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achrisproduction

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« on: May 28, 2009, 06:06:28 am »

Hi all, I plan to go to Sydney and Tasmania this summer.  I have been to Sydney 2 times but for the previous 2 times I have only visited those "normal" tourist spots.... Opera House, Taronga Zoo...... I want to go some spots that are less discover by the public if there are lol.  Tasmania, never been to there before.  Any suggest where I should start from?  Thanks a lot!
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Josh-H

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« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2009, 06:50:09 am »

Quote from: achrisproduction
Hi all, I plan to go to Sydney and Tasmania this summer.  I have been to Sydney 2 times but for the previous 2 times I have only visited those "normal" tourist spots.... Opera House, Taronga Zoo...... I want to go some spots that are less discover by the public if there are lol.  Tasmania, never been to there before.  Any suggest where I should start from?  Thanks a lot!

Cradle Mountain in Tasmania is a MUST - see my website below for some examples. Beautiful location - enjoy!
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HiltonP

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« Reply #2 on: May 28, 2009, 08:01:12 am »

Here's a piece I wrote some time ago . . .

Tasmania, that not-so-small island off the south eastern corner of Australia, is often the butt of jokes by “mainlanders” who quip about its rural atmosphere and laidback social attitude. Those qualities make it the perfect destination for those of us seeking peace and quiet whilst being surrounded by scenic beauty. As a South African having to deal with the weak Rand it also helps that the Aussie $ is half the strength of the Euro and Pound!  

Our equipment included a DSLR, 17-35mm wide angle lens, and 70-200mm lens, all packed into a Lowepro Mini Trekker AW together with a small video camera and a small P&S digicam. For storage we used CF memory cards, ten of them in all, as this helped reduce the number of batteries, cables, etc.

Over a third of Tasmania is a World Heritage Site, peppered with forest trails, rivers and mountain lakes. It provides an excellent “balance” between easily accessable scenic beauty for non-hikers, the elderly, the unfit, or the serious mountain trail hiker. The climate is cool to cold, and wet, pretty similar to the south island of New Zealand. The forests are dense and dark making for some challenging photo exposures.

We used Hobart, the capitol, situated down on the south eastern portions of the island as a base for day trips to :
•   the broader Tasman Peninsula with its network of islands, bays and little fishing harbours. It included the strange Tessolated Pavement geological feature, essentially a perfectly symmetrical area of paving going into the sea, created entirely by nature.
•   the historic town of Richmond with its extensive network of stone houses, bridges and gaols. Jails feature a lot in Tasmania, probably because it was an infamous penal colony. On the Tasman Peninsula convicts were one an island, off an island (Tasmania), off another island (Australia), in the middle of two oceans. Escaping didn’t hold too many prospects!
•   the Port Arthur penal colony set on a large tract of land allowing one to ramble about all day long in search of good angles and light. For those interested in old buildings dripping with history it is a photographic paradise. Add in rambling gardens and a harbour and one is like a kid in a sandbox.
•   the fruit growing Huon Valley with its "honesty boxes" on the roadside, where local farmers display their fruit and veggies for sale. There is no-one in sight, and all one does is take a bag of apples, and place the money in a tin. Try doing that in SA. The Huon also boasts of an AirWalk, an elevated set of walkways perched up in the treetops providing a rather unique view of the forest and river below.

We timed our stay in Hobart to include the wonderful Saturday Salamanca Street Market with some 1.5km of food and craft stalls. The town also offers a large botanical garden and dramatic views from the top of Mt.Wellington (shown on the previous page). Being a fascinating old harbour, Hobart has more fish shops than you can waggle a “slap chip” at, so seafood was the order of every day!

Travelling west along the Lyall Highway through the World Heritage region we encountered numerous of their "Great Short Walks" which are signposted, and fully described in a free brochure from the Tasmanian Tourism website. Mt.Fields National Park, Russell Falls, and Lake St.Clair all offered boardwalks, or hardened trails, to some beautiful scenic spots and waterfalls. At Derwent Bridge we were amazed and enthralled by the clearest night skies we have ever seen!

