My Friend Jade took this……..

We blocked the road and took this shot. (Sao took this one)
The Kestrel was very friendly…..

Love the light!

Here’s a view into the sun, a sort of HDR picture

This was a great bridge.

It’s 5:30am in the Morning and it’s -13 celsius.

Life is grand. Thanks to Alister and Ali Benn for hosting us.

Here’s an image from the 1D4, with a 180/3.5 Macro, looking deep into the foliage looking for stuff….

Many Km’s south of Bangkok, as we headed south to the province of Surat Thani, there’s a stop where we can refule the car, our minds and bodies and take a few pictures.

There were many “wtf” looks as I sauntered around with a camera and lens and photographed items and creatures.

Kea found this under a wooden box.
The ISO on this camera rocks!

Mum passed away this morning peacefully in her sleep.
She dreaded going any other way.

I was at this temple a few days ago, while we are in Thailand waiting for Sao’s NZL VISA to be approved and issued.

In Thailand Buddhism, when they go to the temple they like to remember those that are here and now, and to remember those who have passed.

If found it quite soothing here, walking around, thinking of Mum and Dad. Dad would have loved it here, Mum would have hated it.

Yin and Yang.

Rest in Peace Mum
Love always
Robin & Sao

Some ants

Here’s the Temple where Sao & her family transferred the ashes of their dead relatives from further south to here.
A Ceremony ensued.

Behind this complex are a group of small Chedi’s that house said remains.

This is a little exercise in DOF
Taken at dusk in Surat Thani, Thailand.

Here’s a 20 shot panorama of Perth, taken from Kings Park.

It was a nice warm day, great for a walk.

A Larger version is here

If you know Thailand, you know why this just works…

Jade sets up a shot

Sao is in her “Walk about” Pose as she prefers to not use a Tripod.

Note the light and the beautiful surroundings!!

This fellow was having a ball in the grass just in front of our car…

We climbed this baby!!!!

The Bicentennial Tree

This is the first in a series of images from this weekends trip to this park South of Perth, Western Australia

This is the Delta of the Warren River, and it was pumping!

One of the Gems Sao took while we were in soft soft sand long the beach North of Bunbury

Sao was out today and some big monster trundled past…..

Here’s a shot look back away from yesterdays trees.
A LARGER version is here

Staying on theme, Sao and I went for a post dinner walk and decided we’d try the trees lining the boulevard on Kings Park.

Getting a perspective was our conundrum, as there are not any good angles.

This is from the top of the Aboriginal Art place, about half way along, it’s 15 shots, stitched in PS CS5

Using -2/3 EC

Here’s the large version

This is a Black and White version.

It looks way better bigger here

Taken about 45 minutes or so ago.
Sao and I went for another little walk….

Here is a larger version

It’s Perths longest week of cold weather ever.
This is 6:30am, on my Bicycle, heading to work, past the Casino, reflected in a pond.
Feels like -4 out there

This weekend we drove from Sydney to Perth. It was a three day trip and we took almost no photos. Here’s one from the shoot. It reflects the weather at this time of year, gloomy, dark, and intense.

It’s 2003 and we”re in the bush.
Our guide stops and bends down.
He comes up with this gem

From the last post I mentioned we were charged by an Angry Elephant.
This picture is the  shot from down in the depression, the Guide standing resolute (the other one is out of picture on the right)
Ollie, Sao and I are down in the depression (as is obvious)

Our Guide while walking in Kruger Park in 2003.
This was the first walk in which we had a guide have to cock his rifle as we were charged by elephant.
What an experience.
I love this place!!

This was taken in Kruger Park, 2003. Blew me away to see such a cool bird within a few minutes of entering the park.

Sao and I oooo’d and ahhhh’d our way through the first few days as the plethora of game became obvious.

She’s taller than Sao and a fully fledged Teen…..
This is taken in August 2001, the first time I met Sao’s family…..
And there were a lot of them

John taking his Nissan through it’s paces through a mud trap.

Just North of Perth, on a stretch called “Powerline”, where the track follows… well, yeah, you get it……

We had friends in town today and we went out to take a few pictures.

IN 2008, Matthias and I did the epic Gubeikou Trek from Janshanling – Gubeikou.

We passed military installations, extreme hilly sections and parts of the wall that were just mounds of earth, as mother nature had finally gotten her way and had reclaimed that part of the wall for herself.

Here’s a picture of Matthias climbing one of the last ramparts, to the last remaining “Tower” at this end of the wall.
The Town is almost visible on the left, and the wall gets a new lease of life up the huge ridge in the distance. This is a part of the wall I’d love to go back and do, as it looks most physically challenging and the views up there would be unreal.

Rob

Last nights efforts at getting some sunsets and star trails.

The Star trails were a wash… (ugh) and the Sunset Sao got, as I got a little stuck….

Here’s my first go at these things…

A Kid, egged on by his idiot father, risks his life climbing this and jumping off.

We visited friends (I consider them family) near the Gold Coast in Brisbane.

