The Gift Of A Voice

That’s Not A Disability, That’s A Real Ability

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

I shot this about a week ago, on one of those interesting Melbourne days when you’re not quite sure what the weather is going to do next. Spring was not yet a week old, but the sky was patchy, blue in one area and moody grey in others.

When the sun shone unimpeded, the caress of its rays was balmy. But when the sun slid behind cloud cover, it seemed as if the temperature dived substantially. I was shooting some images across the river when I heard someone singing Simon and Garfunkel tunes.

I looked around, wondering where the sound was coming from. It took me a few seconds to work it out. Then I spotted them - there were two blokes positioned in a corner of the pedestrian footbridge that spans the Yarra River.

The guitarist was able-bodied. The vocalist accompanying him was in a wheelchair. Were they related? I don’t know. But they sure knew how to harmonise.

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Pier Pressure

On The Boardwalk, Without Roy Orbison

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

It's funny how slightly different compositions can emphasise different aspects of the same scene. These shots were taken about ten days ago, late on a winter afternoon here in Melbourne. I was really shooting a couple of tight frames to capture the gunmetal-grey of the metal framework as well as the (unusually grey) wooden pier slats.

But when I looked at them on the camera's LCD screen after I had taken the shots, I noticed the subtle difference in the way the water is depicted.

In the first shot, you hardly notice the gentle ripples of the river in the background. Whereas in the second, the horizontal composition (below) seems to lead the eye to the subtle reflections on the river's surface.


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Summery Hues On A Winter Morning

Despite The Warm Colours, Jack Frost Is Here

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

These images might look as if they were shot on a tropical island, at the start of a scorching day – but they weren’t. They are part of a series that I shot right here in mid-winter Melbourne last Friday, exactly a week ago.

Yes, I deliberately used the silhouettes of a group of tall palm trees in the Alexandra Gardens to highlight the strong burst of colour in the sky – and while it was not a frosty morning, it was still a classic winter day.


Yes, the colours are really unusual for chilly weather, but the strange thing about this series of images is that I almost opted not to shoot anything that morning.

I was actually walking along Southbank, thinking that there was no way I’d get any decent shots that morning, when I noticed the smallest patch of orange cloud under Princes Bridge. Time to change plans, I thought. I kept walking towards the Arts Centre, climbed the steps to the bridge and sure enough, a few minutes later I could see that the hues were starting to build as the sun, still closeted below the horizon, threw the clouds into glorious shades.

It was like watching Nature’s version of Joseph’s coat of many colours. The deep red and the vivid orange began to build up in one area of the horizon.


Fortunately, my standard lens is a Sigma 18-125mm, which gives me sufficient focal length to capture one specific area of a landscape. Yes, I had a 70-300mm lens in my camera bag, but I knew I wouldn’t need it. Most of the frames in the sequence that I shot for the next 30 minutes would have been in the range of 80-125mm.

Did I miss any shots? Yes, I was looking the wrong way when a lone seagull literally came flying towards me with the vivid dawn directly behind him. I swung the camera up hurriedly, but missed the shot completely. Instead, I had to make do a few seconds later, when a flock of birds flew over the river with the Melbourne Cricket Ground as a backdrop.


At one stage, I wondered if I could possibly get a slightly different perspective on the horizon, rather than just shooting across the Yarra River. Why?

Because sometimes it is easy to become fixated on a stunning horizon, getting into a comfort zone and ignoring other devices or possibilities in the vicinity. As I looked for a different point of view, I had a broad grin on my face when I realised I was literally standing over a visual gold mine. You see, I was leaning on the edge of the bridge and as soon as I looked down, I realised all I had to do was step back and use it in the frame.

Easier said than done. In this case, I was shooting from the pedestrian walkway on the far side of the bridge, so I walked to the very edge of the kerb to a point where I could kneel in complete safety as traffic whizzed past. Having found a spot (and shutting out the noise of passing vehicles almost within reach!) I was able to quickly shoot three or four frames through the bridge.