On the Tassie west coast, in the pocket-sized town of Strahan, we booked a Heritage Rail trip on a restored, cog driven, forestry steam train, last used over a century ago for logging and now fully restored. The famous day long Gordon River Cruise is also located here. In stark contrast is the old copper mining town of Queenstown where un-managed use of acid during the mining process a century ago has left the area devoid of any growth. The rivers do not have a single living thing in them, and are not expected to for another hundred years. It stands as a reminder to all who pass through the town how easily such a pristine area can be destroyed, and permanently so!

Perhaps the only other negative of Tassie is that at dusk, and later, the natural wildlife comes out of the bush onto the warm roads. Every evening we would have to slow down to 40km/h as paddimelons, echidnas, wombats, Tasmanian devils, and possoms loitered around "their" roads! It made for some very “alert” driving! It was not uncommon to return to our bungalow in the evening and find a wombat or possom mooching about in the dark.

Our next scenic stop-over in Tassie came in the centre of the island, at the Cradle Mountain National Park, a harsh, but incredibly scenic environment where it can snow on any day of the year. Once again, it was liberally sprinkled with accessable boardwalks and trails which we tackled with gusto! On the loop back to Hobart we passed through Launceston and its vineyards located along the Tamar River (the title banner photo).

Tasmania is a landscape photographers destination, but there is a healthy dose of old and character filled architecture to be had. Wide-angle lenses would tend to rule although a medium zoom comes in handy. There were times we would have liked a 10-12mm wide angle lens (our widest was 17mm), but we never needed anything longer than 200mm. Fast lenses help with the darker forest scenes, and ND filters would allow for some interesting waterfall shots. Tripods are useful, but surprisingly we could have got a lot better use from a clamp mount (to use on railings, hand rails, tree stumps, etc) which would have been less bulky and more practical. The weather has to be taken into consideration. Whilst a rain proof camera is the ultimate solution one can get by perfectly OK with a pro-sumer DSLR, provided you have an all weather bag.

Tasmania is a fascinating and varied photographic destination, and a comfortable and easy place to spend time in natural environments.
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Regards, HILTON

achrisproduction

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« Reply #3 on: May 28, 2009, 08:37:45 am »

Quote from: Josh-H
Cradle Mountain in Tasmania is a MUST - see my website below for some examples. Beautiful location - enjoy!
Thank you very much mate.  
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achrisproduction

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« Reply #4 on: May 28, 2009, 08:46:33 am »

Quote from: HiltonP
Here's a piece I wrote some time ago . . .

Tasmania, that not-so-small island off the south eastern corner of Australia, is often the butt of jokes by “mainlanders” who quip about its rural atmosphere and laidback social attitude. Those qualities make it the perfect destination for those of us seeking peace and quiet whilst being surrounded by scenic beauty. As a South African having to deal with the weak Rand it also helps that the Aussie $ is half the strength of the Euro and Pound!  

Our equipment included a DSLR, 17-35mm wide angle lens, and 70-200mm lens, all packed into a Lowepro Mini Trekker AW together with a small video camera and a small P&S digicam. For storage we used CF memory cards, ten of them in all, as this helped reduce the number of batteries, cables, etc.

Over a third of Tasmania is a World Heritage Site, peppered with forest trails, rivers and mountain lakes. It provides an excellent “balance” between easily accessable scenic beauty for non-hikers, the elderly, the unfit, or the serious mountain trail hiker. The climate is cool to cold, and wet, pretty similar to the south island of New Zealand. The forests are dense and dark making for some challenging photo exposures.

We used Hobart, the capitol, situated down on the south eastern portions of the island as a base for day trips to :
•   the broader Tasman Peninsula with its network of islands, bays and little fishing harbours. It included the strange Tessolated Pavement geological feature, essentially a perfectly symmetrical area of paving going into the sea, created entirely by nature.
•   the historic town of Richmond with its extensive network of stone houses, bridges and gaols. Jails feature a lot in Tasmania, probably because it was an infamous penal colony. On the Tasman Peninsula convicts were one an island, off an island (Tasmania), off another island (Australia), in the middle of two oceans. Escaping didn’t hold too many prospects!
•   the Port Arthur penal colony set on a large tract of land allowing one to ramble about all day long in search of good angles and light. For those interested in old buildings dripping with history it is a photographic paradise. Add in rambling gardens and a harbour and one is like a kid in a sandbox.
•   the fruit growing Huon Valley with its "honesty boxes" on the roadside, where local farmers display their fruit and veggies for sale. There is no-one in sight, and all one does is take a bag of apples, and place the money in a tin. Try doing that in SA. The Huon also boasts of an AirWalk, an elevated set of walkways perched up in the treetops providing a rather unique view of the forest and river below.

