Australian Landscape Photography | What's New in January 2025 | Landscape Photos | Nature Photos

Photographer's Blog: Friday, January 31, 2025

NSW Hills, Lakes & Rocks

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A new year brought a fresh start and with it a welcome break during which I naturally went hunting for landscape photos. Summer tends to be a bit uninspiring photographically speaking. The cloudless skies can be boring, and the hot weather not conducive to hiking. So, I set off with low expectations, just hoping to get outdoors and explore.

A night long drive deposited me in Jindabyne, that wonderful alpine town so blessed with mountains and lakes that it draws holiday makers from near and far. My dawn shoot came to nothing, so I spent the day catching up on sleep and focused on sunset instead. I had a composition overlooking Lake Jindabyne and the village that I had been working on, sporadically, for years. It was almost without thought that I found myself once more set up and awaiting the end of the day.

Finally on this occasion the light decided to grant me something amazing, with wonderful golden streaks beaming through a layer of cloud and balancing nicely against the cooler tones of the sky and lake surface. The wind, which can often play havoc with getting tree leaves sharp, was unusually calm on this evening, resulting in a very detailed image.

I had my heart set on the main range of Kosciuszko, so having arranged a Parks Pass earlier in the day I was able to drive up to Charlottes Pass in the wee small hours and start the classic summit loop walk clockwise, by hiking through the dark. Being fresh and well rested I soon made the Kosciuszko summit turn off. The summer night was bitterly cold, but the experience of being alone in the alpine air was exhilarating.

A fierce gale was up, so I decide to abandon the summit, and continue passed Albina Lake trudging along wearily before finally arriving at Carruthers Peak about an hour before sunrise. Exhausted I layered up to keep warm, then wandered about looking for a good composition that was out of the wind. Before long a new day burst into the valley with warm orange hues. I was able to capture the scene overlooking the cute little Club Lake in its glacial bowl and complete the loop back to the carpark before most others were out of bed. A tiring but fun adventure.

Over the next few days I divided my time, doing sunsets in the Blue Mountains and sunrises on the Sydney coast. My original dawn target was the Sydney habour bridge, but after a nightmare drive through endless roadworks and confusing detours that forced me over the bridge twice, I eventually discovered it was closed due to new years events. As a country dweller I do not enjoy city driving, so I was happy to escape, even without an image.

The next dawn I worked my way down to Avalon Beach, which was a much nicer experience. I had the place almost to myself that morning and was granted some lovely pink clouds and golden light. Meanwhile, in the Blue Mountains my sunset attempts were all focused on one scene, the Walls Lookout off Bells Line of Road.

My first attempt at photographing the Walls Lookout did not go too well. I arrived well ahead of sunset and spent an enjoyable time composing an image, before settling in to wait. The peace was lovely then suddenly I was totally inundated with dozens of base jumpers, who immediately took over the area with lots of gear, noise and bluster. Politely enquiring did not help, they had no intension of sharing the space. Normally outdoorsy people I meet are considerate. Somewhat shaken, I packed up, hiking out empty handed.

The next day the forecast was looking very promising, so I returned to the scene, once again arriving early, setting up the shot, and awaiting the light. Incredibly I was once more surrounded by another large group, this time rope swingers. Yes, it is a thing. Attached to climbing ropes, they leap into the void then ascend the ropes back up. They were mostly international tourists, young and vibrant, but fortunately this time also very considerate of others and appreciative of the beauty of our natural world. In fact, we had some enjoyable conversations, whilst finding a way for everyone to share the space.

I shot and reshot the scene between their jumps. The sunset, as if encouraged by how well we were treating one another, decided to reward us with some truly epic light. Amazing beams of gold fired down into the impressive valley, whilst dark storm clouds gathered overhead. It was most certainly an evening to remember. Walking out I was grinning with happiness, not just for the conditions that provided this image, but also from the pleasure of speaking to other souls who appreciate nature in all its beauty and wonder.

From here I headed south again, relocating to Kanangra Walls. Having already spent a crazy amount of time photographing this area in passed years I was just wanting to dip in for quick sunset before heading off again. Luck was with me and the light was nice, offering wild red-orange hues. I chose to shoot wide making a feature of some foreground rocks that had caught my imagination.

Needing a plan, I checked the forecast and determined my best bet was the south coast of NSW. Over a few days I tried to capture several scenes. One that was worthy of inclusion here came from an evening at Wollongong Breakwater Lighthouse. Being quite familiar with this subject I knew the biggest issue would be people, but as luck would have it everyone politely walked around me, leaving the composition free. I was grateful for the opportunity and even more so when the light became intensely colourful resulting in one of my favourite shots of the trip.

I used my last few days to explore more coastal views and managed to have some success at the inspiring little Lone Tree Rock near Bermagui. Access is, shall we say, problematic even at the lowest of tides, involving sections of rock scrambling over slippery, and potentially crumbly outcrops higher off the ground than might be expected, with the waves almost guaranteed to strike the would-be adventurer. With that said, there is certainly something dramatic and appealing about this scene that keeps luring me back for one more attempt. On this morning the light delivered the goods, so I chose a very low camera angle to include more sky whilst emphasizing a delightful little rock pool that was casting a reflection of that peculiar solitary tree on its rocky throne.

That brings us to the end of this photography trip. My next adventures will likely be local, at least until the weather starts to cool. I hope your summer is safe. Thanks for reading, and a big thanks to print buyers who continue to support my work. All the best until next time.

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

What's New in January 2025

LARGE Panoramas - Suitable for enormous prints metres wide.

MEDIUM Format - Latest technology. Easily suitable for prints 60 inches and beyond.

NSW Hills, Lakes & Rocks

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