Australian Landscape Photography | What's New in November 2024 | Landscape Photos | Nature Photos

Photographer's Blog: Wednesday, November 6, 2024

NSW Blue Mountains to Coast

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Springtime this year brought with it an opportunity for another landscape photography trip. With our lad on school holidays, he and I took to the road and forged north into New South Wales, driving for ten hours or so to our first location, Royal National Park just below Sydney. The next day was hot and sunny, so not ideal, but I managed to haul all our camera gear down to the famous Figure Eight Pool, lured by the promise of a low tide at sunset. I had done my research this time and knew this spot was popular.

Unfortunately, not only was the light bland, but the ocean swell was still something to contend with despite being low, putting me off spending more time at the scene. I had heard horror stories of visitors being engulfed, so we retreated without taking a shot. Grateful to have, at least, stretched our legs we clambered back up the steep track and made plans to relocate.

A night drive took us to Catherine Hill Bay, where dawn found us in position at a spot we had scouted a few times. The old jetty here faces into the rising sun which is to much of an opportunity to ignore. That morning started out looking grim indeed. Low cloud blocked the light and our hopes. With tripods and cameras set up we were half asleep on the rocks, waiting for the dawn, when suddenly it was all happening. A wild magenta light was there only for maybe five minutes, but that was enough to obtain a few variations of shutter speeds. I eventually chose a long exposure, which reflects the peace and calm I was feeling. Such a lovely spot to relax, particularly early, well before it gets crowded.

Having a keeper in the bag so early in a photography trip really helped to lift our spirits, making up for bailing the day before. The lucky streak followed us to Norah Head Lighthouse where the sunset delivered a dramatic view, in stark contrast to the many times I had previously failed to create an image here. I selected my composition based on wave action and the direction of the setting sun, and then proceeded to reshoot many hundreds of variations until it was too dark to continue. Later I chose a frame that contained the most interesting foreground action. The waves were exciting to witness, so hopefully this shot captures the dramatic mood.

A quick review showed no promising weather forecast for the coast, so we decided to head inland to one of our favourite haunts, the beautiful Blue Mountains west of Sydney. Having already explored the region countless times over several decades I knew we would be in for some invigorating but greatly enjoyable hiking.

Our boy had not seen the undercliff track at Wentworth Falls yet, so we ticked that early before it got too hot, then spent the afternoon investigating Rigby Hill near Blackheath, ultimately finding a composition deserving of our attention. The evening conditions were windy and cloudless, so basically unusable, but we returned later in the trip and reshoot it under better light, coming away with one of my favourite images of the journey.

On one of the following days I got it into my head to show our youngster the southern end of the range, namely Kanangra Walls at Kanangra Boyd National Park. We spent several long hours in the car, on windy roads, dodging potholes before finally arriving at the entrance. Incredibly the gate was locked, with signs up about access being temporarily closed. What a disappointment. It takes all of 30 seconds to put that kind of detail into Google Maps or Waze. We did just that ourselves, so others need not suffer the same fate, then departed, driving all the way back again, our lad calling out pothole warnings every few minutes.

With the whole day wasted and running out of daylight, I was hard pressed to come up with a sunset plan in time, but through the miracle of the internet, one option presented itself to us, namely Hassans Walls at Lithgow. I had not seen this location before and was pleasantly surprised to find easy access and some amazing views, only somewhat marred by drivers looking like ants far below us on the Great Western Highway.

Sunset appears to bring the most interesting light to this location, and including the sun itself into the scene offers some potential drama. The main issue here is whether to feature the highway or seek to compose an image in such a way as to avoid it entirely. Obviously on this occasion I decided to embrace the man-made structure, which imposes itself upon the otherwise natural landscape.

Of course, some blazing colourful clouds would have been appreciated, but the reality of photography, particularly this far from home, is that conditions are almost never perfect. The secret is to see beauty in the world and keep trying to capture it, as it stands on the day. Eventually such efforts tend to be rewarded, such as this occasion when the last of the direct golden light painted the cliffs a vibrant orange hue.