We timed our stay in Hobart to include the wonderful Saturday Salamanca Street Market with some 1.5km of food and craft stalls. The town also offers a large botanical garden and dramatic views from the top of Mt.Wellington (shown on the previous page). Being a fascinating old harbour, Hobart has more fish shops than you can waggle a “slap chip” at, so seafood was the order of every day!

Travelling west along the Lyall Highway through the World Heritage region we encountered numerous of their "Great Short Walks" which are signposted, and fully described in a free brochure from the Tasmanian Tourism website. Mt.Fields National Park, Russell Falls, and Lake St.Clair all offered boardwalks, or hardened trails, to some beautiful scenic spots and waterfalls. At Derwent Bridge we were amazed and enthralled by the clearest night skies we have ever seen!

On the Tassie west coast, in the pocket-sized town of Strahan, we booked a Heritage Rail trip on a restored, cog driven, forestry steam train, last used over a century ago for logging and now fully restored. The famous day long Gordon River Cruise is also located here. In stark contrast is the old copper mining town of Queenstown where un-managed use of acid during the mining process a century ago has left the area devoid of any growth. The rivers do not have a single living thing in them, and are not expected to for another hundred years. It stands as a reminder to all who pass through the town how easily such a pristine area can be destroyed, and permanently so!

Perhaps the only other negative of Tassie is that at dusk, and later, the natural wildlife comes out of the bush onto the warm roads. Every evening we would have to slow down to 40km/h as paddimelons, echidnas, wombats, Tasmanian devils, and possoms loitered around "their" roads! It made for some very “alert” driving! It was not uncommon to return to our bungalow in the evening and find a wombat or possom mooching about in the dark.

Our next scenic stop-over in Tassie came in the centre of the island, at the Cradle Mountain National Park, a harsh, but incredibly scenic environment where it can snow on any day of the year. Once again, it was liberally sprinkled with accessable boardwalks and trails which we tackled with gusto! On the loop back to Hobart we passed through Launceston and its vineyards located along the Tamar River (the title banner photo).

Tasmania is a landscape photographers destination, but there is a healthy dose of old and character filled architecture to be had. Wide-angle lenses would tend to rule although a medium zoom comes in handy. There were times we would have liked a 10-12mm wide angle lens (our widest was 17mm), but we never needed anything longer than 200mm. Fast lenses help with the darker forest scenes, and ND filters would allow for some interesting waterfall shots. Tripods are useful, but surprisingly we could have got a lot better use from a clamp mount (to use on railings, hand rails, tree stumps, etc) which would have been less bulky and more practical. The weather has to be taken into consideration. Whilst a rain proof camera is the ultimate solution one can get by perfectly OK with a pro-sumer DSLR, provided you have an all weather bag.

Tasmania is a fascinating and varied photographic destination, and a comfortable and easy place to spend time in natural environments.
Thank you, it is very detail!  
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OldRoy

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« Reply #5 on: May 28, 2009, 11:51:25 am »

Hi there.
You are going to enjoy Tasmania. I lived there in the 70s and revisited again in 2000. There are more tourists there these days of course, but once you get away from the visitor centres and car parks they thin out rapidly. I don't know what you like to do or shoot so there seems little point in suggesting equipment except to say that some of the land and seascapes of tasmania are as beautiful as anywhere I've ever been, and I have travelled a bit. But landscapes would have to be part of your photography there I'd have thought.

