Sports days at school

Tuesday was a sports day at school.  The kids are so much fun to watch.  There is always a ton of colour and energy.

Travelling in Melbourne at night

Last night I had class again in the city.  I just love the lights and the colours.  There is so much energy and life when I arrive.  Everyone is rushing to the station to catch a train or a tram.

This is Flinders street at night.

  
     

The city circle tram is free and travels a circular route in the city.  It is apparently quite a nice experience.

Across the street is a restaurant on the second floor.  I loved how the lights fell against the building.  Can you see the band in the bottom left corner?

The Southbank is really lively at night.  So many restaurants and eateries.  I really enjoy watching the lights on the Ferris wheel play.  The blur on the bridge is a tram.  The building with the purple lights is the Arts centre.  I travel the footbridge to get across the river.

Today I stayed home to try to catch up on sleep, which didn’t happen.  Tomorrow I am hoping to visit the aquarium again.  It is finally raining in Melbourne, so indoor activities are great!

Melbourne at night

Walking back from class, I caught these shots.  It was a bit tricky since I didn’t have my tripod and the bridge kept on bouncing when people walked over.  Luckily I found a cement pillar.

These two I got while waiting for the tram.

Haven't done anything to these, since I am already late for playgroup… got to run!

Photos around Balwyn North, Melbourne

I took some time yesterday to do my version of smelling the roses… photographing them.   As someone who has hay fever more often than not, smelling them is an exercise in futility in any case (that is my story and I am sticking to it!)

                 

I think the season, cold as it is, is already turning.  Quite a few trees have produced blossoms.

       

The sky tends to be mostly grey lately, with bits of bright blue peeking out every now and then.

        
                       

It looks like the moon is just a sliver this week.

I just love lavender, so I had to include this shot.

Photos of the grandparents

What made the photo shoot of Benji extra special, was the fact that his grandparents were there.  They had flown from South Africa especially to be there for the birth of their grandchild.

I loved these photos of him holding his grandfather’s hand.

        

Little Benji

Last weekend I got a chance to photograph little Benjamin.  He is the sweetest little baby.  He sleeps most of the time, but decided on that morning that things were too interesting and stayed awake most of the shoot.

              

This shoot was done in the parents’ home.  I prefer not to use a flash with such a small baby.  I dragged a big roll of fabric with for the dark backgrounds.  If you buy the last fabric on the roll, they let you take the roll too.  It helps keep the fabric from wrinkling.  Ironing is the bane of my existence! 

St Kilda beach

On Wednesday I took my daughter to the beach to build some sandcastles.  It was cold and windy, but she didn’t care.  Playing in the sand was just too much fun.

Over the bay, you could see the rain come in.  It was time to go home, but she had a good time playing with friends.

Big Mouth

Last of the photowalk photos!  We ended up in a lovely little place called Big Mouth for something to drink afterwards.  I really enjoyed meeting so many photogs.

The walkers came from all over, even a few from the USA.

On the pier

A large part of the Scott Kelby Photowalk we spent on the St Kilda pier.  The wind was blowing fiercely.  I found if I wedged myself against a lamp post and kept my elbows tight against my body, the wind didn’t yank me around 90 degrees the whole time. 

     

Walking on the pier, you hear the rigging ring against the masts.  This was definitely the sounds of my childhood.

I was really nervous taking this one.  I lie flat on the ground, hoping a weird gust wouldn’t somehow pull the camera into the water.

Afterwards we walked along St Kilda beach to find a nice vantage point (with less wind) to photograph the sunset.