Y Is For Yellow

Never Be Scared Of A Photographic Challenge

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

The shots for today’s post were all taken at a single spot, the historic Sandridge Bridge that joins the north and south banks of the Yarra River. This was initially the site of a timber bridge but by the late 1980s it was derelict and its future was the subject of lively debate.

In 2006, just before Melbourne hosted the Commonwealth Games, it was re-opened as a pedestrian footbridge, cutting diagonally across the river. A series of unique giant figures that move across the bridge and back each day; as well as a set of towering glass panels pay tribute to Melbourne’s multicultural past.

The significance of the figures, and the migrant spirit they evoke, was detailed in my photo essay Action Figures.

Because the bridge is painted in the distinctive hues of gun-metal grey and vivid yellow, I made my way there on a recent morning. My self-imposed challenge was to shoot a quick series of images for this post in a) less than five minutes and b) to do so in just a single crossing of the bridge.

This first shot was taken at the southern end of the bridge, where I was looking for an unusual angle and noticed that someone had wedged a green milk crate between the metal sections. Naturally, I had to take the shot not just because of the unusual object, but also because it gave me an extra colour and a bit more structure in the frame.


I was walking across the bridge at parade ground speed when I noticed the end of this chrome handrail. There was a pedestrian walking towards me, so I had to compose the shot and hit the trigger very quickly, or else he would have walked into the frame.

As for this view, I have absolutely no idea what the original purpose of these circular devices was. Maybe there’s an experienced engineer out there who can explain what they’re for. Certainly, it’s part of the original structure of the bridge, and they are placed at regular intervals, so I guess they served some long-forgotten purpose.

Right now, they’re simply an intriguing shape, size – and colour, of course.


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Grey Anatomy

Yes, There Is Grace In Any View

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Why did I take this shot? I'll explain in a minute - but mainly this caught my eye because of the many different shapes. Straight lines? Check. Arcs? Check. Semi-circles? Check. Angles? Check. Scrolls? Check. A triangle? Check. I guess it's not often you get all that - and a monochrome to boot - in one frame.

A few days ago, I was just shooting some random scenes across the Sandridge Bridge. I was on the bridge for less than five minutes, but in that time, in a typically Melbourne way, the light kept changing whimsically. There was scattered cloud, so the conditions kept alternating between dull and bright, without any apparent warning.

As the clouds scudded across the horizon, the sun shone brightly as I stood admiring this bollard on the bridge. I’m not an architect, so I have no idea if this structure serves a decorative purpose or if it has a particular function. What I can tell you is that when the light was at its strongest, I was quickly compelled to pick up my camera and shoot the strong shapes.

Riveting Stuff

Cross That Bridge When You Come To It

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Here's another one of the experiments I enjoy. Take one frame with the immediate foreground in sharp focus; then take the next frame with the background in sharp focus. I took this while standing on the Sandridge Bridge, looking east across the Yarra, towards the arch of the footbridge. I was going to photograph the approaching tourist ferry when I noticed the unusual rounded shape of the grey-painted rivets. For the second shot, I reversed the focus, with the rivets in soft focus (and almost unobtrusive) and the ferry in sharp focus.