Melbourne

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!

It all started with Prosecco. It usually does. 2013 was the year of bubbles for me, a year filled with jaunts to King Valley to shoot photos and drink in the fine times amongst the vines. A year of indulgence matched only by lovely people. Christmas naturally becomes a celebration of the whole year, so with the help of Shellie we concocted a sweet treat that looks back over 2013 and pulls it all together. Prosecco and Rubies, complimented with light and bright flavours of Asia. Melbourne is where east loves west, where ginger and lime sit on the table with fine Italian bubbles. It all makes sense once you dip in and taste.

There's a bonus PDF to download via Iron Chef Shellie as well. It's pretty, it's useful, it's a keeper! See the link after the photos.

As a photographer, the Queen Victoria Night Market is a unique challenge. It's hot and cold with light, offering subjects that never stand still and will push every aspect of your autofocus and ISO perfomance to the limit. It's an evening of transience, as scenes appear just long enough to tease you before they vanish into the chaos. The food is delicious but the combination of disposable containers and gaudy light does nothing for image quality. And yet I love it.

A few lovely old Leica cameras, mostly old but one of them new, as shared by the crazy lads at The Camera Exchange. Thanks to John and Paul.

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.