Thursday 29 October 2015

Sun sets on Redhead


As I have mentioned before on here and, I'll say it again!..... Redhead is my favourite beach in the Newcastle area.  It is pretty popular and at dusk I love to get photos of the sunset and the people on the beach.  It's kinda like a different version of street photography with everyone (and their dogs!) taking a leisurely stroll on the sand on a balmy afternoon.

I was shooting with my Canon 600D, and using a ND1 Grad filter for most of the photos, except for the action shots of surfers when I switched to my 250mm zoom.  When I purchased my 600D, I never really thought that I would ever need anymore than 3.7 fps but, after getting out and about photographing surfers, I am wishing I had something the next level up.  Trying to catch birds in flight leaves me thinking the same!

The Sun was in a perfect spot on this particular afternoon; it wasn't glaring down the lens and the light reflected wonderfully off the wet sand and lent itself to some gorgeous golden tones off the waves and the sea mist.  I love the sea mist that rises from the pounding waves; it leaves a soft background from the subject and, when shooting black and white, has a fantastic eerie feel to it.

Because we live on the east coast of Australia, the Sun sets to the west over the land.  The position of the Sun setting to Redhead Beach for this shoot (at almost a 90 degree angle to the beach) meant I had to wade into the water in some cases to catch the reflection off the wet sand.  Just gotta remember to keep an eye on the waves; digital electronic cameras and water don't get on too well together!  As we approach the summer solstice, the position of the Sunset will virtually be straight down the beach. That will be a great opportunity to get to the top of the bluff and catch some of those rays at the end of the day from up on high!

In the editing phase for most of these, I have used Nik Colour Efex Pro software using the Detail Extractor presets.  As it says, this software brings out a lot of detail before further editing in Lightroom 5.

Hope you are all well!  

All photos on this blog and corresponding Google+ page are Copyright © Life with Jordy Photography,  
All Rights Reserved and may not be used without permission.

These photos are for sale, contact me if you are interested.


Redhead Beach in Monochrome - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
I'll never tire of photographing the iconic shark tower at Redhead Beach.  Of course, as is my habit
with my photos, I always change them to black and white as a part of my workflow, just to see
how they would look in marvellous monochrome.  In this case, it has suited perfectly!

Redhead Beach Sunset #1 - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
How's the serenity!  There is something about strolling along the beach just watching the waves
rolling in, catching the reflecting light off the wet sand and the silhouette of those like minded
people who love to do the same.

Redhead Beach Sunset #2 - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
It's a dogs' favourite place too!

Redhead Beach #3 - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
Just before sunset the fishermen appear.  Casting patiently into the surf, I have never
actually seen anyone catch anything!

Seagull Security - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
Opened up the aperture to f5.6 to get the bokeh in the foreground.  I never actually noticed
the Seagull in this shot until I got home and reviewed the afternoons' catches.

Contemplation Time - Redhead, NSW, Australia.
Couldn't resist this composition when I noticed this swimmer sitting on the rock.  Of course, 
I just had to present it in black and white too!
Ripping up the waves at Redhead, NSW, Australia.
Captured nicely - f5.6 at 1/2000.  Using Nik Colour Efex Pro Detail Extractor preset has really
enhanced this photo to exactly what I was aiming for.  Lovely warm hues from the 
setting sun too!




Tuesday 27 October 2015

Adventures (and some misadventures) in Film


For months now, I have had a few films sitting around waiting to be developed and scanned.  We'd had a few bills etc and so I left them for a while until the finances were looking a little healthier.

Finally, I put them in to the lab!  It was another week before I could get in to pick up the final product.

At the lab, the assistant told me there were some marks on the negatives.  I figured that it was probably just some dust spots.  Big surprise when I got home to look at the negatives.

There were 5 exposures on each Ilford PANF Plus 50 120 film covered in splotches and small white dots and with what looked like scratch marks across the negative.  The other 3 negatives looked great!  I posted 2 of the marked negatives (the ones posted below) to a film photo group on Facebook, hoping that someone could come up with an answer.  The most logical of these answers was that the paper back of the 120 film had been affected with condensation which had ruined the emulsion on the film.