Two (deceased) photographers who are absolutely essential to familiarise yourself with are Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis. Look them up. Truchanas was the pioneer of ecology awareness in Tasmania in the 60s although much of his archive was destroyed by a bushfire that devastated Hobart (I forget the date). His book, "The World of Olegas Truchanas", which contains a representative sample of his work (poorly printed in later reissues) has been reprinted many times and will richly repay you if you read it. Dombrovskis published many books too, which are widely available. I believe his widow has now stopped reprinting his photographs which appeared in many forms, calendars etc. Both of these photographers will inspire you.

Most guide books will suggest where to go and what to see.  Someone has already mentioned the Port Arthur ruins (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Arthur_m...cre_(Australia) for an account of events in 1996 at this terrible and beautiful place) and there are many other interesting colonial architectural sites to see. Another couple of books I would recommend. "For the term of his natural life" by Marcus Clarke is a Victorian novel based on the events at the even more appalling penal colony on Sarah Island; you can visit the site by taking a boat around Macquarie harbour on the west coast. "Gould's Book of Fish" by the contemporary Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan is also a novel about the penal colony. Tasmania has a dark history that is palpable at many locations on the island. And of course the native population was effectively exterminated - although this has become a politically incorrect assertion since I lived there.

I'd suggest that you might like to travel up to the NW tip of the island (remember it's very small) and thence down the west coast highway (known as the "road to nowhere" amongst the locals in Smithton) to Strahan (for Macquarie Harbour) which passes through the Tarkine Wilderness. It's a good dirt road so don't let anyone tell you that you need a 4WD unless you intend to stray off-road or onto beaches. If you do this you'll pass our old bush airstrip on the turnoff to Balfour where I was partner in a small mining operation way back when.... Circular Head (town, not district) is worth a look too if you're in the NW.

There are too many attractions to list... you'll wish you had more time. Forget about Sydney, just another city. Hobart though, is BEAUTIFUL!

I wish I was going to be there too!
Roy
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achrisproduction

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« Reply #6 on: May 28, 2009, 02:53:50 pm »

Quote from: OldRoy
Hi there.
You are going to enjoy Tasmania. I lived there in the 70s and revisited again in 2000. There are more tourists there these days of course, but once you get away from the visitor centres and car parks they thin out rapidly. I don't know what you like to do or shoot so there seems little point in suggesting equipment except to say that some of the land and seascapes of tasmania are as beautiful as anywhere I've ever been, and I have travelled a bit. But landscapes would have to be part of your photography there I'd have thought.

Two (deceased) photographers who are absolutely essential to familiarise yourself with are Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovskis. Look them up. Truchanas was the pioneer of ecology awareness in Tasmania in the 60s although much of his archive was destroyed by a bushfire that devastated Hobart (I forget the date). His book, "The World of Olegas Truchanas", which contains a representative sample of his work (poorly printed in later reissues) has been reprinted many times and will richly repay you if you read it. Dombrovskis published many books too, which are widely available. I believe his widow has now stopped reprinting his photographs which appeared in many forms, calendars etc. Both of these photographers will inspire you.

Most guide books will suggest where to go and what to see.  Someone has already mentioned the Port Arthur ruins (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Arthur_m...cre_(Australia) for an account of events in 1996 at this terrible and beautiful place) and there are many other interesting colonial architectural sites to see. Another couple of books I would recommend. "For the term of his natural life" by Marcus Clarke is a Victorian novel based on the events at the even more appalling penal colony on Sarah Island; you can visit the site by taking a boat around Macquarie harbour on the west coast. "Gould's Book of Fish" by the contemporary Tasmanian author Richard Flanagan is also a novel about the penal colony. Tasmania has a dark history that is palpable at many locations on the island. And of course the native population was effectively exterminated - although this has become a politically incorrect assertion since I lived there.

I'd suggest that you might like to travel up to the NW tip of the island (remember it's very small) and thence down the west coast highway (known as the "road to nowhere" amongst the locals in Smithton) to Strahan (for Macquarie Harbour) which passes through the Tarkine Wilderness. It's a good dirt road so don't let anyone tell you that you need a 4WD unless you intend to stray off-road or onto beaches. If you do this you'll pass our old bush airstrip on the turnoff to Balfour where I was partner in a small mining operation way back when.... Circular Head (town, not district) is worth a look too if you're in the NW.

