Robert's Ramblings

It never fails to amaze my how popular Adelaide jetties are with all manner of activities taking place.

During the day there are people out strolling, jetty jumpers risking life and limb and the odd casual fisher with a line or two cast to sea.

Once the sun has set and the last of twilight vanishes into night there is a distinct change. The jetty jumpers have gone, the strollers become far a few between.

Come days end the fishing becomes the serious business.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 743, Day's End' 1/80s f/6.3 ISO1600 200mm

The planet 'Posidonia' is a hidden world where armored creatures lurk and dragons rule.

It exists only meters away from the world of men who sail past in boats or fish from jetties, most of whom will never see its beauty.

It is however a world beckoning to be explored by anyone willing to don mask, snorkel and fins and see it for themselves.

It you look carefully you just might even find a dragon!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 742, Planet Posidonia' 1/50s f/8.0 ISO200 8mm

When it comes to wide-angle, it is hard to beat the 180 degrees of an 8mm FE lens.

This panoramic sphere has captured Liam's last descent before heading home following a week of diving and photographing Rapid Bay Jetty.

Liam lent me his 8-16 FE zoom for this dive. Not having the correct gearing in my housing I elected to fix the zoom at 8mm and just have some photographic fun.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 741, The Big Descent' 1/400s f/11 ISO100 8mm

My first Weedy Seadragon, Phyllopteryx taeniolatus, for the year and this old boy has seen better days.

Although he is missing a few appendages the evidence of a recent clutch of eggs is testament to the fact that he's still got what it takes to win the ladies.

Weedy seadragons are not usually seen at Rapid Bay Jetty so finding this guy was a real treat for me today and comes after another batch of poor conditions which are finally clearing.

The coming few days are looking better and better so weekend divers should be in for real treat.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 740, Still Got What It Takes' 1/160s f/8 ISO160 8mm

Finally the water has started to clear the weather is fining up and we found our perfect dragon. Is'nt she a beautiful creature!

Another 5:30am start for me but today was worth every part of the sleep deprived morning.

Liam and myself spent a good 30 minutes with this gorgeous female and she was not the slightest bit perturbed as she modeled for the camera.

Thanks to Nate from NB scuba for finding one of the most technically perfect Leafy Seadragons I have seen.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 739, Beautiful Creature' 1/320s f/9 ISO320 40mm

Being a beach dweller I do not often think of making sunset images any where far from the sand.

This image is one of those rare exceptions taken from a vantage high in the Adelaide hills.

From here the gulf waters seem to smooth right out and appear like a mirror but the shape of the reflections tell a different story. If the sea was perfectly calm the rays of sunlight would be faithfully mirrored but instead they are translated into horizontal and vertical bands of light and shadow as only those random moments where the water surface is exactly horizontal to me all contribute to the beautifully textured water in this image.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 738, The Gulf of St Vincent' 1/500s f/4 ISO100 105mm

Our diving today was nothing short of hopeless photographically with 1m visibility, lost buddy procedures and various comical lost and founds while searching for leafy sea-dragons which were non-existent.

From a diving point of view it was however a heap of fun even if I did not even press the shutter once for the entire dive.

To make amends I decided to capture what was shaping up to be a great sunset but the colour fizzled out completely after the sun dipped below the horizon. Oh well, good old Henley Beach Jetty with here gorgeous legs comes to mye rescue again.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 737, She's Got Legs Part Two' 8s f/16 ISO100 15mm

Underwater is such a narrow field of photography but even in this, my favorite niche, there is so much diversity.

I have always taken images of other divers but never really thought of then as environmental portraits before. Looking back of some of my work I am starting to realise just how much I like them.

Being geared up in diving equipment, regulator in mouth and mask on face does not make looking good easy so it's not about how good a diver looks but how good it looks to be a diver!

Thanks Liam for being both my dive buddy and model on this one! I think I'll be exploring this photographic niche within a niche with new enthusiasm to see where it leads.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 736, Liam' 1/250 f/8.0 ISO320 15mm

Today's dive at Rapid Bay with Liam was an exercise in reconnaissance.

Our mission was to locate a Leafy Seadragon but it was always going to be a challenge in the murky conditions.

Liam found his dragon and we were both treated to an uncommon visitor, a Longsnout Boarfish, Pentaceropsis recurvirostris

Conditions were not great for wide angle photography but we gave it our best anyway.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 735, A Not So Boaring Profile' 1/800 f/8.0 ISO320 15mm

My first time down on the beach this year and of course I just had capture my local Henley Beach Jetty.

While down there a passer-by stopped to see what I was doing and to offer me some sage advise. Something about cameras being extremely allergic to saltwater I recall but I was too busy managing the the swirling tide around the legs of my tripod to pay him too much attention.

In some way the swirling wash around the legs of my tripod seemed the same as the swirling water around the legs of the jetty. It's just that she has more of them.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 734, She's Got Legs' 4s f/16 ISO100 15mm

We began dessert thinking it was pretty good to coating strawberries and apples in gorgeous runny hot chocolate.

