"Morning in Melbourne - With Balloons" posted on my @500px gallery

I've now posted on 500px the second photo highlighted in my previous post (http://australianlightseeker.blogspot.com/2014/07/morning-in-melbourne-posted-on-my-500px.html)

The link is below:
http://500px.com/photo/76953623/morning-in-melbourne-with-balloons-by-gilles-royer

Thanks for your visit!

"Morning in Melbourne" posted on my @500px gallery

The series "Morning in..." continues with this shot from Melbourne CBD. Amazing what motivation can do to me - waking up at 6am for a morning photo shoot seems easy that the same on the Monday morning to go to work. Go figure....

When I got the car out of the garage, I also noticed that it as a beautiful full moon, and once again, a perfect crisp clear sky, typical winter morning. So I headed off closer to the city this time (see my previous posts in St Kilda, Bolte Bridge, and Swan St Bridge), precisely on the St Kilda road bridge.

I set up my tripod, went to Aperture priority mode to get long exposure (I wanted that smooth/mirror effect on the water), and the remote control, and started to shoot, fine tuning to get the best angle and composition. First shots are a bit too dark, not enough light yet, but I got this one at about 7.05am, so technically, just before the first lights. The moon was full, and on her path to disappearing behind the foot brings you can spot in the background.

I was soon joined by a few other photographers and iPhone snappers, so it must have been a good spot!

Here's the shot I selected to post on 500px gallery (http://500px.com/photo/76655195/morning-in-melbourne-by-gilles-royer):

As the sun rose behind me, a hot air balloon appear on the left, in the background, soon joined by a couple more, and they made their way towards the Rialto towers (those 2 towers with an electric blue light at the top - quite a landmark in Melbourne), but it was hard to get both a long enough exposure, and the hot air balloons sharp enough.

Anyway, it was worth fighting the cold (must have been one of the coldest mornings so far) to get a decent shot

Thanks again for visiting!

New photo on @500px gallery - "Morning by the Yarra"

Following my new series of morning shot, this morning I woke up early to capture the lights on the Melbourne CBD, starting from Swan Street Bridge / Henley Landing. Direct link to the 500px gallery  is here.

Thanks for your visit!

New Post on @500px gallery - "Morning at the Bolte"

Inspired by the One Minute On Earth 2014 challenge a couple of weeks ago (please check kujaja.com for more information on OMOE 2014, and here or here for photos taken during that photo shoot), I decided to wake up early again today, and head towards Docklands, to get a view at the City from the West and at the Bolte Bridge (below).

This time of year (it's winter here in Melbourne) is great, as first lights are not too early, and the mornings are very crisp (which also means very cold, but those things I do to get a photo!), which lends itself very well to this type of landscape photography.

So here is the shot I posted on my 500px gallery (http://500px.com/photo/75673433/morning-by-the-bolte-by-gilles-royer) - I decided to go for a B&W edit, to enhance the mood and highlight the lights on the bridge.

Below is the actual original shot in colour

This is obviously a long exposure shot (5s). I also tried to use a new ND filter (+4), but the images above are shot without it, as I'm not yet 100% of the result. But I have a variable ND filter in the post, due any days now, so I'll give that one a try and keep you posted.

Let me know which version of the image above you prefer, and thanks for your visit

The Story Behind... Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty

Back from my holiday in Phillip Island, I posted this new photo in my 500px gallery (http://500px.com/photo/65154481), titled "Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty"

Blue Hour at Cowes Jetty (c) Gilles Royer 2014 - Nikon D200 / AF-S Nikkor 18-70mm / 24mm / 3sec / f/3.8

Phillip Island is situated east of Port Phillip Bay, and is famous worldwide for hosting the Moto GP in February. But as I discovered this week, it is a beautiful spot, only 1.5 hour or so from Melbourne, and full of stunning landscapes and outdoor activities. 

On Wednesday morning, I got up early to have a go at the sunrise. Staying in Cowes, on the North side of the island (and being the main town thereof), I decided to go close, to the jetty. I took a few shots, from the beach on the western side of the jetty, then moved to this side (east) as I thought the long jetty would block most of the sun as it rises behind it. I therefore settled at the start of the jetty, and waited for the sun to point its nose over the horizon. This one was taken in the blue hour before the actual sunrise.

I had my tripod, and screwed on a polarising filter in front of the lens, and set it for a long exposure - 3 seconds - at ISO 100, to get maximum details, and get that smooth effect over the water. The light on the bottom left-hand side of the shot, on the stones, comes from the street lamp over, and helped me bring the textures of those beautiful bluestones.

Quite a few people were also walking on the jetty, so you can see some silhouettes there. That's the perfect time for fishing, not just taking photos!

Unfortunately, the sky was quite cloudy above the horizon, so I didn't get (looking towards the east - or to the right of the photo) a good sunrise. When the sun pierced through the clouds, it was already high above the horizon, and to bright to take directly. 

Hope you enjoy it. When I have a bit more time, I'll post more photos of the Phillip Island trip, as well as my (not happy) story re my jammed lens...

Thanks again for your visit!