Make a Wish

Cloudy 21ºC

It is simple, consists of many little fluffly seeds, white and round....if you have never looked at it closely it would be just another annoying weed that grows abundantly in your backyards...it is really a very pretty delicate flower...up close, each little seed is a flower in its own right, perched symmetrically upon a pin cushion like base.  Enjoy a macro look into the Taraxacum Officinale, also known as the humble "dandelion" flower...

When seeing them in macro they always remind me of fireworks, every one of them.

But before all that prettiness...this little yellow flower is what makes it all happen...

If you would like to witness the transformation from yellow petals to white seeds click here to see the amazing timelapse video by Neil Bromhall from beginning to end.

You may now close your eyes...make a wish and blow...

 

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Spring Is Here

Sunny 23º

Four of my five senses have finally awoken from months of Winter hibernation...I can see it...smell it...feel it...and hear it!  The spots of colour that Spring brings has arrived, the first warmth of the sun that it also brings is most welcome on my vitamin D deprived skin.  Yesterday's Spring rain in the morning brought me hours of glorious photo time...

Nature's jewels brought by the light Spring rain...

Nature brings me so much inspiration especially when it's at it's happiest.
Hope you all enjoy Spring as much me and my camera do...though will need to stock up on the tissues for the season.

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Those Moments

Taken at the Hunter Valley Gardens 2011

Sometimes, there are 'moments' in our lives when something or someone will trigger a switch in our minds that makes us want to take that walk down memory lane...for me the easiest avenue is plug in one of my older hard drives and click through my photos folders...when my switch got triggered today I found a folder from Easter 2011, a short break we took with my extended family.  A time when my kids still had their baby fat, today they are taller, leaner and meaner.

' SOMETIMES YOU WILL NEVER KNOW THE TRUE
VALUE OF A MOMENT UNTIL IT BECOMES A MEMORY '

How true are these words...to think as I'm typing these words that by the time I finish this blog, this will become memory...memory that will be stored away until one day I'm feeling nostalgic again.

When you have a moment...never forget to reminisce a little...it's well worth the effort...may well bring a smile to your face.

Taken at the Hunter Valley Gardens in 2011

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Reflections on Life Love and Laughter

bbrrrr… it's been a cold start to Winter this year, most days since the start of June have been in the mid to high teens and when we get the occasional 20 degree day we have to soak it all in to get us through the cold ones...although our Autumn was relatively warm this first month of Winter is making me wish Spring would get a move on and defrost us again.

Recently I was going through my sister's Gold Coast photos and found this…an image that would immediately bring the word Reflection to mind, the foremost meaning is of course the image projected on the glass tabletop, which mind you this would be a perfect example of, but then my mind would turn to the other definition of reflection...serious thought or consideration...as this was taken during a trip my five sisters and I took recently, of course this made me reflect on our relationship...

Credits: Condy Lam.

I have an amazing set of sisters, five of them to be exact.  I am the youngest so I do get a little too self absorbed in myself {as most youngest siblings do at times} but all I need to do is spend some time with them and I will pull myself back in line and am able to see the bigger picture easier.  My greatest fortune is that I do get to learn and absorb from them all the positive attitudes that they have to life and our surroundings.  I am not one for expressing my thoughts easily {especially verbally} so I don't often let them know how much they are an influence in my life, but they are.

Laughter is what rings out whenever we're together {a little too loud according to some}.  Sometimes it may be a little hard for people around us to understand our little world.  Our minds think alike and are at times in sync with each other where we have the same thoughts at the same time even when we are not in the same space together or say the same words at the same time when we are in the same space...and at most times we need only say the first few words and we will know what the rest is.

Just wanted to say...

Love you guys, you are all an inspiration in my life more than you could know.

From left: Mei, Grace, Condy, myself, Ming, Wah

My reflection and Me...

Credits: Condy Lam

Credits: Mei Leong

Some more reflections...

I hope that you are all as blessed as I am to have your own set of sisters...brothers...cousins...friends that affect you the same way that they do me.

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VIVID MMXIV II

There were plenty of these cruisers full of Vivid admirers.

Rain 21ºC

We are lucky, we live in near one of the most beautiful harbours in the world, sounds a little boastful I know…but if you have ever flown into Sydney by night all lighted up you would find it very difficult to disagree with me.  And when one of the most amazing light festivals come to town, one visit is just not enough…so last night I went with my little family for another visit, as I had done the MCA and the Opera House the first night I was there, this night would be about the little ones, I found that there were less of the smaller displays compared to last year but I personally thought they were much better in design {some might disagree…one of them just happens to be my hubby} and they were more interactive.

We began as we did last time in Martin Place, unfortunately the water feature that I photographed last time was no longer there, why?, not sure…malfunction, safety issues or just wasn't right for the festival?…it's just gone, I had hoped my kids got to see it. But there were still lots to see…

With this head display you can actually project your own image onto the displays face, quite a novelty for people up for the queueing.

Along the shores of the harbour were various interactive displays...

Despite all the commotion around them these two girls still had time to
be on their phones.

Strictly Sydney…a dance floor.

A wall of projected Magnolias.

And ending with some more beautiful pics of the Harbour Bridge…

I have yet to venture to the Darling Harbour part of the Vivid, not sure I'll make it there this year as there is only one weekend left and I don't really fancy the shoulder to shoulder crowds that the last weekends are famous for…maybe next year.

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Up Top Shoot

Mixed bag 22ºC

I have always loved shooting from above, whether it be food (a lot of foodie photographers would agree with me here), flowers or just simple everyday life stuff, I find it a very interesting and simple angle, effectively turning a 3D subject into a flat 2D image…and it sometimes can produce a very different picture to what you have in mind the subject would produce.

Digging through my archives I found some that I think are great examples of what I mean, that I have done in the last few years…

A tall green bottle rendered into a round ball with a hole.

Leaf sitting atop some 100s & 1000s inside a jar. 

A coffee cup betrayed by it's own shadow.

An egg rendered to resemble the moonscape.

But on my recent trip to the Gold Coast, I found the ultimate up top shot from way up quite by accident  really {of course I have seen many of these shots professionally done}, sitting in the middle seat I wasn't really expecting to shoot from the window but as we flew over beautiful Sydney I couldn't help myself {most who know me will know I often get like that}, off handedly leaned over and disregarding my poor sister who was in the window seat, took some shots out the window not expecting to get any good shots.  But surprisingly I came up trumps and managed a shot over the, I'm guessing, the northern shores of Sydney, even now I can't quite work out where this is…

I know the reflections are not helping this but the little boats,
buildings and curves off the shorelines just makes the image.

We also got the chance to stay at the Q1 Resorts and spent some time on the level 77 viewing deck to continue my new found shooting angle…

Some unsuspecting swimmers who had no idea they were being spied on from up in the skies.

A destination I would love to shoot up top from.

Some high speeders having some fun.

My rather delicious tasting steak sandwich.

Photography is about experimenting, there are no rights or wrongs, just what feels right for you is what is right.

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