Black Swan Blog

The pics just keep coming..

Grove scenic reserve just out of Takaka on the left, and on the right some more macro fun.

Coffee overlooking Farewell Spit, and a David Attenborough style macro shot of a nasty looking wasp I spotted while walking back from the spit, which was dragging away it’s latest victim. A bit gross, but kind of fascinating at the same time.

Phew! It’s been a busy week back at work, with no easing in gently as I’d imagined, so I’m a little behind on posting some more holiday snaps. So, without further adue..

Hawkes Lookout on Takaka hill.

A few more old abandoned houses.

Stained glass details from the Christ Church Cathedral in Nelson.

Whilst it would appear that I’ve been hard at work this week, the reality is that I was off on a photographic road trip around the gorgeous Nelson/Golden Bay area. The weather was beautiful and I’ve returned with a whopping 897 photos from 4 days worth of shooting! There were so many fantastic places in such a relatively small area, which reminded me a lot of the Catlins down south, and there were several little gems that really made the trip.. coffee on a pirate ship in Tata Beach (I’m a self confessed pirate fan from way back), Laingdons General Store in Bainham, and sipping a ‘fizzy frog’ fejoa cider at the Mussel Inn to name a few. The prospect of condensing the whole trip down into one blog post seems like a fairly daunting task, so there will be a few more posts to follow..

Coffee on the Espresso pirate ship at Tata Beach.. yarrr!

Golden tan, golden shoes and golden sand on Totaranui Beach.

One of the many abandoned houses in the region, this one was found in Appleby.

I’ve been looking forward to having a play with some new photographic brooches, as my resolution for 2009 is to make better use of my ever growing stock library. The problem of course ends up being how to narrow it down to a handful of images, but I figured that a black swan makes for a good starting point..

I’ve also made a few using scans of my Nan’s Hollywood portrait collection..

With the next Craft 2.0 in Wellington only a few months away in April, the Super Shed has been on my list of places to visit for new display props, and my recent visit failed to disappoint. I came home with a lovely haul of plates, fancy trays and bowls, all with a distinctly Victorian style, for the grand total of $8! Recycling at its finest.

Well, here we are in 2009.. hope you all had a great Christmas and New Years. I’m currently enjoying my Summer holidays (3 weeks off, which is the first time in I’m not sure how many years, at least around 10) and with temperatures in the 30˚s I have the tan to prove it! There has been much reading and pottering, and as little computer time as possible while I get my annual intake of vitamin D. I have also invested in a lovely new 60mm macro lens, and spent an afternoon chasing bees around the backyard, from which I have compiled a little bee montage..

The last week of my holidays holds a photographic road trip to the top of the South Island, round the Nelson area, so there will be many new panos coming soon!