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First Light

A Golden Blanket Over The Yarra River

Melbourne, April 2009. Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Oh Buoy

Some Rivers Have A Slow Eddy, Some A Fast Eddy

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

It was early afternoon and the sun was high in the sky. I was walking beside the southern bank of the Yarra River here in Melbourne. I had the 70-300mm lens on the camera and I was in search of an unusual shot.

That's when I spotted this buoy in the middle of the river. I've seen it hundreds of times, but I've never bothered to try and decipher what the words say, so I figured this was as good a time as any. Because I had a long lens, I was able to zoom in really close and frame a really tight shot.

The clarity of this image is pretty good - because the light was so strong. This is just a low-resolution version of the original, but you can see the moss on the bottom of the buoy, as well as the plastic-encased light that flashes in darkness.

The colour of the water, too, was really interesting - the silvery-grey tone is not something you see often, but maybe it was caused by the sun being directly overhead. It's almost as if the buoy is sitting on a flooded freeway, rather than a wide river.

On the other hand, maybe this was one of the Backstreet Buoys.

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Contract Bridge

Portrait Of A City Coming To Life

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

If you shot an inanimate object every day for a month, you’d still be able to endow it with different qualities each time. Shoot it from a different angle. Shoot it at a different time of day. Shoot it in differing light. Each time, it will look unique.

I’ve shot Princes Bridge several times in the past three years, but I try and cloak it in a different guise each time. That is part of the challenge for any photographer. And trust me, being able to find a different "personality" to any object or scene brings a grin to my face.

These two frames were shot before dawn, without a tripod. The first image was taken from the south bank of the Yarra looking north and the second one (below) was taken from the Flinders Street end of the bridge, looking south from the northern end of the Yarra River.

Why do I like the first image? For more than one reason. Because there was very little wind, the surface of the river looks glassy. That was a great starting point in the composition. Because of pooling light from alongside, the water actually has an emerald-green quality to it, as if someone has spilled a giant vat of oil paint. This in turn is emphasised by the circles of reflection from the lights of the pathway.

This meld of water, reflections, concrete and roadway in the pre-dawn darkness was perfect for what I wanted to achieve. An added bonus – and a fortunate one – was that the silver paintwork had recently been refurbished by a team of contractors, so the side rail of the bridge really stands out as a strong diagonal feature across the frame.

In the image below, I tried to make the most out of the side rail again, using it as my central point of interest in creating the image. The illuminated building is the Victorian Arts Centre, boosted by its own reflection in the water. And the sense of movement in this image comes from a single moving vehicle on the left of the frame, a handy motif of a city coming to life on a workday morning.


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Playing Favourites

Image Conscious (And The Story Behind Each Shot)

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Since this week's Photo Hunt theme is "Favourites", I've tried to select three of my most cherished images, not just for what they depict in colour and form, but for the story that goes with each shot.

2006. Calcutta, India

This was taken on a hot, sticky, intensely humid night during a very brief and unexpected visit to the city where I was born. It was in the middle of the Pujas, the peak Hindu festival season and it was also the night before Id, the major Muslim festival.

At this street bazaar behind the New Market, the crowds were almost impenetrable. There was no threat, no danger, for these were only shoppers in holiday mood. This was no street for someone in a hurry. The car inched along until I decided the best thing was to go on foot in search of some photographs.

I was dripping perspiration when I finally saw a stall selling colourful bangles. I had taken half a dozen frames when I saw this display – and immediately I knew I had a shot to treasure, if only I could get it right.

I steadied myself against the passing crowd. I chose my settings carefully in the darkness, to make the best use of the single naked bulb above the display. And, yes, I ignored the squadron of little green Diwali flies that were biting my scalp.


