Went Wandering in Western Australia
- Thread starter Zichar
- Start date
Zichar
Senior Member
We went searching for the Blowholes; part of the 'beauty' of traveling in a remote area is the dearth of information signs
I had asked Jim before we set out and was told that it's near the King Waves Kill sign
But we took a wrong turn (we shouldn't have turned at all, it's right behind the KWK sign) and ... landed up in a very surreal grey nomad community
Large satellite dishes outside, trailers and caravans that don't look like they're fit (or want to) to move anymore
Humpies, shacks, sheds and tents made from scrap metal, wood, discards
And elderly couples sitting out underneath a makeshift shade drinking cocktails in the hot midday sun
Like last known survivors of a post-apocalyptic event
We got set back on course by the friendly self-declared 'ranger' of the place, jovial man, bearded, lived in a converted old school bus
My brother, getting too close for comfort...
I had asked Jim before we set out and was told that it's near the King Waves Kill sign
But we took a wrong turn (we shouldn't have turned at all, it's right behind the KWK sign) and ... landed up in a very surreal grey nomad community
Large satellite dishes outside, trailers and caravans that don't look like they're fit (or want to) to move anymore
Humpies, shacks, sheds and tents made from scrap metal, wood, discards
And elderly couples sitting out underneath a makeshift shade drinking cocktails in the hot midday sun
Like last known survivors of a post-apocalyptic event
We got set back on course by the friendly self-declared 'ranger' of the place, jovial man, bearded, lived in a converted old school bus
My brother, getting too close for comfort...
<116>
Zichar
Senior Member
I thought this turned out well
The Indian Ocean rushing in to cut shapes into the cliffs
There was an old man to the left with videocam in hand
Of whom his travelling companions, two other elderly women kept shouting at him to come back, don't venture too far
Let's just say this wave licked him good, and he was lucky to just get wet
Running back on tip-toe, the craggy rocky floor like garottes to ankles
The Indian Ocean rushing in to cut shapes into the cliffs
There was an old man to the left with videocam in hand
Of whom his travelling companions, two other elderly women kept shouting at him to come back, don't venture too far
Let's just say this wave licked him good, and he was lucky to just get wet
Running back on tip-toe, the craggy rocky floor like garottes to ankles
<117>
jeffchanjj
New Member
great series! :thumbsup:
love #117
love #117
Zichar
Senior Member
Thanks jeffchanjj, I try
I've got a lot of discards actually
More memories than photographic quality
>>
The puddles should have been an indicator of how far the water comes up to
Sequence of hammering waves: really makes you feel small and vulnerable
<118>
Zichar
Senior Member
In the back of our minds we wondered how dangerous it would be
To get caught out here in the darkness
My feet snagged a few times on the rocks, tripping up
Falling didn't seem like a pleasant experience
But the allure of the setting sun, an endpoint, was hard to resist
To get caught out here in the darkness
My feet snagged a few times on the rocks, tripping up
Falling didn't seem like a pleasant experience
But the allure of the setting sun, an endpoint, was hard to resist
<124>
Zichar
Senior Member
We left when the first few surfers decide to towel off, stow their boards in cubby holes and safe crevices
Let this burly man pass us on the narrow track and trailed him heading back to camp
Swift and sure footed, he jogged effortlessly, running on the balls of his feet
Lost sight of him pretty quickly, readied torchlight in hand
By the time we reached our tent, it was dark, the glowing embers of the sun reflecting off our SUV
Let this burly man pass us on the narrow track and trailed him heading back to camp
Swift and sure footed, he jogged effortlessly, running on the balls of his feet
Lost sight of him pretty quickly, readied torchlight in hand
By the time we reached our tent, it was dark, the glowing embers of the sun reflecting off our SUV
<126>
Headed up north rather than the usual south
Brought my folks and brother along with the wifey - we've never had a family trip in ages and I saved enough to take them for hols abroad
Least I could do now that I'm making my own dough
Here's one of favorites to kick start the journey
Many thanks to Ryan for the inspiration
Planned to be at the seaside cliffs during the new moon, far far from civilisation
Cold, windy, dark and chilly with marauding kangaroos around the tent and campsite
Still so worth it, I have never seen so many stars in my life...
<1>
Wow, looks so cosmical! Love it..
The boundaries that separates sky and Earth
Thanks for sharing this awesome photo!!!
Zichar
Senior Member
Wow, looks so cosmical! Love it..
The boundaries that separates sky and Earth
Thanks for sharing this awesome photo!!!
Thanks flyfox
Rats I forgot to upload the cropped version, bits of the tent still visible on the bottom right ;p
>>
To save on costs we cooked almost all our dinners, plus it's a chore to eat out in small towns
And a staple for us at meals would be seafood, almost always fresh and relatively cheap
At Carnarvon, we had the most heavenly blue swimmer crabs, recommended by the Thorntree forum
It gets less prominence here, superceded by its meatier cousins the mud crabs
Honestly, the most succulent and sweet cold crabs I've ever had
When we walked in, the strong savoury smell of steamed crabs wafted by our noses
Peering through the glass separating the retail and prep room,
Stacks of crabs lined up atop each other in metal cages await a quick dunk into the vat of boiling water
We asked, and the store lady turned around to question the man who walked out the prep room
So Bob what do we do with all that broth?
