Saturday 17 December 2011
Nelson Bay Cormorants
Beautiful Shoal Bay, NSW, Australia
Tuesday 13 December 2011
Mad Motorists…………
They drive me CRAZY!! People who jockey from one lane to the other to gain an advantage of 1 or 2 car lengths ahead. Are they too stupid to realize that they have only gained 2-3 seconds in time, or is it some inner ‘drive’ [for want of a better word!] that compels them to want to be first in some sort of street race?
They are always 10-15 Km per hour over the speed limit. Don’t they understand what the numbers printed on roadside signs mean? I would really like to know their thought processes. If they are not paying attention to their speedo, then they are probably not paying attention to the person crossing the road, or the fact that the traffic ahead has already come to a stop. Speaking of coming to a stop, I laugh at people who take off like a bat out of hell at the lights, travel about 500 metres and then come to a screeching stop at the next set whilst I measure my speed and arrive a fraction of a second later with more fuel in my tank and less wear on my brake pads!
And another thing….. Once upon a time, the rule was keep left unless overtaking or perhaps turning right. I’m not sure if a lot of our drivers these days understand the meaning of the right hand lane. If you do drive cautiously at 10 Km per hour under the speed limit, why are you still in the right hand lane? Also, if you know you are going to be turning left at the next intersection, what in Gods name are you doing in the right hand lane at the last minute, desperately braking or accelerating and causing havoc because you have not planned more than 2 seconds ahead as you drive?
Mobile phones…..for crying out loud…..get hands free if you have to take that call that just might save the world! On the way to work last night, followed by a middle aged female [green P plates]. Nearly ran up my butt because she was texting at each stop! I watched her at the next set of lights after I had stopped. She slowed down for the lights but before the car came to a final stop she was looking down texting! My daughters last car was written off by a female driver on a mobile phone who didn’t notice that the line of traffic in front of her had stopped.
We have had quite a lot of rain recently here but, do you think that makes a difference?
Chill out people, wind down the window and smell the dinner cooking as you drive past the houses, be courteous, it’s not gonna cost you anything and, it might save your life!
Jordy
Wednesday 7 December 2011
The Beach Trail - Redhead
Redhead Beach Dunes
Tuesday 29 November 2011
Redhead Beach
Touch Footy Training - Redhead Beach
Redhead
Rush hour at Redhead
Saturday 19 November 2011
Tea Gardens Mooring
The Treasure Hunters
Karuah Bridge Panorama
Wednesday 16 November 2011
Sydney Harbour Panorama.
Wednesday 9 November 2011
Karuah Oyster Farm 2
Tea Gardens Panorama
Monday 7 November 2011
‘Bye Kirra–We miss you!
Tuesday 1 November 2011
Tea Gardens Mooring - Monochrome
Random Female on Hawks Nest Beach
Saturday 22 October 2011
Saturday 15 October 2011
Ice Cream Dreaming
Thursday 13 October 2011
Father & Son
The Florist - Central Railway Station, Sydney
Tuesday 11 October 2011
Sunday Markets - The Rocks, Sydney
Darling Harbour Panorama
Friday 30 September 2011
The Old Post Office, Newcastle, NSW
A 3 exposure HDR.
The Lock Up, Cultural Centre, Newcastle
'The Lock-up' is a multi-faceted cultural centre encorporating the recently refurbished lock-up Museum (1861-1982), historical information and relics relating to the penal history of Newcastle, the john paynter gallery (an artist-run space), an artist-in-residence programme (accommodation for visiting national and international artists) and an Education Centre (programmes for school excursion groups).
I haven't been inside yet but the wonderful sandstone architecture looked brilliant this night bathed in the light from the street lamps.
A 3 exposure HDR and processed in Picturenaut and PS Elements.
Wednesday 28 September 2011
Athcourt Lane, Newcastle, NSW
I am very happy with the way this has turned out! The dark and light side meeting right on the corner, the texture of the bricks. The corner has a slight bend as it ascends because I used my wide angle on it.