2007. Yarra River, Melbourne

The sun was coming up over the Melbourne Cricket Ground as I walked across Princes Bridge. It was not a frosty morning, but still one of those cold Melbourne dawns – and the blowtorch of golden light reflected on the Yarra River was a breathtaking sight.

As always, there were rowers and kayakers on the river and I could see that one was heading on a course that would run parallel to the pooling light. I waited patiently, thankful for the 18-125mm lens that enabled me to frame exactly what I wanted.

I didn’t wait until the low keel was in the middle of the frame. I understand just how powerful an asymmetrical composition can be in terms of emphasis and I wanted the hull and the oars off-centre, so that the liquid gold would be the main focal point and the eye would notice the rower as a value-added bonus to the composition.


2007. Dandenong Road, Melbourne

There are winter fogs in Melbourne, but this was one of the most interesting I’ve ever seen. This was shot at about 5am as I drove down Dandenong Road towards the city.

For all the world, it looked as if someone had smeared orange jelly across my windscreen. I pulled over, put my hazard lights on and because there was no traffic at all I was able to take some interesting semi-ghostly shots looking straight down the road.

But I needed some other object or device, to use as a counterpoint to the striking colour of the fog. I walked down the broad median strip that doubles as the tram tracks – and found my lodestone there. Not only was there a tall palm tree to use in silhouette, there was also a tram shelter. Because of its construction, it not only provided a slender silhouette, but gave me a Shrek-like sheen through the glass panels as well.

The quality of the street lights in the thick fog evoked an image of Dickensian London and it also gave me an interesting reflection across the metal of the tram shelter. I guess this is one of those images that could have been shot in any century, in any city.

There is a certain timeless quality to it and you almost expect to see Bill Sykes and Fagin emerging from the orange gloom.

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Is That Grey, Zane?

Yes, There Is Beauty In A Dull Winter Afternoon

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

I went for a walk at lunchtime this afternoon and, as always, I had my camera with me. As you know, it's winter here in Australia and today was one of those dull, cloudy days when there are endless possibilities with a camera.

The Yarra River was a long ribbon of silver-grey and I wondered how I could possibly capture some of that in isolation. Then, as I walked across Princes Bridge I saw this ancient tree between Federation Square and the riverbank. Its glossy, dark burgundy foliage was the perfect foil for the rippling surface of the river.

This post is in response to Mama Geek and Cecily's new theme, Photo Story Friday. Pay them a visit and see how easy it is to take part. In Mama Geek's own words: "Post photo(s) that you took and simply tell the story behind it. Explain why you pressed the shutter button, what memory it invokes, what we don't know, why you love it or why you don't. Any subject."

Anything to do with photography, you can count me in ... even on a cold winter afternoon. Who said grey wasn't gorgeous?

Silver Ripples

No Smoke On The Water, Just Late-Evening Light

Yarra River, Melbourne, late on Sunday evening.

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Dark Vader

Yes, There's Beauty In A Moody Sky

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

One of the challenges of outdoor photography is that you have to use the existing conditions as they are. You can't change anything. You can't control anything. You can't modify anything as you would in a studio. You can't alter the light. You can't get a landscape to move. You shoot objects as they are. That's part of the joy of photography. You work the angles, you use the light, you choose your viewpoint. And yes, even when there's thick cloud cover, you can find a shot or two.

The first shot (above) in this sequence was taken from Princes Bridge here in Melbourne, looking out over the giant ferris wheel, the Melbourne Cricket Ground and the Yarra River. It was taken about seven months ago, on a bracing, cold winter morning. I took it at 1/15 sec, F4, ISO 800 and at a focal length of 125mm.


Then I took this second shot (above) with the same settings but with the focal length at 78mm. I'm sure you'll agree that even though it's the same scene, the entire ambience is different because I shifted from horizontal to vertical. I composed this shot to make the most of the sky, and to use the single shaft of golden light reflected across the river.