*shrug* Throw it out I guess
Gasp, such sweet stock or reduced to make a sauce!
Checking my mental inventory, we didn't have a container of sorts and we left bearing no juice...
<127>
- Thought I'd add that ~3 weeks ago Carnarvon was hit with the worst flood ever. 3 years worth of rain in 22 hours.
As an agricultural town, the weather was suitable for tropical fruits - bananas, mangoes, papayas, pineapples.
The drought was a problem, dirt spit up from moving cars cover leaves and inhibit the synthesis of plant food
Warning signs abound to keep to <10km/h(!) especially near new shrubs/nurseries
Large fine mesh nets surround plantations, like mosquito nets around a four poster bed
It was so dry the Gascoyne riverbed was nothing but dirt, as we trundled over on the massive bridge spanning, well, brown sand
Well the flood put paid to all that, billions of dollars worth of crops and machinery wiped out
Reading the news and seeing the pictures were horrific
Our fuel saviour gas station in <112> was totally under water up until the roof, only the large sign in front was prominently above
Low lying fields, pastoral farms and ranches such as the Bidgemia Station, some of which has been in existence for almost 100years were submerged
Cattle die, cold and unable to swim, get to higher ground (nonexistent!)
The station next to the one we stayed in was also flooded until the roofs
Concerned I emailed Jim and Bec though and thankfully theirs is on higher ground and less affected
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giantcanopy
Senior Member
Really gotta thank Ryan for this
I fall in love everytime I look at this scene
Tried to get some foregound within the frame - our tents and Max's dad's ute
That's either coma at the top or the beginnings of a trail from too a shutter speed set too long
<128>
u r too modest. how long was ur exposure and what u used to make the shot ? i think my last attempt with the siggy 12-24mm at the 12mm end wide open was a touch soft, urs looks sharp and clean.
Ryan
Zichar
Senior Member
Thanks Sam, you've got great shots in your Uluru thread too. Looks like you enjoyed yourself thoroughly, more importantly
Thanks Ryan, looking back, could definitely have done better in some scenarios
That's the worst part, wistful regret, not as if I can simply transport myself back there to try again
Then again, hopefully I can remember these mental notes the next time I travel!
Used the 17-35mm on a D700: f/2.8 ISO800 and 83s - guess that was much too long, i.e. trails were happening
Edges are smeared and smudgy too, noise plus the lens can be quite prone to this
Had to crop off the left side, didn't notice I took in the corner of a solar panel! I didn't even know it was there ;p
>>
Whipped out my compass to get a bearing of the South
This was the third take, it's annoyingly long wait when you don't get it right
Furthest right I could go without getting the water tank in the picture , sigh
If I wasn't that afraid of meeting up with snakes or what-nots
My wife told my brother and I to keep quiet and listen
At first the wind and the waves were too strong
But after awhile when you get used to and tune them out and still your heart
I heard chewing! Permitting myself a short burst of torchlight, we were startled (my wife pleasantly but my I almost jumped)
by a kangaroo foraging not 6ft from where we were, right beside our tent
Its eyes gleaming red and white, shook its head out of dismay at being found out perhaps, and bound away
Gave this a bluish tint, looks more ... sci-fi/futuristic? Very prominent on the Milky Way shots I must say
I don't know what the 'flares' are, they appear in all my other shots of this location
Thanks Ryan, looking back, could definitely have done better in some scenarios
That's the worst part, wistful regret, not as if I can simply transport myself back there to try again
Then again, hopefully I can remember these mental notes the next time I travel!
Used the 17-35mm on a D700: f/2.8 ISO800 and 83s - guess that was much too long, i.e. trails were happening
Edges are smeared and smudgy too, noise plus the lens can be quite prone to this
Had to crop off the left side, didn't notice I took in the corner of a solar panel! I didn't even know it was there ;p
>>
Whipped out my compass to get a bearing of the South
This was the third take, it's annoyingly long wait when you don't get it right
Furthest right I could go without getting the water tank in the picture , sigh
If I wasn't that afraid of meeting up with snakes or what-nots
My wife told my brother and I to keep quiet and listen
At first the wind and the waves were too strong
But after awhile when you get used to and tune them out and still your heart
I heard chewing! Permitting myself a short burst of torchlight, we were startled (my wife pleasantly but my I almost jumped)
by a kangaroo foraging not 6ft from where we were, right beside our tent
Its eyes gleaming red and white, shook its head out of dismay at being found out perhaps, and bound away
Gave this a bluish tint, looks more ... sci-fi/futuristic? Very prominent on the Milky Way shots I must say
I don't know what the 'flares' are, they appear in all my other shots of this location
<129>
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Here's one of the pano stitches that PS refused to align
I had 4 more shots to the left for the space
The dry brush on the right as anchor,
And then the sweeping wide land
With the riverbed, snaking into the horizon
Intentions and executions, another tale of incongruous outcomes
<65>
Thanks mate, was there any that caught your interests?
With the panos that you have, if the weather isn't looking too good in your shots try HDR or some post processing to give your photos some extra punch (but not too much). People often appreciate the perspectives of wide angle shots, like "wow this view is so awesome you should've been here to see it", but can be undermined by the lack of the weather (which really is a big influence on our mood sometimes). For shots like this I would think about the greatest landscapes I would often dream about like the canyons of Arizona or whatever and think about how would I try and justify this view if I was in the same place.
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