Join me on Google+
The Old Post Office, Newcastle, NSW
I have recently joined Google +. Although I am also on Facebook, I find Google + is much better for photography in that I can upload larger photos, and the resolution is so much better than FB. Check it out and follow my link here. If you are on Google+ add me to your circle and I will reciprocate. Mind you, I will never forsake Flickr!!
plus.google.com/113737645865275154301/about
Saturday 10 September 2011
My Dads’ Camera
My Dads Camera.
This is where my interest probably got started. Dad did all his own film processing and printing.
This is his Voigtlander Bessa II bellows camera with accessories.
The item on the left is a separate viewfinder. The Viewfinder on the camera was very small and did not line up the subject very well. The separate viewfinder had to be used with both eyes open as the viewfinder was not transparent! The free eye would view the subject whilst the other (looking through the viewfinder) would view broken or unbroken lines which formed a rectangle that indicated the edge of the 'frame'. In a weird way, the subject could be seen within the frame. The other item on the right was used for calculating distance. Looking through the small hole, the photographer would see 2 images; one clear and the other a ghost. The dial would be turned to bring both images together. When this happened, the distance would be indicated on the dial and the camera set accordingly.
The camera is still in wonderful condition. I would love to put a roll of film through it but I can't seem to get the 120 film it required.
Jordy
Wednesday 7 September 2011
Something I discovered yesterday!
Thursday 1 September 2011
Painting, painting and yes…..more painting!
Saturday 13 August 2011
Pure Criminality - The UK Riots
I have been reading with some incredulity, reports from media and individuals on their Social Media sites about the recent riots in the UK. I cannot believe the excuses some people are making for these thugs and criminals.
I have had enough of hearing how these rioters had no other course than to riot and destroy their own communities simply because they feel disenfranchised & disrespected by ‘mainstream society’. I have had enough of hearing how they are being “ignored and marginalised and harassed by the police” and how “after months of seeing any conceivable hope of a better future confiscated, they are finally on the news” [quotes from a personal blog widely published on the net http://pennyred.blogspot.com/2011/08/panic-on-streets-of-london.html?spref=fb ].
If you complain that you are constantly disrespected, it is possible you have not done anything to EARN that respect! I see some individuals who live in Government Housing and on Welfare simply because it is the EASIER option. They have never had to work to earn their keep and they totally expect that it is their right to take all from society without contributing. These individuals will steal what they want because they have never lifted a finger to help themselves and never felt the great satisfaction of buying something with their own money, earned by the sweat of their brow.
Furthermore, if you complain that you are being harassed by the Police, well…….. it’s not bloody rocket science……… you need to start behaving yourself. In my experience, if you constantly come under Police scrutiny, then you probably, totally, deserve it!
I can probably guarantee that for every 1 of those so-called disenfranchised and disrespected lower socio-economic dwellers who rioted, destroyed and, murdered, there were 20 others from exactly the same situation who were disgusted at the actions of their peers and at no time would have ever contemplated such actions.
There is no such thing as an ‘average’ or ‘ordinary’ life; there is just ‘life’. I guess it depends on how much pride you have in yourself, and how determined you are to pull yourself up out of a personal situation you’re not happy with. Millions of people do it everyday in their course of their lives.
There are no excuses for their actions.
Jordy
Thursday 4 August 2011
Fullerton Road Jetty, Stockton
Stockton Jetty & Ship Wreck
Tuesday 2 August 2011
Newcastle and Port Hunter
Here is the larger colour Panorama of Newcastle and the entrance to Port Hunter. Taken from the Stockton Breakwall it starts on the left at Fort Scratchley and pans around to Griffiths Park at Stockton on the right. I cant remember the number of photos stitched together to make up this panorama but it was quite a few!
Newcastle Foreshore
The Newcastle Foreshore from Stockton. I was lucky enough to get these shots stitched together without interference from boats! As I swivelled on the tripod and overlapped the photos, boats would travel into each shot which could cause repeated images of the same boat at intervals throughout the final product! Not only that but the water rippling effect caused by the boats would appear in some stitched segments and not others! I have another Panorama to add soon, this one in colour and much wider aspect than this. I love the B&W tones that are possible in a cityscape!
