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Belmont Lakefront

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Belmont Lakefront

Blue sky, blue waters
A warm breeze
Caressing my face:
I feel at peace

This photo is from a couple of days ago. I’d gone for a quick walk along the Belmont lakefront to stretch my legs and I really liked this scene when I came across it… the light was so lovely and the water such a beautiful blue that I knew I had to take a quick shot.

Ironically we had very heavy rain for the next couple of days, so much so that some parts of Newcastle and Lake Macquarie were flooded. I guess it shows just how quickly Mother Nature can change.

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2018

Busker on Eddy Avenue

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Cars, trains, voices
A city screaming ~
His guitar
Carries me away

I took this photo a couple of months ago while I was in Sydney briefly. This spot just opposite Central Station on Eddy Avenue is very popular with buskers and I often stop to watch them for a minute or two. Some of them are pretty good, others, well, could use a little more practice.

I was very impressed with this busker though. His guitar playing was excellent and he seemed genuinely lost in the music at times. I enjoyed listening to him.

I gave him a couple of dollars and took a quick snap before moving on. I like how it came out, particularly in black and white. It captures the mood nicely.

Photo © CJ Levinson 2017, haiqua © 2018

Black Swans on the Lake

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Swans on the Lake

Black swans on the water
A warm sun and gentle breeze
On my face:
Peace

I took this a couple of days ago down by the Belmont lakefront. It had been a lovely warm day and the light was beautiful as the sun started to go down.

I was lucky enough to be there just as these swans came into view and I took a quick shot. We get quite a lot of black swans around Belmont and I always enjoy stopping to watch them for a minute or two. They’re so graceful – and make excellent subjects too.

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2018

Sunday Afternoon on the Lake

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Another weekend
Comes and goes
With the setting sun –
Time marches on

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It was quite cool and a little overcast yesterday, the perfect kind of weather for black and white photography, so I went for a walk with my camera down by the lake to see what I could find.

The water was lovely and still and I was quite happy with how these two shots came out. I like how they look in monochrome and I particularly wanted to capture the relaxed feeling out on the lake and I think that comes across well. I can imagine far worse ways to spend a Sunday afternoon! 😀

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2017

Sunset 17/09/17

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A golden sun
Reflects off the water,
Warms my face
On this Spring day

It was a lovely warm day today. The weather was lovely all weekend actually and I thought I’d go down to the lake to catch the sunset and mark the end of the weekend.

I took this while I was down there, just as the sun was starting to go down over the hills. I’m pleased with how the photo came out. The sun was lovely and warm and the colours were beautiful. I think it captured the scene pretty well overall.

Definitely a nice way to end the day.

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2017

Panorama of the Lake

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Panorama of the Lake from Belmont

To me peace is
Sitting by the water
And watching the world
Go by

After a few weeks of really cold, wintery weather, we had a lovely warm day yesterday and I decided to wander down to the lake to take some photos and shoot the sunset.

When I reached the lakefront it was almost the end of the golden hour and the lovely glow was starting to catch some of the clouds as well. It was a beautiful scene and I wanted to capture as much of it as I could so I decided to do a panorama.

Normally I don’t like doing panoramas over water as it makes stitching the images together much harder but I thought the water looked still enough to give it a try. So I took six images handheld and it stitched together quite well in the end.

I really like the final photo. I think it captures the scene well and I like how enormous the lake feels, almost like you’re being swallowed by the water. It really does feel that impressive in person too.

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2017

Sitting and Reflecting

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CJ by the Beach

Sitting by the water
I hear waves crash
And gulls call
And my heart sing

I took this photo last week while doing a photowalk near Pinny Beach. I was feeling a bit tired after walking for awhile and had quite a lot on my mind, so I thought I’d sit, watch the tankers on the ocean and let my mind wander.

I sat for about ten minutes and it occurred to me while I was sitting there that the scene might actually make for an interesting shot. I really liked some of the contrasts (particularly the rock with the sky and water) and I thought maybe if I put myself in it too, it’d give an interesting sense of scale. So I put my camera on my tripod, set a timer for about 10 seconds and then ran like a maniac to get back before the timer went off.

It took a couple of shots to nail the timing but in the end I think it worked well and captured the scene nicely. I think it also captured me quite well too, which I wasn’t expecting. The camera happened to catch me looking out over the ocean again and I think that kind of quiet reflection is quite true to my personality.

I guess I set out to take an interesting landscape and ended up with an environmental self portrait instead, which was actually better. Funny how that happens sometimes!

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2017

Nobbys Lighthouse at Night

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I watch the stars shine
Over the ocean
While waves crash
And the wind roars

I took this photo a couple of weeks ago while on a photowalk in Newcastle. I’d started to pack up my gear after getting a few shots of the sunset over the Newcastle ocean baths and with night setting in, there didn’t seem like much point hanging around.

On my way back, though, I stopped to look at Nobbys Lighthouse for a while. I’ve always liked the lighthouse but whenever I’ve tried to photograph it I’ve often struggled to get a photo I’ve been happy with, one that feels unique.

Looking at the scene now though, with the stars out and the water reflecting the light, I thought it looked quite striking and might make for a really interesting and different photograph. So I quickly set up my tripod to take a few shots.

Shooting at night, particularly with a moving subject, is often tricky as you need to balance quite a few factors to get your composition and exposure right, most notably your aperture and ISO. I find it takes some experimenting to get it right and it took me quite a few shots to get the effect I was looking for.

I like the result though. The colours and the contrast with the dark sky really make the image pop for me and I find it very peaceful, which was what I was hoping to capture. I’m definitely glad I stopped!

Photo and haiqua © CJ Levinson 2017