There are too many attractions to list... you'll wish you had more time. Forget about Sydney, just another city. Hobart though, is BEAUTIFUL!

I wish I was going to be there too!
Roy
Hi Roy,

Apologize for not suggestion what I wish to photograph in Tasmania.  I am looking subjects around wildlife and landscape and my equipments will be a 5D Mark II / 1D Mark III + lenses / LEAF AFi-II 10 + lenses.  Thanks for suggesting the top spots but will it be far too dangerous if only me and my friend are walking as a pair. (We both are 18). Thanks again for your detail reply.

Cheers,

Chris
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byork

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« Reply #7 on: May 28, 2009, 09:45:06 pm »

Quote from: OldRoy
Forget about Sydney, just another city.


What absolute rubbish  Sydney has one of the most beautiful harbours and ocean foreshores in the world and there are dozens of spots around the harbour suitable for landscape photography, (in some cases without a building in sight if thats what your looking for). These include; North or South head. Dobroyd Head in the Sydney Harbour National Park (which is part of the Manly to Spit bridge walking trail, one of the many dotted around the harbour front), Bradley's Head, Shark Beach at Steel Point, Mrs Macquaries Point which is a short walk from the Opera house through the Botanical Gardens, and many more. As for the ocean front, it is possible to walk all the way from North Head to Barrenjoey Head through all of Sydney's northern beaches, but this would take you a couple of days to complete the whole thing.

It would be much easier to walk along the cliffs from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach, taking something like a few hours depending on how much time you take stopping to take pictures. Early in the morning or late evening you will encounter plenty of photographers in this area.

To the south of the city there are sand dunes at Kurnell on the opposite side of Botany Bay from the Airport, and next to that ,there is a great whale watching spot at Cape Solander, although whales can be seen all the way along Sydney's shoreline, and have even been known to come into the harbour (season starts round about now by the way).

Sydney is literally surrounded by National Parks to the North, West and South (the East of course being the ocean) Arguably one of Australia's most popular National Park's, The Blue Mountains, is located at the western fringes of the greater Metropolitan area, and the foot of the mountain can be reached in little more than 30-40 minutes drive from central Sydney, unless you are mad enough to travel during peak hour. The metropolitan train line goes all the way to the top of the mountain and many people live out there and work in the city. It is possible to take day trips to the mountains from the CBD, but I wouldn't recommend this for photography. You could spend weeks covering the whole area which covers more than 1400 square miles. My suggestion would be to base yourself there for a few days (more if you have time) and visit Wentworth Falls, Valley of The Waters and Govetts Leap at Blackheath. Katoomba is the most central place to base yourself, the Three Sister's rock formation is there. However, there will be lots of tourists at the 3 sisters during the day but not so many early mornings or evenings). Much better to visit the other places I have mentioned and some of the multitude of walking trails in the area.

Attached are a couple of shots from the Blue Mountains.



You already have a detailed descrition of Tasmania and I can't add more to that except to endorse Mt Field and Richmond (The bridge at Richmond was built by the convicts and is the oldest in Australia). Lastly, as Josh says, Cradle Mountain is a must.

Cheers
Brian
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BernardLanguillier

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« Reply #8 on: May 28, 2009, 10:06:12 pm »

I loved everything I did in Tasmania, but the highlight of our stay was a 2 nights camping stay in the Walls of Jerusalem in the snow early May!

We just met 2 local farmers hiking in the white out, other than that the place was ours, pure magic!

Cheers,
Bernard

tom b

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« Reply #9 on: May 28, 2009, 11:32:50 pm »

Both 18, in Sydney catch the train to Newtown and do some street photography and have a meal in one of the cheap restaurants.