It seemed to make sense.  I contacted Ilford by email and on their Facebook page to see if any of their experts could confirm the condensation theory; no reply as yet.  I took the negatives to my lab this afternoon and they were scrutinised closely.  It appears that condensation was not the problem rather, it appeared by some of the marks on the negative that the film had been damaged somehow in initial production.  I intend to contact Ilford again and post off a couple of the negatives to them for their opinion.  We'll see how that goes and I'll update with the outcome.

Anyway, the third film I got back was a Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100; one of my fav 35mm black and white films!  Nothing wrong with that - the whole roll turned out great!

Here are some from those 3 rolls, hope you enjoy them!







All photos on this Blog and corresponding Google + page are Copyright © Life with Jordy Photography,  
All Rights Reserved and may not be used without permission.

These photos are for sale, contact me if you are interested.


Watching the ships - Port Hunter, Newcastle, Australia.
Voigtlander Bessa 1 using Ilford PANF Plus 50 in 120mm.

This is my fav from this roll.  Looking down on the foreshore boardwalk from
the Port Hunter Lookout Tower.  I want to have this re-scanned at a 
higher resolution so I can enlarge it.  Before printing though, I want to photoshop
out all of the seagull pooh from the seats.  Is that too fussy?

The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney LTD - Newcastle, NSW,
Australia.

Voigtlander Bessa 1 using Ilford PANF Plus 50 in 120mm.

Once through the door the inside of this building is beautiful!
Wonderfully restored, it is so worth a visit!

FJ 1926 - Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
Voigtlander Bessa 1 using Ilford PANF Plus 50 in 120mm.

I love to take B&W in the Hunter Street Mall.  The trees there really make for some great
dappled light and shade across the building facades.
Best seats in the house! - James Fletcher Park, Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
Konica-Minolta Dynax 40 using Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100 in 35mm.

This is my favourite place to sit for lunch; except maybe during the hot summer.  It looks 
down to Newcastle Beach and out to sea.  From here I get to see migratory whales just off shore, and
there is a pod of dolphins that feed closer to shore and mix it on the waves with the surfers.


Birdy contemplating the future of the abandoned Post Office - Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
Konica-Minolta Dynax 40 using Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100 in 35mm.

This bird, like the rest of us, is probably wondering what is going to happen to this beautiful
building.  It has lain dormant for years and the inside and is falling into disrepair.  A grand piece of 
architecture is going to waste. 

James Fletcher Park, Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
Konica-Minolta Dynax 40 using Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100 in 35mm.

I like this photo for its' simplicity.  

New arrival in Port Hunter - Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
Konica-Minolta Dynax 40 using Fuji NEOPAN Acros 100 in 35mm.

It is clear to see why the Obelisk at Newcastle was used as a point of reference for ships coming
into Port Hunter for years.  From the top of the hill here, the view is grand, and I couldn't
resist this shot over the rooftops of this ship coming into harbour.
The Obelisk - Newcastle, NSW, Australia.
There was a flour mill originally built on this hill in Newcastle.
The sailing ships used the Mill as a reference point when coming into
harbour. When the mill was demolished, the Obelisk was built on the
exact same spot to assist in navigation.












Wednesday 7 October 2015

Lake Macquarie Sunrise


Lake Macquarie in NSW, Australia, twice the size of Sydney Harbour, is the largest permanent salt water lake in the Southern Hempisphere and has a 174km foreshore.  

Popular for boating, fishing and water recreational sports, it is very picturesque.

I was at Booragul the other morning to catch the sunrise over the lake.  It's an amazing place early in the morning; pelicans and other water birds hunting around for a spot of breakfast, rowers and canoeists out and about in the low mist, boats creaking on their anchor ropes and swaying in the gentle early morning breeze.  We'd had some rain in the previous days and the warmer morning was bringing the moisture out as low lying mist which dissipated as soon as it was hit by the Suns' rays.

The lakes' surface was as smooth as glass and I was able to get some wonderful reflections off it!


All photos on this blog and corresponding Google+ page are Copyright  ©Life with Jordy Photography, 
All Rights Reserved and may not be used with out permission.

These photos are for sale. Contact me if you are interested.


The 'Sharni-Lea' at Booragul, NSW, Australia.

Smoke Stack - Lake Macquarie, NSW, Australia.

Lake of Fire, Booragul, Ausralia.

Paddling on Lake Macquarie, NSW, Australia.

Through the trees.  The ketch 'Revival' is moored at Booragul jetty, NSW, Australia.
Booragul Jetty and 'Revival' at Sunrise - Booragul, Australia.




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...