Eccentric Reality » Random Thoughts

Sydney in a Post Apocalyptic Glow

Stuart — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:45:14 +0000

So I woke up this morning to find that Sydney was glowing red and orange in what could only be described as something out of the movie Armageddon.

I got out my trusty camera and decided to take some photos. The only way I can describe the dust storm was eerie. I have never in my life seen Sydney blanketed in such a way.

Anyhoo, hope you guys enjoy. Also now that Uni is beginning to slow down a bit, I look forward to getting back into my photography and hence blogging.

Stuart

Canon EOS 50D has arrived.

Stuart — Sun, 15 Feb 2009 03:30:35 +0000

I have spectacular news. My swanky new Canon EOS 50D has finally arrived, I am only missing my final macro lens as Canon did not have it in stock.

However so far I have managed to get my hands on the following:

Camera: Canon EOS 50D

Lenses:

Accessories:

Canon Speedlite 580EX II
Hoya Super HMCPRO1 UV Filter x2
Sandisk 2x 8GB Extreme IV 45 MB/s Compact Flash

I decided to throw all this info up on the “My Photography Hardware” page so that if anyone is curious in future I will keep that list regularly updated with what hardware I am using (and have used in the past).

I also had my first photography class last week which was a real eye opener and has answered a lot of my questions that I have been wondering and there is still another 6 weeks to go. The tutor is bubbly and managed to keep all the content interesting and lively, even while going through the history of cameras and photography.

Our homework this week was to chose one or two of our favourite photos that we had taken at some point in our lives and bring them along to class next week. I am getting a couple of photos printed up at the moment so I will see how they come out. [EDIT] If you would like to see my homework that I have completed for this week with a short description I have put it up in my online gallery.

For now tho, I thought I would share photos of the new hardware with you.
Stuart

An itch I have had for years…

Stuart — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 06:27:10 +0000

As you may already know, I have spent a lot of time in the last month or so, going over all of the photos that I have taken since about the beginning of 2003. I needed to get through them all and finally get rid of the bad ones and organise the remaining photos so that I could actually find them when I needed.

Anyhoo, I came across these two photos in my adventures taken in 2003. I think they would be the first real evidence of the itch that I had for wanting to explore photography.

These were both taken with my first digital camera, a Kodak LS753 if I remember correctly. And they were just taken while I was out and about (I used to carry the camera with me quite a fair bit).

Anyhoo, I guess I just wanted to share this interesting discovery from my past that I guess defines me a little bit more. What would be the first photo you took that got you thinking that photography could be good fun for you?

Stuart

The photos that you have always chased…

Stuart — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 05:25:47 +0000

Everyone has them, the photographs that they have a burning desire to capture, a desire to take that moment and freeze it in time to keep forever.

So I am wondering, what photo(s) have you always wanted to capture but never had the opportunity? Are there any photos that you would travel around the world just to capture to chase that moment?

I am new to photography (as you all know) and so I guess I have not really had the opportunity to explore the photos that I wish to capture however I would *love* to be able to travel to Egypt and capture pictures of the elegant pyramids.

Anyhoo, I am curious to hear your thoughts, whether you are an amateur or a professional do tell!

Stuart

One of those moments – Caption This

Stuart — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 04:09:57 +0000

When I was first starting getting into photography, I decided to go to Taronga Zoo in Sydney and see what sorta photos I could compose.

While I was at the Meerkat enclosure I managed to snap the beauty below. Even as I look back at it now I realise that a lot of photography (especially when referring to wildlife) is pure timing.

Just as I was about to head away I saw this Meerkat poke his head out of the tree log and then proceed to roll around into the “Chillaxing” position below. I have to say it was one of my favourite photos of the day.

Anyhoo, just wanted to show this one off as it does look rather cute and funny but at the same time wanted to play a bit of a game. If you are bored and have a couple of minutes free, have a look at provide a caption for the image. It could be for example what the Meerkat might be thinking.

For example I thought that perhaps an appropriate caption would be “Ahh the only thing that would make this afternoon better is a beer”.

Be creative, have a bit of fun with it. I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Stuart

How to deal with all the photos?

Stuart — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:02:56 +0000

Well, after coming back from holidays at Merimbula for 10 days I have a collection of a little over 4300 photos to sift through.

As I still had the Canon EOS 1000D with me while I was away on holidays I was able to take lots and lots of photos (and Erin, my girlfriend, took the one of me with the goofy look on my face that you see to the left).

Now I have been taking the time to go through them, one by one, picking out the good ones and deleting the bad ones. There was a little over 14 gigabytes of photos that Erin and I took collectively.

So I guess I am wondering. How does everyone else seem to deal with this conundrum? As I see myself getting into photography very deeply in the near future I find myself pondering the interesting question. Taking photos is one thing, but then how much time does it take to sift through them and find those perfect photos?

Look forward to hearing your thoughts (anyone’s thoughts) on the subject.

Stuart

Saving for a Canon EOS 50D

Stuart — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 09:40:23 +0000

As I will (sadly) be having to give my Canon EOS 1000D back next month, I am now on a mad savings venture to save up for a Canon EOS 50D. I have found my passion for photography and want to go into it head first and see where I end up.

So I have decided that it would be appropriate to have this savings goal metre on the site to show just how close i am to getting my goal.

Granted at the moment I am only at 4.75% of the total cost but after a couple more paychecks I hope to raise that bar up a lot. I will update this as often as I can when I throw some more savings in (it is *unfortunately* not that easy as I have to re-create the image each time).

So now marks the beginning, it is one month exactly today that I hope to order my camera… can I save the money in time? We will see.

In the mean time however, tell me… What was the last big purchase you saved up for and how did it feel when you finally got your hands on it?

Stuart