The Blue Moon Festival Newtown. http://www.tombrown.id.au/eclectic/blue_moon.html


If you have a car drive to the Royal National Park. Take a picnic lunch and head off to Wattamolla. There are a couple of coastal walks there with great scenery. No car, take the train to Loftus on a weekend and then catch the train to Audley. Check the info centre for walks.

http://www.tombrown.id.au/landscape/wattamolla.html
http://www.tombrown.id.au/landscape/creeks.html
http://www.tombrown.id.au/landscape/landscape.html

In Tasmania go to the Mt William National Park on the North East Coast. The Bay of Fires is great.

http://www.tombrown.id.au/travel/mt_william.html

Cheers,
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Josh-H

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« Reply #10 on: May 29, 2009, 12:06:46 am »

Quote from: BernardLanguillier
I loved everything I did in Tasmania, but the highlight of our stay was a 2 nights camping stay in the Walls of Jerusalem in the snow early May!

We just met 2 local farmers hiking in the white out, other than that the place was ours, pure magic!

Cheers,
Bernard

Walls of Jerusalem is also a must - I agree with Bernard. I have been up there in the snow and its spectacular - although the walk in is quite arduous and steep - be VERY well prepared if you attempt this - allow a couple of days would be my suggestion.

One other thing I forgot to mention - make sure when you go to Cradle Mountain that you go to the wilderness gallery there - where you can see the work of Olegas Truchanas and Peter Dombrovski - much of which is stunningly beautiful. The restuaurant there also brews a mean steak!  
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HiltonP

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« Reply #11 on: May 29, 2009, 08:15:13 am »

Quote from: achrisproduction
. . . but will it be far too dangerous if only me and my friend are walking as a pair (we both are 18) . . .
During both of my trips to Tasmania the thought of danger (from crime) never entered my head for a minute.
On occasions at Cradle Mountain, and in Mt. Fields, my wife and I were the only two people for miles. I am in
a wheelchair, and my wife is a mere 5'1" tall, yet neither of us felt any sense of risk for ourselves or the camera
equipment (but then again, we do come from South Africa, the crime capital of the world!).
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Regards, HILTON

achrisproduction

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« Reply #12 on: June 01, 2009, 05:58:05 am »

Quote from: HiltonP
During both of my trips to Tasmania the thought of danger (from crime) never entered my head for a minute.
On occasions at Cradle Mountain, and in Mt. Fields, my wife and I were the only two people for miles. I am in
a wheelchair, and my wife is a mere 5'1" tall, yet neither of us felt any sense of risk for ourselves or the camera
equipment (but then again, we do come from South Africa, the crime capital of the world!).
thank you very much for the info.  
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tom b

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« Reply #13 on: June 02, 2009, 02:24:45 am »

Although people are telling you that Tasmania is safe, it is strange to think that one of the recommended places to visit is Port Arthur, the place where Martin Bryant murdered 35 people and injured 21 others. To be honest though Tasmania has the lowest crime rate in Australia and is safe and friendly.

The real reason I'm making this post is to say that the tour that I took to Port Arthur was great for photography but also one of the most frustrating things that I did in Tasmania.
The tour consisted of a catamaran cruise to Port Arthur with time for sight seeing and then a bus ride back. The weather was great, the cruise comfortable and the coastline stunning. The only trouble was that when we arrived at Cape Raoul on the way to Port Arthur the scenery was fantastic but backlit with the cliffs casting a shadow about a metre into the sea. I had my wide zoom on to get the cliffs in frame but also got too much flare to get any decent shots.

The lesson is to check on lighting conditions for trips like these. This trip had an option of bus there and cruise back. I don't know if the lighting would have been better but you should check these things out if you are considering visiting there. I asked when booking but the young guy behind the counter just said they were both good options.

Cheers,
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« Reply #14 on: June 28, 2009, 01:47:47 am »

Hey there

I hope I'm not too late with this reply.

Tassie is gorgeous... you will have a blast there.

Regarding Sydney (my home town), there are heaps and heaps of places to go shoot.  If you like shooting Seascapes, there are literally hundreds of great places.

I have started a photoguide site that has over 50 detailed guides around NSW (most of them in Sydney).  You can find it here http://freephotoguideaustnsw.blogspot.com/

Not sure when you are coming to Sydney, but if you want to go shoot some stunning seascapes, just drop me an email and I'll take you out to some of the great places that the locals go.

brentbat@gmail.com

Brent
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