link 2]

WONDERLAND

This large bamboo stand in the local botanic gardens is one of my favourite spots for photography when I visit there. The light seems to be different each time and I seem to find a new way of capturing it's tainted beauty. Tainted because of the many promises, statements and general non-decipherable scribbles that have been carved into the surfaces of it's straggly uprights. Rather than detract from the appearance, I feel that the graffiti adds character and a certain timeless charm, with the messages being part of the living plant. The path depicted here leads through to a small, muddy watercourse and a mini-forest of tall Casuarinas beyond. A floor of bamboo leaves make way for fine causaurina needles and tiny cones.[link]

[link to Bamboo Series]

VICTORIAN PALM HOUSE

Palm House at the Adelaide Botanic Gardens, South Australia. It was imported from Germany in 1875 and opened in 1877. Further work was done in 1986 to restore it to it’s former glory and it now houses a display of Madagascan arid flora. [link]

MOTHERSHIP

Viewed from the rose garden, the Bicentennial Conservatory is the largest conservatory in the Southern Hemisphere. Located in the Botanic Gardens in Adelaide, South Australia, it houses rainforest plants and trees from northern Australia and south-east Asia. [link]

NICHE

Captured in a city laneway, the ephemeral graffiti seemed somehow artistically appealing to me. The motor scooter and poster in the niche added a jolt of reality to the general austerity of the scene. [link]

CITYSCAPE

Adelaide's Riverbank promenade, South Australia. I've photographed in this area many times and have found that the general lack of humans present most times, the openness and the hard architectural surfaces can create a desolate appearance with a surreal feeling. [link]

EARLY MORNING LIGHT

Old farm ruins hold a fascination for me. Through the passage of time, neglect and obsolescence, they take on a patina of beauty in their afterlife with their palette of earthy hues. [link 1] [link 2]

SWEETIES FOR ALL

Lolly shop in Adelaide, South Australia - I felt drawn by the aromas that emanated from within and on entering, a whole world of enticing looking confectionary opened up before me. Of course I couldn't leave without procuring a small comestible - fudge I recall. [link]

BRIDGE LABYRINTH

The Adelaide Bridge over the River Torrens in Adelaide, South Australia was opened in 1931 and was the third bridge on the site. The massive concrete structure with its arched beams and columns can be accessed beneath, along both sides of the river. [link]

FAIRGROUND SERIES

I had been working on a group of images intermittently for a few weeks, not realising that they would form the basis for a series. Most of the subjects were brightly coloured as is usually the case in fairgrounds and amusement parks – obviously to first attract one’s eye and then the money. I wanted to reduce the colour and experimented with a semi-documentary style with much of the colour reduced or removed, but still retaining a subtle impact. Removing the colour also reduced the distractions and allowed the detail and visual narrative to come forward in a clearer way. This technique set the pattern for most of the images although the emphasis of colour is slightly different in each. My intention was to create a sinister and almost macabre appearance, not the usual fun feeling associated with such places and subjects. [link]

DARK ANGEL

While meandering through city parklands looking for something suitable to photograph, I saw this marble memorial in the distance with what appeared to be a life-sized statue adjacent. As I got closer it became apparent that it was no ordinary figure - it was a magnificently sculptured bronze angel bearing a palm branch and standing on the steps. The building itself did not seem imposing and the sculpture, although the main feature to my way of thinking, seemed like a most effective afterthought. It was a dull day so I returned another time when the light was better and shot it handheld from different angles. That’s my hat on the steps and was deliberately placed to counterbalance the composition and add a visual distraction to the strong presence of the main subject - what I now refer to as my ‘Dark Angel’. Some post editing was done to cause a slight colour shift and some vignetting added (it is not hdr tone-mapped). The monument is in Angus Gardens, Adelaide – South Australia, was erected in 1915 and attributed to WR Cotton. It is dedicated to George Fife Angus and John Howard Angus, pioneers, pastoralists and philanthropists. [link]

EQUILIBRIUM

Here, visual equilibrium will be a short lived phenomina due to gravity, the ravages of weather and subsequent decay. As the structural elements of this derelict barn collapse, another form of equilibrium will take over and the ground will absorb them. Constructed from local limestone and timber and roofed with solid zinc corrugated sheets, this building has lasted for about 120 years. Similar scenes of ruin are repeated throughout rural South Australia as farm buildings outlive their usefulness and more durable and practical, but less photogenic steel sheds take their place. [link]

CLOUD 9A

Part of  FAIRGROUND SERIES. This image is dedicated to the late ex-Beatle George Harrison. 'Cloud 9' is one of his songs that appeals to me. [link]

BIG SKY

Taken at a local cemetary which is a rich source of photographic material. It's always quiet there except for the occasional plaintive cry of a crow or a flock of galahs as they wing their way overhead - the latter screeching to each other. [link]

