CAPE SCHANCK - SATURDAY 18th SEPTEMBER 2021

With +5km added to our allowable travel distance, I now have a new, but old, favorite place I can visit.

With a thunderstorm in the forecast, and purple on the radar, I calmly sat and ate my lunch at home as I watched the sky get darker and darker…

Finally on my way, I found hail on the side of the road. So, as much as I would have loved to capture a stormy sky, it was probably just as well that I had missed the storm, and I got to play in the now beautiful sunshine.

I do love the amazing views from this section of our Mornington Peninsula, where you are looking out over Bass strait, with the wind coming across the ocean from Tasmania, and beyond that, the South Pole….

There is a lot of steps involved with walking out to the end, known as Pulpit Rock. But, the black stoned beach is an amazing sight and the sound of the sea water breaking on the rocks and rolling them against each other is surprisingly calming.

The Cape Schanck lighthouse grounds are open to the public by electronic gate from 6am till 6pm. Tours of the lighthouse, and houses in the grounds, which now includes a museum, are available outside of lockdown, and are extremely well priced at $14 an adult. Numbers are very limited, so plan ahead. Look up ‘The Lady of History’ on Facebook. (18.09.21)

Please, enjoy todays these pictures…

LOCKDOWN SUNSET EXERCISE - WED 25th AUGUST 2021

Apparently Spring is coming soon…

It’s very quiet here on the beaches at the Peninsula right now.

I’m sure everyone will be making the trip as soon as they can. But, in the meantime, please enjoy some pictures from this evenings sunset.

(Nikon D600, 24-120mm)

CHASING MUSHROOMS - SUN 2ND MAY 2021

I can’t explain why… but, there’s something about going back and photographing these red and white dotted ‘Fairytale’ mushrooms every season, that I love.

It’s botanical name is Amanita muscaria, but is also called ‘fly agaric’.

An information search tells me “it’s not poisonous”… but it goes on to say “you will just get sick and vomit all over the place”. Hmmm ??

They are fungus, and part of the toadstool species. They love to grow in the warmth litter of birch and pine trees, and grow late summer and early winter.

The other mushrooms I saw today were Conocybe, and there were plenty of blackberry bushes to negotiate…

NUMBER 16 BEACH - SUN 31ST JAN 2021

After a heavy cloud sunset the night before, with the low tide and sunset perfectly matched again, I decided to return back to the Dragon’s Head.

The attraction of low tide and sunset together at this spot, is the ability to capture the sea water as it returns from low tide, and specifically flowing over the cliff edge where the Dragon’s Head rock sits, and the chance of a beautiful backdrop of colour filled sunset sky.

It is no easy feat to travel this beach to the ideal photo point, where the angle of the rock shows it’s true Dragon shape. Your feet sink deep into this sand, with every step. You can’t even escape it’s sinking powers at the water’s edge, where you would usually escape to a firm surface. Then, you definitely need your shoes on, as you start walking on very jagged rocks of different shapes and sizes, molded by years of seas powerful waves. As you are getting closer towards the ocean, and the Dragon’s Head, something you can only do during low tide, you then find yourself walking on very slippery water filled seaweed, like small grapes, that covers and hides the rocky surface and it’s sometimes deep holes.. And, if you stay out there too long, you will soon find yourself walking back across this hazardous path towards land, in deep sea water as the tide quickly fills the whole area.

Add the strong blowing winds and salty sea spray, which you often get at most beaches, and it definitely makes for an exhilarating adventure where you put your expensive equipment, and your life, in the hands of luck or the God’s. Which ever faith you believe in most… Tonight I travelled this journey safely again, although only just, walking back in the near dark sky.

Tonight, I also had the pleasure of meeting and sharing time, stories, and pictures, with a lovely couple that had travelled many hundreds of kilometers to make it to this magic spot, and to tick it off their bucket list of Natural Victorian wonders.

ANCHORED BOAT ON RYE BEACH - SUN 13TH DEC 2020

We had been to the beach to cool down, earlier that afternoon, and spied this boat sitting in shallow water. I checked the tides and sunset times, and they were a perfect match, so I just knew I had to return.

Tonight, I was taking pictures from 8:20pm till 9:23pm, and the light kept changing as the clock ticked, and with all the different angles I was shooting from as I moved around the boat. Another trick to good photography, is to move around your subject. Experiment with the different angles. Zoom in and out, get up high, and get down low. If you don’t like what you see, then just delete it.

When you buy camera equipment, there is a calculated risk associated with it’s use. Whether you are climbing over slippery rocks on a beach, or through the bush to a waterfall, there is always a danger associated with getting that perfect angled shot. The tripod is one piece of equipment that you buy to use. Mine goes in the sand, and like tonight, in the sea water, or wherever it is needed. The way I see it is, there is no use buying good equipment to get good photographs, but then keep it safe at home.