Finally, I shot this third frame (above) to get the whole scene in, with the focal length at only 18mm. I often get asked if I shoot in a set ratio, say, 10 frames for every one frame that I retain. No, I only shoot the frames I need. On this occasion, I shot only three frames and these are the three that I've posted here.

In The Silence Of Dawn

This Must Be The Best Seat In The House

Photographs copyright: DAVID McMAHON

One of the most amazing things about using a camera at dawn is the total silence that envelops you. It's almost as if you're working in a vacuum. These shots were taken some weeks ago, in the cool stillness of an Australian summer dawn, while the rest of the world grappled with winter. There was only a slight breeze across the Yarra River - as you can see from the minor ripples across the surface of the water.

The building you can see is Flinders Street Station, Melbourne's central transport hub. It stretches two city blocks and is always a great sight to behold. But in the darkness or semi-darkness, it is simply magnificent because the golden lighting is cloned as it is reflected in the river. I shot this without a tripod, using an exposure of 1/4th of a sec, F4, ISO 800 and a focal length of only 26mm to get the whole scene in.


This second shot (above) was taken at 0.3 of a sec. F4.5, ISO 800 and a focal length of 34mm because I wanted a different frame altogether. A lot of my new readers might not be aware of this, but I never enhance my shots in any way, nor do I crop them. What you see on this blog is exactly what I see through the viewfinder.

I was very lucky that day - a clear sky and a light breeze is a Godsend for anyone shooting for a reflection in these half-light conditions. All I had to do was line up the shot and press the shutter.

Abridged Version

Someone's Been Keepin' Me In The Dark Again

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

As you know, I always take my camera everywhere. So when I saw these jewel-like reflections on the surface of the Yarra River, I was able to take a photograph immediately. This is not the best view of the Melbourne skyline, and you have to strain your eyes to see the Swan Street bridge spanning one end of this frame to the other - but it's just a "different" view of the city I live in.

To achieve this effect, I didn't shoot it in "panorama" mode; I just shot the whole scene and then cropped out the sky and the river to concentrate on the lights. I never crop my images or modify them in any way, but this was one time I felt it was warranted. As for the deep purple tinge to the sky, that's fairly normal here in Melbourne at this time of year.

Ol' Man River

Picasso Might Have Loved This Blue Period

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Sometimes the simplest photograph can bring you great pleasure. This is just a no-frills, straightforward shot taken from the footbridge leading to Flinders Street Station here in Melbourne. But the overwhelming blue tones throughout the scene really grabbed my attention.

I just framed it simply, so that the buildings on either side would dictate the perspective of the scene. We get amazing blue skies here, even in winter. But the thin wisps of cloud here added great value to a very tranquil scene. On the left is Southbank, the recently developed business and arts precinct. On the right is the central business district. And running diagonally across the Yarra River is the disused Sandridge Rail Bridge.

There have also been a few people asking me about the lens I used for the previous shot, titled Paper Moon, showing the sliver of the moon alongside the silhouette of a tree. It was a Sigma 125mm lens and the shot was taken without a tripod in rather mundane circumstances last night. I had actually gone to wheel the garbage bin onto the nature strip, then I saw the moon - and did what you would expect of me. I left the bin exactly where it was and rushed in to get the camera. I've certainly got my priorities right!

Ripple Effect

Ribbons Of Light Across The River

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Maybe I'm attracted to water because I grew up in a wonderful, rambling house next to the Kidderpore docks in Calcutta, India. I also enjoy photographing the Yarra River here in Melbourne, because it shows many colours and many moods. This shot was taken pre-dawn, shooting across from the other bank, so I was using my 125mm lens. The picture is not enhanced in any way, so what you see here is exactly what I shot. I took only one frame, wthout a tripod, but I'm rather pleased with the result. The soft glow of the lights has been transformed into gentle ribbons across the black surface of the eddying river. Gotta be happy with that.

FOOTNOTE: Do slow eddies eventually become Fast Eddies?