I had recently been given a lightweight Jet Boil as a birthday present. Earlier in the trip we had made one comically disastrous attempt at pancakes, but I figured we had the knack of it this time. That evening we successfully enjoyed using it to cook up some hearty warm pasta, so we would be well fed for an early morning adventure. Waking up well ahead of sunrise, we trekked from Blackhealth down to Hanging Rock by torch light. Over 100 metres high it is split away from the main cliff and towers over the Grose Valley like some kind of preposterous guardian.

Arriving with plenty of time to spare I used previous knowledge of the scene to set up tripods in the dark, always very careful of the potentially unstable cliff. There is nothing but common sense between you and the void. As we stood in the dawn light, waiting for the sun, a fellow hiker decided to brave a dangerous leap onto this crazy structure and pose. Normally I do everything I can to avoid people in my landscape images, but on this occasion, I felt the tiny figure helped to provide a sense of scale to this grand valley and its craggy sentinel.

After walking out, and some well-earned lunch in Blackheath, we spent the remainder of the day scouting walks around nearby Centennial Glen. Somehow, after so many years of visiting the Blue Mountains, I had missed this quite accessible but very pleasant area. We were captivated by the photographic potential at the Grotto, but decided it needed more water and less people.

We returned here a day or two later, during a light rain, which solved both the issue of water levels and visitors. Our boy hopped into the slot canyon like a mountain goat, dancing across a wet narrow ledge, but I needed more convincing. Loaded down with a heavy pack I chose a circuitous route, labouring my way inelegantly though safely, to avoid risking a fall. Once you reach a certain age, a potential 10-foot plunge seems like something best avoided.

We worked the scene, shooting high and low, near and far, long and short, slow and quick. The net result was a plethora of options from which I later chose, some weeks later whilst processing the images, by selecting the one that best exhibited the foreground motion caused by floating leaves and foam caught in a never ending spiral. Hopefully you like it.

With rain still hovering, we had just enough time in the late afternoon to visit a waterfall. Despite my familiarity with the Blue Mountains, I had managed to be unaware of what might be considered the low hanging fruit of Witches Leap Falls. It is only a few metres from the road, making it the perfect spot for us that day. The light rain provided foggy conditions that transformed the forest into a wonderland of mystery and delight. At the falls two compositions were immediately compelling. Unable to choose, I captured both, making the best use of that amazing foggy atmosphere. Walking out in the dark we saw a lyrebird. Usually quite a rare thing, this added treat capped off a great day. It is sharing experiences like this that mean the world to me.

Under more rain the coastal area of Wyrrabalong National Park back at Norah Head and its amazing red gums were calling me. I had previously geo-tagged several potential compositions on my phone, and wrote myself some notes, determined to return under better conditions. You might assume the natural response to rain would be to drive away, seeking clearer skies, but for the landscape photographer rain can be a good thing, particularly in woodlands. Firstly, because wet foliage and bark tends to draw out colour from a forest scene, and secondly because rain can create layers of separation much like fog.

Armed with an umbrella and raincoat we quickly hiked back to each composition, selected the best, and set up camera gear. The red gums, now dripping wet, looked vibrantly colourful. There was some wind, which is to be expected, but waiting for lulls and reshooting many times with a fast shutter speed, solved that issue. I chose a moderately long focal length to avoid including too much sky and focus stacked the final image, to ensure depth of field carried from the foreground feature tree into the background.

Running out of days, we drove south to Cooma, heading back via Kosciuszko National Park where we investigated another high-country mountain hut for my collection. The light was not suitable, but it was a nice way to finish the trip sitting on some grass beside a river watching the sun go down. Eventually we were back in Victoria and being greeted with hugs and laughter, surrounded by the familiar comforts of home.

That is all for this trip report. As always, thanks for reading and I hope you find some peace in nature in your own lives, with or without a camera.