Here’s Sao taking in the sights

Whilst in Sydney, a Giant Gull tried to take the bridge away.
Police and PETA agencies are looking into it.

“Terrorism is not being discounted as a motive”  , Constable Plod commented today.

I liked the way this one was still looking for food, even with us being a hassle below.

So hard to get decent pictures of these birds in Australia as the locals shoot at them all the time. This is not taken in a National Park.

Raptors tend to gravitate toward the road kill areas…..

Here’s a close up of a competitor heading through a gate.
You can see his eyes. It’s also interesting to suss out the scale of the plane, it’s so small.

After a few hours in the sun we headed home.

Cheers

Rob

Oops….

Snagged it!!

This shot, into the sun this afternoon.
We took Kea down for a look before he heading back to New Zealand….

Here’s a Panorama from the “spit”, on the  Western most extremity of the Island.

Here’s one of the friendly characters that meets and greets you around the Island….

Kea, my youngest, is in Perth with us while the skool holidays are on.

We’ve been getting out and about…….

We saw a great deal of things on this trip.

Getting these birds in flight is a real challenge.

Enjoy….

It’s over one thousand kilometres from Perth, turn right and go inland. This is called “Rocky Pool”.

The Rooftop tent is our accommodation, and it makes it easy to do the km’s.

I’ll be posting some of the Birds & Landscape Pictures we got this Easter weekend after nearly 4,000km’s of Road and Track.

Not far from here we shredded a tire. And I mean “Shredded!!”.

Cheers

Rob & Sao

Tomorrow night we’ll be around here : > -24.8684, 113.6913 <- (use Google Earth, or maps.google.com)

We are then heading to :> -24.332864, 116.85608 <: And points in between.

Our 4Wd now has a rooftop tent so we’re more flexible than ever.

We’ll stock the fridge and off we go.
Tomorrow night I’ll put a blog entry in via my BGAN device (we’ll be a long way from anywhere)
Until then…….

We’re hoping to bore y’all with more Eagles and Kestrels and Ospreys….. here’s hoping. Oh, and some landscapes.

Well, we’re back. We went out today, blue skies abounded.

Next weekend is easter and we’ll head out further again, giving 2010 a great kickoff.

It’s overcast and horribvle in Perth. The Photography mood remains low.

We will address this over Easter. Then Kea is coming to visit for ten days. I wonder if Perth is more interesting than Kaeo..

Here’s a little Tiger Photo I’ve added a vignette to and the reflection is a photoshopped one.

Whaddaya reckon?

Today a massive set of storms came through Perth.

I was on my bike about to head home when they hit and about an inch of hail landed at my feet. Luckily I was under cover, but for five minutes of timing. I am glad I had a little extra to do before leaving.
The storm abated a little and I headed home. Upon arrival the real storms came and gave us a good lashing…..
The Thunder caused butterflies in more than one stomach (not mine, I quite like it and look for photo opportunities)

I guess that’s summer over….

I had forgotten how much I enjoyed this night with Sao and COlin down at Muang Thong Thani III.

Lots to see in this picture, so much was going on.

In Eclectis Extremis.

Here’s a view of some ridiculousness from Thailand……

Today, messing with Macro…

It’s not brilliant or perfect, but a good start back into it….

The Buddhist Idols were covered in “Gold Leaf” from the worhsippers that flowed through this “outdoor hall” in droves.

Special Holy Water, Books and Bells added to the mayhem and wonderful confusion….

Thailand…

Rob

This is the Thailand Buddhist National Centre at

Suan Phuttamonton (Phuttamonton Park) is a very large park just outside Bangkok in Nakorn Pathom province, a few kilometres west of Bangkok’s southern bus terminal.

Much of the park consists of open woodland with mown grass underneath the canopy, with pools, flower beds and gardens, although there are a few areas where the ground layer is uncut and insect diversity is fairly high, attracting a number of birds. Apart from birdwatching, this is a good place to have a picnic in a quiet corner of the park and it would be most enjoyable to cycle around. (Thanks http://www.thaibirding.com for the reference)

Today there was a festival there. I will come back with more details, as it’s all a bit confusing.. (for me)

Welcome back to Thailand!

Rob

some of the 2005 Migration….

Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

This was before sunrise, cruising along in a Balloon, high above the Serengeti, Tanzania, 2005

Australia Day, 2010

We were out near the beach….

The dunes were pretty…

This is a Wat in Samut Songkram.

It’s a gathering place for 000′s of Monks during certain ceremonies. (I am unsure of the meaning of this one)

They graciously allowed me to skulk around taking pictures.

Was a great experience.

Here’s another oldie but a goodie, Sao is pictured taking a photo of the Sanctuary of Truth, which Ray has featured now and then.

Check out the size….

This is with a MF 35mm lens and I had to stand well back…..

I’ve lost some file, so while I am restoring, I am looking through old pictures….

Here’s a night I remember well…….

Taken with my old Canon D60, many moons ago . . . .

A Couple of Galahs, thank goodness for a 100-400 lens….