Click here: Pentax K100D, Shutter speed 1/4, F4.5, ISO speed 800.

Come Hull Or High Water

Official Vessel For Mister Deck Cheney

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

As a kid, I was always told to frame the whole subject in the viewfinder. This time, I just broke the golden rule, but it was a deliberate experiment. As this tourist cruise boat made its way down the Yarra River in brilliant sunlight, I figured it would be fun to experiment. So I picked my spot carefully, allowed this trailing branch to obscure the vessel - and concentrated on the reflection instead. I thought I'd pick a nautical theme for International Talk Like A Pirate Day - but there were no peglegs, parrots or eye patches on view. Not even a Long John sliver. Sorry, me hearties.

FOOTNOTE: I've failed to find skill and crossbones.

Nice River, Phoenix

A Night In Shining Armour

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

I'm full of admiration for those photographers who spend hours or days waiting for the one perfect shot. But as a full-time journalist and father, I don't have that sort of time on my hands. This shot, taken on Friday, is the perfect example of why I always have my camera with me. I was at a traffic intersection after taking an exit off the Monash Freeway - when I noticed that the night-time reflections looked almost metallic on the Yarra River. I knew I only had about 30 or 40 seconds before the lights turned green.

With my right hand I hit the button to lower the passenger-side window. With my left I grabbed the camera bag. I only had time to compose and shoot one quick, hand-held frame when I should have really been using a tripod.

I concentrated on the reflection - which is why you can see the blur on the traffic that was moving on the other side of the Yarra. Not perfect, by any means - but it shows that you can take a photograph in the blink of an eye, if your camera is within arm's reach.

Click here: Pentax K100D, Shutter speed 1/1, F5.6, ISO speed 800.

The Sound Of Silence

All Is Quiet, Under The Blanket Of Fog

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

You know the really strange thing about fog? Everything sounds quieter when the fog rolls in. Melbourne is a very quiet city, even when the business district is bustling. But when it's foggy like this, it's almost as if the dampness cloaks the sounds of everyday life. As you can see, it was a really foggy morning today. I like this shot because the only real colour is the red on the sign and the light, rendered amber by the fog and reflected in the surface of the Yarra River.

Click here: Pentax K100D, Shutter 1/60, F 6.7, ISO speed 400.

Window Pain

Global Warping: The Problem Starts Here

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Sometimes everything just falls into place and you say ``Thank you, God'' and take the shot. This is actually the side of an office building, but the glass facade gives us a wonderful - albeit fractured - view of the partial city skyline across the Yarra River. We had a patchy sky this afternoon and you can see the multitude of shades reflected here. I had to hurry to line up this shot, because the bloke walking past really puts the whole scene in perspective. I reckon it's a fairly compelling image, like one of those trick mirrors at a fair.

Click here: Pentax K100D, Shutter 1/250, F8.0, ISO speed 200.

Deck Whittington

Imagine If The Boy Stood On The Burdened Deck

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Even on a day when the sky is cloudy one moment and clear the next (it's a Melbourne thing - and we love it) there are still some striking images to be captured. My attention was drawn to the blue and yellow hull of this tourist-trip vessel, and of course the diffused reflection on the surface of the Yarra River. I paint watercolours, but this sight has convinced me to try oils as well. Stay tuned for an update ...

Scull And Crossbones

Don’t Pull Out The Hot Cross Bung

Photograph copyright: DAVID McMAHON

Want to see Olympic medallists in training? Then your best chance is to rise before dawn and stand in the cold and the dark beside the Yarra, the river on which Melbourne was founded. Among the school and university-level crews that scythe silently through the inky water are also the elite sportsmen and women who bring back medals of every colour from international sports meets. This shot was taken just before dawn, using the 18-125 lens on my Pentax K100D, because this quad sculls crew was across the river, near the north bank. It was taken without a tripod, as the crew sped past. I must have done something right, because the frame stands up well, even at A4 size.