After the rain – lemon
After the rain – footprints
After the rain – chair back
After the rain – puddle
After the rain – spider’s web
After the rain
fujifilm x-e1
Liffey Falls, Tasmania
We’ve had a welcome break for a week, and visited friends in Tasmania. We did some touring of the national parks around Cradle Mountain, and made our way to Liffey Falls, where we went for a hike through the rain forest. It’s a beautiful place, with lots of shade beneath the trees, and the ground is easy going.
The Liffey Falls themselves are a series of falls, and the track takes you down them, with great lookouts along the way. At the bottom the trees overhang the edges, creating patterns of light that dance on the water.
I took this with my Fuji Film X-E1 and 14mm lens, along with a B+W 10 stop filter, on a tripod, to get the long exposure. The light weight of the Fuji Film gear, along with a carbon fibre tripod makes a big difference in the “carryability” of my setup – especially welcome on the upward climb!
Magic in the mountains
The Blue Mountains Winter Magic Festival is held each year around the winter solstice, and is a community event that brings artists, musicians, drummers, dancers and the wider community together.
The sense of fun amongst people who were gathering for the parade was fantastic, with singers, drummers and a samba group all creating as much noise as possible. The effort people had put into their costumes was tremendous, and I was particularly struck by the drum corp, who managed to keep in character and drum out the beat for everyone to march to.
Grime Bats
Mount Wilson
I took a trip up into the mountains last Sunday, to check up a couple of places for some photography and to get some “shutter therapy”.
As I climbed the mountains, the temperature dropped several degrees, and I ended up at Mount Wilson, as I’d been told the trees were particularly good during Autumn.
Alas, I was a couple of weeks late, and most of the trees were bare, although there were some particularly beautiful Japanese maples that had retained their foliage.
Standing Out
Apple Concentrate
The Apple store on George street is always interesting from a people-watching point-of-view.
The glass walls and free wifi means there are always groups of people concentrating on their devices to photograph.
It makes me think of the store as a combination of temple and social meeting place.
Enhancing the Fujifilm X-E1
I’ve bought a couple of accessories for my X-E1, which add to the usability, and make the tactile experience even better.
Firstly, I bought a Gordy camera strap. Made by hand by Gordy Coale, the workmanship is excellent, and is comfortable around the wrist while providing reassurance that if my grip should slip, my X-E1 will be safe. When I toted a DSLR around, it would hang from my neck, but the size and weight of the X-E1 means that I prefer to hold it one-handed by the grip. Much better on my neck.
Secondly, I’ve added a Thumbs Up “Bop” Concave soft release. This screws into the shutter release, and allows me to gently trigger the shutter, with a much more positive action than the standard button. Because it’s concave, my finger rests nicely on it. One tip, though – put a dab of super glue on the thread, or you will find it has unscrewed and got lost, at some point.
Do any of you have favourite accessories? Let me know!
Mike Baker | Photography 