Burning Ambition

Eternal Flame Honours The Bravest Of The Brave

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

This is the Eternal Flame at the Shrine of Remembrance on St Kilda Road here in Melbourne. With this week's theme being "Hot", I figured there aren't many things that emit more heat than this - and that I would be able to photograph up close. This flame has burned continuously since 1954.

I'm not sure how hot the flame is, but I could feel the intense heat even as I stood beside the metal railings. Have a look at the image (above) and you'll see the temperature is so high that the metal railings in the background have been endowed with a heat shimmer, like a desert mirage.

It was a hot, windy afternoon when I took these photographs. The breeze was really gusting and the flame was blowing wildly, first one side and then the other. It was impossible to take a pre-meditated shot of it, no matter how hard I tried. This was the first photograph I took and I was really pleased with how intense the orange is and how the flame was concentrated in one area.

But I wanted at least one frame with the flame filling the entire screen from left to right. It took a lot of patience and the photograph below was sheer luck. But I guess reverence and silent contemplation are natural in these surroundings.

Melbourne's Definition Of Reverence

The Sound Of Silence

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Melbourne is a city of many moods and this photograph shows the deep symbolism of the Shrine of Remembrance and the collective consciousness of this city. When we first came to live here almost 20 years ago, crowds were dwindling at the dawn service on Anzac Day and there was debate over how long the tradition would last. But the historic pine needles in sharp focus here; and the Shrine with its columns in soft focus, are a powerful magnet.

Before dawn today, Melburnians defined reverence. How? With 35,000 people braving the cold to stand and honour those who died at Gallipoli 92 years ago. That's right, 35,000 people in the darkness, with only the light of the Eternal Flame. In complete and utter silence.