It was 41 Celsius, the sun was setting.

The Wheat Belt is not a pleasant place to be in the summer……

From last night……

Rob

Gotta love Leopards…..

He looks hungry… avoid!!

Brolga (Grus rubicundus)

We saw lots of these, but man are they tough to get a decent shot of……….

Here’s a pair in a pond…..

There is a little PS here, getting rid of the Santa leading them (Sheesh) and a car in the background……..

Cable Beach, Broome, Western Australia

Camels from the sun’s side.

Rob

This fellow had been rooting around in the mud.
I suspect he doesn’t get a lot of time to do this usually.

Looking for some Birders to help me ID this.

44 Celsius where we took this, the heat was so intense it’s dulled the air between us and him and made this slightly soft.

Rob

Today we had a nice wind swept day at the Beaches north of Perth.
It was mild (Around 25C) and the wind pummelled the coastline.
It was moving the sand a lot and that gave a few interesting times heading over some dunes.

Sao was the Photographer today, all of these are hers.
Look for the larger version here to see it a little more closely

Cheers

Rob

The Camels at sunset.

Unfortunately we didn’t ride them this time…..

But 2010 is young!!

Sao has words to me , with the un behind her…..

Sao tries to play marbles with these monoliths.

Like other rocks around (e.g. Uluru), there seems to be no rhyme or reason for the placement of these…

Cheers

Rob

It’s Early January, work has begun and the year is looking OK.

It’s time to look back on 2009.

Project One: Photo Book, featuring 2009 Pictures (We took a few) – Dedicated to Dad (Richard Thomas Martin RIP 25 June 2009)

Project Two: Biggest Loser . . . need to shed 25kg!! (1/2 of Sao!)

Project Three: Design the Thailand House Upgrade

Project Four: A Trip……. TBA

That’s the signage all over Western Australia and the Northern Territory, trying to reduce the amount of “not natural” fires…..

He was wayyyyy too close for 700mm . .

Cheers
Rib

Along with 1,000 other hot and hassled people, we chatted to many and took a few photos.

This is the more “trite” view of Uluru….

It’s the first of January, and it’s time to reflect on the year gone, and to think about the year ahead……

Here’s two images merged together….

This represents what we actually saw, but couldn’t get the camera to expose in one take….

Happy New Year!!!

2010 is nigh!

Here’s a shot of Uluru up close…..

Check out the dude on the left…….

Sao and I passed there on our Epic 9,400km drive in a loop from Perth…….

A Larger copy is here , for those that like bigger things…..

Not the usual angle, this is the bottom of the “Rock walk” (Closed), with the moon present……
Rob & Sao in Uluru.

We’ll get up for the sunrise . . . . .

Chewing on a tree to clean his teeth after some juicy Road Kill…..

Hello from Alice Springs

Posting this from South Aligator River, with 1,000,000 Mosquitos attacking.

We seek the refuge of the car.

Kakadu National Park, reporting Live…..

Rob & Sao

It’s rainy season in the North…..

It looks so barren and dry, and the water all around is a juxtaposition.

I’ve re-enabled the subscribe2 feature, so an email will be sent for this one. Please have a look back through the latest images….

We’re quite happy with one or two of them.

Merry Xmas all

Rob & Sao in Kununurra!!

Somewhere near Broome.

We have quite a story to be told for this leg, but for now, it’s just an image, as we missed a day due to some charging SNAFU’s with the laptop and BGAN….. (My fault!!)

Merry Xmas to anyone reading…

Rob & Sao in Kununurra.

Today is day two of our trip as far north as we can go.

We ended up today at a Roadhouse 140kms North of Port Headland (Google it)

I’ll be posting an image a day, and some commentaru if I remember to charge the macbook air…..

A boat ride with good friends…

could it get better??

On our last trip home to Thailand for 2009, we had a nice river cruise with Tony and Johanna from Hong Kong.

I unusually took a camera ( ) and took this snap as we passed this Bangkok Icon!
Sao and I head north in a day or so, so expect some cool northern Pictures and commentary coming up!

Rob

It was a windy day on the ferry

These little beauties took my fancy. So of course, we took a photo.

They danced around us for a while and then flitted off to more important activities.

Colours…….

THis weekend we ducked out for a trial run for our Xmas trip.

It was Perth – Canarvon – Gacoigne Junction – Meekatharra – Perth.

550kms of this on dirt roads.

We got some nice shots though.

2,000kms in two days….

Sao and I preparing for Xmas!!

In Kruger, the Elephants can get a little Testy.

We took some friends up to the Pinnacles in western Australia.

Here’s the gallery…..

Out on the Klongs of Thailand, these distinctive boats are used for fishing in all manners of ways, from Prawns, Oysters and larger fish.
I did this in a sepia tone to give it more of that “Old School” feel.

Sao poses with her sister Oil (Pronounced Oy), at her wedding this weekend past.
I’ll get a gallery up later.

Sao leaps off a sand dune in the Lancelin dune area of Western Australia.
Was a fun day out…..