Looking south over Manhattan from the top of the Rockefeller building.
I couldn’t resist framing this vista of Manhattan’s skyscrapers through the iron arches along the top of the Rockefeller building. I loved the contrast of old and new.
I took this photo on the train going to work. The earring of the woman in front of me glittered and sparkled in the brilliant sunshine that streamed through the window to my right. I stealthily dug out my camera, adjusted the settings for the bright light, focused on the earring — and pressed the shutter button just as the train plunged into a tunnel. Oops! Despite being so underexposed, there’s something about this photo that I quite like. In a way, it reminds me of pop art from the 1960s.
The eye splice in these mooring lines form a loop that drops over the bollard. These two belong to ‘Lord Nelson’, seen in Galle, Sri Lanka.
I’ve gone for a nautical interpretation of this week’s eye theme.
An eye in a coil of rope.
ANZ building, Martin Place – steel skeleton
The ANZ building in Martin Place, Sydney, is undergoing a revamp — although “revamp” is an understatement in this case. The existing building was stripped back to nothing but the grid of its steel skeleton, then a new structure was built onto that. Unusually, it was not swathed in scaffolding and netting during the dismantling stage, which gave the public a rare insight into how such buildings are constructed. I walk past this building to get to and from work, and was fascinated to see more of the skeleton revealed each day. Now that it’s just one more shiny-sided glass office tower, however, I’ve lost my interest.
ANZ building, Martin Place – steel skeleton
Here it is during the Vivid light festival in May 2014, lit in rather lurid purples and magentas.
ANZ building, Martin Place and tree, Vivid 2014
Rainbow lorrikeet looking for food in a palm tree.
Rainbow lorrikeets can be a real pain when a flock of the screeching, squabbling little guys settle outside your bedroom window at 5am, but there’s no denying they are cheeky, colourful characters.
Rainbow lorrikeet looking for food in a palm tree.
Lizard in Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, New Orleans
I photographed this lizard this morning while on a walking tour of Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 in New Orleans. His sudden appearance on a family tomb had a few of us reaching for our cameras, and you can imagine my surprise when he displayed that vivid red and yellow throat flap!
The setting sun throws the engine cowling into harsh relief.
On 23 May I flew from Sydney to San Francisco, on the way to Toronto. I didn’t get much sleep over the Pacific, but the stunning sunset and sunrise at 33,000ft made up for it — almost. 😉
As the sky darkens, a single bright star is visible above the band of intense sunset colour.
Reflections in the engine cowling:
Sunrise:
The horizon is delicate shades of blue and pink, and the rising sun makes metal points on the wing glow as if they were lights.
On ‘Tenacious’ in a Force 10 storm, Atlantic Ocean April 2006. Note the spindrift (spray blown from the crests of waves by the wind), the flying rain, and the water surging onto the deck through the scuppers as the ship rolls.
The Beaufort Wind Scale is used to describe wind intensity based on observed sea conditions. The scale ranges from 0 (calm) to 12 (hurricane), with Force 10 known as a storm. A 10 is characterised by a mean wind speed of 52kt (60mph) and waves with a probable height of 9m (29.5 ft). Sailing through such a storm in a tall ship, you are in no doubt of the force of nature.
Of course, winds of that ferocity do damage — to the ship, the sails and the crew.
Mist in the hills around Cairns.
For someone who insists she is not an early bird, I have a remarkable number of photographs taken very early in the morning! I haven’t inflicted them all on you, but there are quite a few, from various travels. They are in no particular order other than alphabetical by place name.
A man on the beach, Durban.
The pier, Eastbourne.
Boats in Galle harbour, Sri Lanka.
The grounds of the Park Hyatt, Goa.
Great Barrier Reef.
On lookout during the 4am-8am watch, ‘Lord Nelson’, Indian Ocean.
‘Sudarshini’ and ‘Tarangini’ of the Indian Navy, off Kochi.
Fishing boats near Mauritius.
Sailboats at Opua, New Zealand.
Mt Fishtail seen from Pokhara, Nepal.
San Luis de Potosi, Mexico.
Sunrise over Sydney harbour (from my bed at the Shangri La hotel).
Rising sun captured in a gum tree, Sydney.
Martin Place Station, Sydney, 9:14pm
After my evening at Opera on the Harbour last Tuesday, I found myself with 10 minutes to kill before my train arrived. What to do, what to do? I had my camera because I had taken photos at the opera, so I pulled it out and looked around. Hmm, limited possibilities: water fountain, ads, walls, fire extinguisher, benches … benches! Lovely metal benches, perfect for HeyJude’s bench challenge. I could hear a train coming, and thought it would make an interesting backdrop to a shot focused on the bench. But that photo was no good (too cluttered and too many people), and the train was slowing down so it dominated the shot.
Ah, but when the train left, it was perfect. You can make out the station name of Martin Place reflected in the blur of the train at high speed. The woman appeared just as I pressed the shutter button and my first thought was that she had ruined the shot, but she actually added a wonderful human element and a splash of colour. So I ended up with two examples of blur, one intentional and one not. (If you can’t make out the train, have a look at this photo (not mine) which shows one at rest, and you’ll understand the dark shiny look, faint stripes along the top and the pronounced horizontal line.)
I was saving this photo to use in September, when HeyJude’s theme will be metal benches, but it fit this week’s Weekly Photo Challenge too well not to use.