Thursday 21 July 2011
Hope springs Eternal
The Light of the Day meets the Dark of the Night.
"There was never a night or a problem that could defeat sunrise or hope."
Bern Williams
Beautiful Morning
It was such a Beautiful Morning the other day at Stockton watching the ships leave the harbour and sail off into the rising Sun! I want a job on this ship!! I see it regularly plying the waterways inside and out of Port Hunter. What a great job it must be!!
Wednesday 20 July 2011
Nobbs Point from Stockton Breakwall
I was up early to get to the Airport. Decided on the way back to pop into Stockton and capture the brilliant sunrise that was begging to have its photo taken! This is a 3 photo panorama stitched in PhotoShop Elements 8. It was a 'little' cold! My battery started to give out after a few shots but I am happy to say that it lasted long enough to capture this beautiful morning!
The Journey Begins
I was up early to get to the Airport. Decided on the way back to pop into Stockton and capture the brilliant sunrise that was begging to have its photo taken! I was also attempting to take photos of the large freighters leaving the port in accompany with the tug boats. Because of the low light, all I got was blurry looking things and not boats! There was however, a couple which worked out really well and this is one of them
Wednesday 13 July 2011
Back to work tomorrow! DAMN!!
I have just had 2 weeks off work! It’s a nice feeling to know that there is a small reprieve from those night shifts for a short while but, everything must come to and end!
It has been a busy cuppla weeks. Kims Mum had a fall and broke her hip and so, about 10 days ago we drove down to visit her and spend a little time with Kims Dad to ensure he was coping well. Kim cooked him some easy meals to reheat in the microwave, but I think that Ken is not as hopeless as Kims Mum, Faye, makes him out to be! She never really did give him a chance to do things around the home; she always knew how to do it better [apparently]. Anyway, Kims Mum is doing ok and looked a lot better than what we expected. Hopefully she will be transferred to a hospital a little closer to home where Ken doesnt have to drive too far to see her until she gets the all clear to return home.
Kim and I celebrated our 25th Wedding Anniversary yesterday. I cannot believe that 25 years has passed since that wonderful day! What a great day it was on the 4th August 1985 when we first met and started going out together. It was a bbq day at Waragamba Dam for her Rotoract Club. I was the zone rep and was undecided if I would go or not because I had finished night shift that morning and was pretty tired. I woke up and made a split second decision to go because it was such a lovely day. Funny how a decision made in an instant can determine the rest of your life!! Kim and I often remark on the fate of that split second decision and how our lives are better for it!
I also got the front garden ‘trimmed’ which, in this case, means I took a chain saw to the Yuccas and Agaves and tidied it up a lot! We had a council pick up day and I was concerned that they wouldnt take all the ‘trimmings’ that I had left on the footpath for them because there was a LOT!!! We arrived back from seeing Kims Mum in Penrith to find that the lot had been taken. Many thanks to the Lake Macquarie Council!!
Took Barney for a few walks. On one of our walks around our great suburb, I spied some orange mushroom type things growing on a fallen branch. They actually look like sliced orange portions and are some sort of fungus thingy [lichen ??] Our suburb has Cocked Hat Creek running through it and has been designed with many concrete footpaths/walkways that follow the creek and also join streets behind houses and through bushland. There are so many things I can capture on photo that I must do a Safari one day! Attached here is the fungus I saw the other day.
Today has been one of the coldest days I can remember since we arrived up here. I am sitting down wearing my special beanie which has floppy hanging down bits to keep my ears warm. It is so comfortable however, Barney barked up a ruckus when he first espied me walking down the stairs with it on!!
Hope everyone is well as we are all here. Take care one & all until next time.
Jordy
Friday 8 July 2011
The Fishing Place.
The break wall at Swansea Heads is a very popular fishing spot. This day had heaps of people out trying their luck. In the background are 2 coal ships waiting to enter the harbour.
