Australia

Most people visit Davidson's Safari Camp for the indigenous rock art, and no wonder. It's one of the most intimate and impressive ways to experience tens of thousands of years of indigenous culture in Australia. But the natural history is equally impressive at Mount Borradaile. Rare grasshoppers, immense diversity of flowers and magnificent wetlands combine to provide a unique enviornment for spotting wildlife. Where the stone country meets the wetlands a unique experience awaits.

You'll need more than a camera to photograph this part of the Australian Outback. A 4WD is a big help, plus a little desire to get out and walk. Mostly you need time, and after one short week of driving west of Alice Springs I wished I had a month. There's more than rocks and sand out here, rather a rich collection of landscapes where Ghost Gums and watering holes are joined by the Milky Way each night.

The centre of Australia is a desert of colour. Sand is stained red with minerals, deep yellow flowers cascade off grevillea bushes and the sky is a flood of blue except for the occasional sunset where clouds throw back hues of orange and pink. In the middle of this colour palette is a massive rock, rising sharply from a rippled landscape. Each fold along it’s flanks have been drawn into stories by the local Anangu, like bookmarks in a library that has been standing long before there even was a desert. Uluru and Kata Tjuta are drama on a geological scale.

The rural landscape of Victoria has been a haven for me and my photography in recent years, and my most recent trip to Rutherglen has reminded me of what makes the North-East of Victoria so special. Very old families making very good wines, but in a modern context and complimented with great cuisine and produce. Rutherglen also offers a beautifully flat horizon at sunset, with uninhibited access to the last gasp of light. Long shadows and deep reds, and some real gems for visitors who want a little pampering.

Spring has arrived in Melbourne and the Sulphur-crested Cockatoos are back in town. Some mornings they rumble our apartment block in the middle of the CBD, and other times I have to walk down to the Yarra River to see them. They're friendly and gentle and such a joy in the middle of a pandemic!

This essay has been curated from my Kimberley Coast voyage with Heritage Expeditions. They are presented here in a square format to highight how presentation can make such an impact on how an image is received. So many of the images here are ones I'd love to hang on a wall.

This is the real Australia, a dry country with undisturbed views of the horizon and bold red wines that taste like they've been carved out of the landscape. Rutherglen is rich in character. Some truly fine wines live here, plus a few great eats. The landscape is golden except for the vines and river gums.

This is my favourite National Park in Australia. The landscapes offer immense inspiration and opportunity for photographers, the bird life is diverse and full of song, while the flora carpets the earth with a subtle range of hues. This year we skipped the usual Purnululu sunset shoot in favour of helicopters. Yay.

The King Valley is just a little bit charming. Bubbly prosecco and stinky cheeses dominate the offerings here, but horse training and windmills still hint at the farming traditions that have kept the region on the map. Autum is my favourite time in year in Oxley, and beyond.

The colours of the Outback are usually pretty subtle, a landscape washed of nutrients over millions of years. This trip I got a craving for B&W instead, inspired by the winter sunshine and endless textures of the land. Most of all the people of the Outback inspire me, from the Tiwis to the Tanami.

The Australian Outback is bristling with detail, gorgeously rich bits of detail. My first exhibition of work was of leaves and dirt photographed on a road trip to Alice Springs, and I've never lost sight of how the little details in life are what make all the difference. Get closer.

They say in Broome you can shake a tree and at least three pilots will fall out. They are everywhere up here, and even the fella who dropped off my hire car was a pilot waiting for a chance to clock up some air-time. I get pretty exceited about small aircraft aviation in Australia, and places like Broome are great examples of why. Helicopters, light aircraft, commercial props and jets all share the downtown strip. Once on the ground you're minutes from the hotel and once in the air you're minutes from some of Australia's best coastal scenery.

A wild island full of delicious treats and enthralling coastline. Oceanic winds bring wild weather in the winter, but in between the clouds the low sun bathes King Island in brilliant light. In the space of just 3 days I journeyed the island with Ian Rolfe and got a taste of why he keeps coming back. Great people, great scenery and a luxurious peace and quiet for photographers.

The dry landscape of The Kimberley region in Western Australia is home to great destinations and stoic characters. Home Valley has their horse whisperers, Purnululu has their helicopter pilots, and the resort camp at Faraway Bay has a mad fella named Bruce who built his dream escape near the King George River. The Kimberley is big, but beautiful.

Thanks to all the crew and passengers on our Adventure Quest out of Broome in August. This is truly one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and even better with a blend of adventure and luxury offered by the crew of Kimberley Quest II. Love your work guys.