Photographic Print Only		US Dollars
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$20 US
10" x 15"	25cm x 38cm	$25 US
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$35 US
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$55 US
20" x 30"	51cm x 76cm	$65 US
24" x 36"	61cm x 91cm	$85 US
30" x 40"	76cm x 102cm	$100 US
Panoramic Prints		US Dollars
8" x 24"	20cm x 61cm	$35 US
10" x 30"	25cm x 76cm	$50 US
12" x 36"	31cm x 91cm	$60 US
16" x 48"	41cm x 122cm	$100 US
20" x 60"	51cm x 152cm	$160 US
30" x 90"	76cm x 228cm	$185 US
Canvas Prints (Standard)		US Dollars
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$75 US
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$95 US
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$100 US
20" x 30"	51cm x 76cm	$125 US
24" x 36"	61cm x 91cm	$175 US
30" x 40"	76cm x 102cm	$200 US
Canvas Prints (Panoramic)		US Dollars
10" x 30"	25cm x 76cm	$150 US
12" x 36"	31cm x 91cm	$180 US
20" x 60"	51cm x 152cm	$310 US
Metal/Aluminum Prints		US Dollars
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$150 US
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$200 US
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$250 US
20" x 30"	51cm x 76cm	$300 US
24" x 36"	61cm x 91cm	$350 US
30" x 40"	76cm x 102cm	$400 US
Metal/Aluminum Prints (Panoramic)		US Dollars
6" x 18"	15cm x 46cm	$125 US
8" x 24"	20cm x 61cm	$150 US
10" x 30"	25cm x 76cm	$200 US
12" x 36"	31cm x 91cm	$250 US
16" x 48"	41cm x 122cm	$400 US
20" x 60"	51cm x 152cm	$550 US
30" x 90"	76cm x 228cm	$1000 US

Timber Framed Prints		Australian
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$172 AUD
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$245 AUD
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$300 AUD
Photographic Print Only		Australian
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$27 AUD
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$33 AUD
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$70 AUD
20" x 30"	51cm x 76cm	$92 AUD
Panoramic Prints		Australian
4" x 12"	10cm x 31cm	$27 AUD
6" x 18"	15cm x 46cm	$33 AUD
8" x 24"	20cm x 61cm	$70 AUD
10" x 30"	25cm x 76cm	$92 AUD
16" x 48"	41cm x 122cm	Please use US Printer
20" x 60"	51cm x 152cm
30" x 90"	76cm x 228cm
33" x 100"	84cm x 254cm	Available On Request (Email)
40" x 120"	102cm x 305cm	Available On Request (Email)
Canvas Prints (Standard)		Australian
8" x 12"	20cm x 31cm	$132 AUD
12" x 18"	31cm x 46cm	$172 AUD
16" x 24"	41cm x 61cm	$224 AUD
20" x 30"	51cm x 76cm	$285 AUD
Canvas Prints (Panoramic)		Australian
4" x 12"	10cm x 31cm	$132 AUD
6" x 18"	15cm x 46cm	$172 AUD
8" x 24"	20cm x 61cm	$224 AUD
10" x 30"	25cm x 76cm	$285 AUD
20" x 60"	51cm x 152cm	Please use US Printer
33" x 100"	84cm x 254cm	Available On Request (Email)
40" x 120"	102cm x 305cm	Available On Request (Email)
Poster		Australian
15" x 23"	39cm x 59cm	$25 AUD
22" x 33"	56cm x 84cm	$40 AUD
31" x 47"	79cm x 119cm	$70 AUD
Postcard		Australian
4" x 6"	10cm x 15cm	$3 AUD
Greeting Card with Envelope		Australian
4" x 6"	10cm x 15cm	$4.50 AUD
5" x 7.5"	13cm x 19cm	$7.00 AUD

Australian Landscape & Nature Photography by Michael Boniwell

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NSW Blue Mountains to Coast

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