Sunday 3 July 2011
Sunset over the Marks Point Marina
Marks Point Sunset
Saturday 2 July 2011
NEWSFLASH!! - Velociraptor attacks man pruning his garden...............
Wednesday 29 June 2011
Swansea Heads Panorama
Something for Dinner
Swansea Heads Fishermen
I love taking candid photos of people going about their everyday life. It captures them in a natural moment with no posing or setting up to get the 'right look'.
Sunday 26 June 2011
Fishermen
I have not been out on photo recon recently due to some horrible weather. Finally! It all cleared and we have had some awesome days!. Yesterday I went out to the Swansea Channel and then across to the Swansea Heads. It is such a popular fishing spot which makes for great silohuettes late in the afternoon. Hope you enjoy these but stay tuned, because there are more on the way including some wonderful sunset shots which I am really happy with! For this particular shot I was walking back to my car when I noted the silohuettes against the golden sunset reflected on the water.
Caught Anything ?
I have not been out on photo recon recently due to some horrible weather. Finally! It all cleared and we have had some awesome days!. Yesterday I went out to the Swansea Channel and then across to the Swansea Heads. It is such a popular fishing spot which makes for great silohuettes late in the afternoon. Hope you enjoy these but stay tuned, because there are more on the way including some wonderful sunset shots which I am really happy with!
Fishing the Swansea Channel
I have not been out on photo recon recently due to some horrible weather. Finally! It all cleared and we have had some awesome days!. Yesterday I went out to the Swansea Channel and then across to the Swansea Heads. It is such a popular fishing spot which makes for great silohuettes late in the afternoon. Hope you enjoy these but stay tuned, because there are more on the way including some wonderful sunset shots which I am really happy with!
Wednesday 22 June 2011
Friday 17 June 2011
What IS that thing in the sky????...................
Yep folks, we finally have a sunny day! Well.....almost! It started out sunny and then some large black clouds came over bringing a heavy shower but!, now the sun is out again and I can see blue skies on the horizon. I just hope they are here to stay; we have been cooped up inside for the last week or so and are going a little stir crazy!
Rhiannan sprained her foot the other whilst skipping. She had a cuppla days off work but it appears to be much better now although, the swelling and bruising is still very obvious. No more skipping please!
Kasey spent the long weekend in Wagga visiting Matt. She had a good time catching up with some old friends but it was good to see her arrive back home safely after such a long trip. It is about a 7 hour trip from here to Wagga Wagga through some very busy city traffic and long country highways!
Lachlan & I went out to see the new flick 'Super 8' the other night. Great Sci Fi movie. Saw the trailer for the final Harry Potter movie coming out soon and determined to catch up with the others before going to see that!
Kim & I have basically been stuck inside whilst the weather has been horrid. Lucky we managed a decent day to get out to Shoal Bay [see previous post] before it set in. One good thing about this time of year is that the grass doesnt grow much at all so the mowing etc is virtually nil! Just gotta tidy up the front garden which is looking a bit like Jurassic Park; everything appears to be getting out of hand. Problem is, I will need a chainsaw and a large ute to do some of the 'pruning' haha........
I have picked up another gadget recently. Upgraded my phone to the new Samsung Galaxy S2 smartphone......it's great!
That's about it. I haven't been out to get photos because the weather has been so crap and I am starting to get Photoshop withdrawals although, I have made use of the time to do some online tutorials and now can't wait to put them into use!
Hope your are all well and good!
Jordy
Tuesday 7 June 2011
A Great Day Out
What a great day we had today! Kim, Rhiannan, Barney & I went out to Shoal Bay and Fingal Beach today to give Barney a run on the beach and let him wear out some of that puppy energy he always seems to have. It was an awesome day and Barney is fairly well worn out now [as is everyone else]!
Here are some photos ..........
Love to All
Jordy
Catching up.
Well it has been a couple of months since I posted a Blog article. I don't have any Project or roll of film in particular to share wi...