UPWARDLY MOBILE

Part of FAIRGROUND SERIES. I had been working on a group of images intermittently for a few weeks, not realising that they would form the basis for a series. Most of the subjects were brightly coloured as is usually the case in fairgrounds and amusement parks - obviously to first attract one's eye and then the money. I wanted to reduce the colour and experimented with a semi-documentary style with much of the colour reduced or removed, but still retaining a subtle impact. Removing the colour also reduced the distractions and allowed the detail and visual narrative to come forward in a clearer way. This technique set the pattern for most of the images although the emphasis of colour is slightly different in each. My intention and the general outcome has a sinister and almost macabre appearance, not the usual fun feeling associated with such places and subjects. [link]

HASTINGS JETTY

Jetty and bait shop in the quiet seaside town of Hastings on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. Settlement of the area dates from the 1840s, with fishing being the main industry. It was a dull day but I was determined to take a few shots. [link 1] [link 2]

RURAL GOTHIC

The high pitched roof and timber stays in this derelict farm building reminded me of the height accentuation and flying buttresses often used in Gothic cathedrals. This image was taken on Fleurieu Peninsula, South Australia. [link]

DINOSAUR VALLEY

Covering a broad swathe of southern and eastern Alberta, the Canadian Badlands are a unique place for exploration and photography. Eons of compressed sea deposits have been carved by glaciation and subsequent erosion into a striking landscape of strangely sculpted formations and rolling prairies bisected by deep gulches and river valleys.  Dinosaur Provincial Park where these images were taken is well known for being one of the greatest dinosaur fossil beds in the world.  I didn't discover any dinosaurs bones but did find some beauty in the eroded shapes and cloud formations. [link 1] [link 2]

LITTLE HOUSE ON THE PRAIRIE

Architecture is where you find it. It is to do with the designing of buildings and structures, but in its broader meaning it also includes the design of our complete built environment. It can be found in outback areas, on mountain peaks, almost anywhere on the land, even on the sea in the form of oil rigs and it surrounds us in our places of abode. We tend to take architecture for granted and complain when its appeareance doesn't suit our taste. It provides us with shelter, places to work, and gives us points of reference in our urban wilderness, but most important of all, it provides a fundamental basis for the way we live. Architecture is ephemeral and can be a thing of great beauty. Its elements are often pillaged and used as building blocks by successive generations. Past civilizations are sometimes known through their achievements in architecture and certain works have become cultural, political and artistic icons. They are my thoughts on the subject anyway.
Presumably a family once lived in this little house at Fort Steele, British Columbia. It now stands derelict and isolated, yet it seems to exist as a monument to the toil of hard working rural people anywhere. This image was captured during summer, towards the end of a photographic journey through the Canadian Rockies - that's them in the backgound. [link]

BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER

The Murray River at Murray Bridge, South Australia. Due to bad water management at Federal and State level, many farmers who rely upon this source for irrigation are not receiving proper water quotas even though the river is now in flood. As a result of the long term drought and this latest fiasco, some farmer's have faced bankruptcy and left the land. [link]

INDUSTRIAL DISEASE

Both ends of an old industrial complex built on a hill. Although possibly a blight on the landscape, old industrial architecture can provide a very photogenic and challenging subject. The overcast sky helped in getting the grunge effect I was after here. [link 1]  [link 2]

DESOLATION ROW

The main street of a mid-northern country town in South Australia - like many old country towns in Australia, they contain architectural legacies from past eras - some are crumbling ruins while others have been restored and preserved by susbsequent owners. This building is a defunct service (gas) station which has been obsolete for a few years and the town no longer has one. [link]

CONCRETE GARDEN

The Southern Plaza of the Adelaide Festival Centre in South Australia was completed in March 1977, comprising a then-controversial environmental sculpture by West German artist Otto Hajek. This image depicts a small part of the massive and colourful work. Although there are plans afoot to revamp the plaza, hopefully some of the remaining sculpture will be retained. [link]

BRIDGING THE LANDSCAPE

Bridge over the Murray River between Goolwa and Hindmarsh Island, South Australia.  Although it was an overcast day, the light was bright and diffused and offered good photo opps on the wharf  below the bridge. I chose the best of three shots and processed it to accentuate the clouds and the subtle sheen on the water. [link]

THE LUMINOUS LANDSCAPE

A group of derelict farm buildings on Fleurieu Peninsula in South Australia. It was an overcast day but I wanted to shoot them from different angles, including the interiors. They were all vacant except for a community of pigeons that had taken over - they scattered, flew up, re-grouped and circled while I was present. I liked the character of the vernacular, rustic architecture, now in weathered tatters, so I spent quite a while trying different angles. The low level and eveness of light available on overcast days can be a bonus for digital photography because highlights and contrasts are minimal. Exposures are not as demanding for sensors, allowing for greater scope for processing raw data and subsequent processing.

These shots were originally edited in full colour, but I soon realised that they worked better, producing a more timeless feeling and stark appearance when converted to duotones. [link 1] [link 2] [link 3]