Rock Art. Wildlife. Landscapes. Sunsets. All you need is a well appointed expedition ship, a fleet of zodiacs and some great crew to guide you to the hidden gems. Rugged coastline, pink and ochre sandstone, brilliant sunshine day after day, calm flat water and easy sailing during the night between destinations.

Thanks to all the crew and passengers on our Adventure Quest out of Broome in August. This is truly one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and even better with a blend of adventure and luxury offered by the crew of Kimberley Quest II. Love your work guys.

About 5 hours north of Adelaide the landscape turns a shade of golden brown and dusty ochre. It's tough country for those who farm the land and can be pretty tough on the indigenous wildlife too. Ikara is the traditional name for what was called "The Flinders Ranges" by colonial settlers. As mountains go they are modest, having been worn down over millions of years to just a blip on the horizon. But within these subtle folds there are unique and beautiful ecosystems, attracting a wealth of flora and fauna.

Each year we fly into HV8 and spend a few days chasing sunsets and Boabs. Where the Gibb River glides past the Cockburn Ranges we wait for the last light of the day, shooting the red ridges of the distant ranges as they reflect off the water. Kununurra and surrounds are known for their massive Boab Trees, and Home Valley is no exception.

Waterfalls and rugged coastline. A few of us headed for The Otways and Great Ocean Road to spend a few days shooting the sunsets and chasing koalas. Just for fun. Even on the darkest and most grey of cloudy days the last light on the Shipwreck Coast often throws up a blast of colour for the final few minutes. And those cloudy days are great for visiting places like Hopetoun Falls.

Hard to believe that all these images were taken over the space of four days. I've been shooting the Flinders Ranges for many years, and some of the locals have been at me to run a photo tour here all that time. So finally I did. With the help of Ian Rolfe we gathered a group of eager photographers and put together one of the best photography workshops ever. Nothing fancy, just stunning sunsets, sunrises and magnificent scenery. Big thanks to the folks in Parachilna for making this trip so wonderful.

Every year I get to run an amazing photographic adventure across the Outback. We have a private jet-prop that starts in Melbourne and finishes in Darwin. We fly high and fast, making good time between shoots. On the ground we have some wonderful people to ensure our group are treated like royalty, getting into position for the best light. This year we had a lot of interest in the birds too, big and small :)

Three decades of restoration work has brought this Dehavilland DH89A Dragon Rapide back to her former glory. Maurice Rolfe is the man behind the machine, whose dedication and skill now sees this 1944 built aircraft finally ready to fly again.

Formerly known as Ayers Rock the dramatic rise of Uluru from the desert landscape is something that has to be seen to appreciate. And for goodness sake there's no need to climb the rock to enjoy it. As beautiful as the rock might be to photograph, no photo can do justice to the experience. This is a place that has energy, you feel it. Surrounding the monolith is a precious landscape of red sands, desert flowers and wild creatures. Little wonder that Uluru is a place of great significance to the indigenous people of the region.

For the last few months I've been taking winter walks through Royal Park on the edge of the Melbourne CBD. It's an often overlooked part of the Melbourne green scene, hidden between the hospitals on Flemington Parade and the Melbourne Zoo. On any given day you can find hundreds and hundreds of beautiful parrots. Galahs by the dozen gathering in the bigger trees, plus Rainbow Lorikeets and Musk Lorikeets grazing through the flowering gums. These images were taken with a Lumix G9 and their wonderfully compact 100-400mm lens.

A short collection of birds enjoyed while visiting Uluru Kata Tjuta National Park in 2018. I'll let you in on a secret, most of these shots were actually taken around the hotels at Yulara, with only a few locations inside the park proving to be as fruitful. All the birds are genuinely wild, captured without the help of food or audio attractants. All I did was take slow walks through the grasslands, gardens and trails of Yulara and the national park.

Davidson's Safari Camp is an old favaourite of mine, rich in rock art and wildlife. This photo essay was taken during the 2018 Grand Outback Photo Tour. All images were taken with the Lumix G9 except for a couple of drone shots. Enjoy.

More than just a cooking school, The Agrarian Kitchen is an inspiration to change your life. Rodney and Severine grow their food, milk the goats and live a sustainable existence in the hills outside of Hobart. Chestnut trees. Pigs. Asparagus. Loganberries. Pears. There's so much depth to their story that a short introduction will always fall short by miles. Checkout their website and do your best to get a booking on one of their cooking schools. Or join myself and Iron Chef Shellie for next years Food Photography Workshop in Hobart, featuring the Agrarian Kitchen and all that makes Tasmaina wonderful.