Then Christine brought out the Christmas panettone and suddenly the fondue became dessert heaven!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 733, Fondue Heaven' 1/40s f/4 ISO2000 40mm

Happy New Year Adelaide 2014!

Wishing all of you out there in Adelaide and beyond and amazing 2014.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 732, Happy New Year 2014' 4s f/7.1 ISO100 200mm

A small crowd has gathered at Adelaide highest vantage point, the top of Mount Lofty, to witness all of the fireworks which will unfold in and around Adelaide.

Yes, sure you get to see all of the fireworks from here but in actual fact they will only be very small twinkles in the distance compared to being right underneath them.

Still we are all here waiting so bring on midnight and the end of what has been an amazing 2013.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 731, Waiting For Midnight' 1/40s f/7.1 ISO1600 15mm

If deep blue eyes are supposed to be alluring then the Doughboy Scallop, Mimachlamys asperrima, would be the most alluring of all.

Also known as a sponge scallops this species rarely finds its way onto restaurant plates. Unlike commercial varieties which are collected from sandy bottoms, this scallop chooses a sessile life covered in sponge and coral attached to reefy habitat. This one under Port Hughes Jetty must only be couch surfing because it is surprisingly devoid of spongy growth.

As for those gorgeous blue eyes, well you tell me what you think!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 730, Blue Eyes' 1/100s f/18 ISO320 100mm

The Southern Cardinalfish, Vincentia conspersa, is one of the 'usual suspects' lining up under South Australian jetties.

What is unusual about this fish and its close relatives is that the male is completely responsible for brooding the eggs until hatching.

During brooding the male will keep the clutch of eggs in it's mouth and not eat until they have hatched.

This guy under Pt Hughes jetty is clearly single and out for a good time.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 729, The Cardinal' 1/100s f/18 ISO320 100mm

Looking at this sandy patch I saw bolts of yellow-grey cloth half unraveled and soaked through.

This could have easily been the aftermath of some torrential flood devastated textile factory.

Fortunately for everyone it's just low tide at Henley Beach.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Day 728, Textile Texture' 1/6400s f/11 ISO320 100mm

Capturing moving water at high speed results in some very surreal images.

Watching a fountain and its never ending transitions as the movement takes on a life of its own is mesmerizing. You can however never see the kinds of images that high speed can capture.

Unlike frozen water, a high speed capture shows curves and textures and a sense of movement frozen in time, not in ice.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 727 Water Dance' 1/8000s f/4.0 ISO125 200mm

The outgoing Grange tide leaves wonderful patterns in the sand for walkers to explorer and admire.

I could not tell if this runner was looking at anything in particular as she gazed off into the distance. Perhaps she did not even notice the deep sandy textures though I am sure here ankles would bring them to her attention when she took off again.

The tide will come back in in a few hours and all this will be hidden for another cycle.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 726, Waiting For The Tide' 1/640s f/11 ISO320 100mm

Of all the spiders we find around our home, these little guys seem least threatening, almost as cute if one could use that term to describe an arachnid.

Jumping spiders are aptly named and will make frog like leaps covering hundreds of times their own size. I think this in combination with their tight jerky movements makes them seem less like a spider and more like a playful kitten, albeit a kitten with eight eyes!


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 725, Eight Eyed Kitten' 1.3s f/16 ISO800 200mm

In the local sandy shallows of Henley Beach we do not often see sea stars. They are typically more common in the richer reefy coastline to the south.

With a little change in perspective however I began noticing them everywhere!!


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 724, Sea Stars' 1/2000s f/18 ISO320 100mm

Just another sunny day at the beach with friends, family, blue skies and a little cloud cover.

I really was not expecting to capture anything more dramatic than some holiday antics.

Then I looked up into the sun and saw circles within circles.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 723, Encircle' 1/8000s f/22 ISO50 17mm

Spending Christmas with my mum and our greater family would never be complete without the family Christmas tree.

Years ago, each Christmas, my dad would take us out into the local pine scrub-lands to find the perfect tree. I can remember all the arguments about which tree looked the nicest, would be the right size to get close to but not touch our 12' ceilings. I suspect most of our suggestions were ignored. Dad always seemed to get it right though and we always had the perfect tree to decorate, to look at and to look after over Christmas.

Back then we had old and fragile ornaments made of glass which were carefully unwrapped after being put away from the previous year. All over the tree we placed little candles in holders placed as far out on the branches as their weight could bare and on Christmas eve we lit them all bringing the Christmas tree to life with the twinkle of candle light.

For many years now the family Christmas tree has been made of metal and plastic. The candles are long gone, replaced at first with little bulbs and more recently light emitting diodes and fancy light patterns.

The decorations now are an eclectic mix of old and new. Dad's gone now but I'm sure he'd still admire this modern day creation.

This year I noticed someone new. I had never noticed Frosty the Snowman before, welcome to our family Christmas tree!


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 722, Frosty the Snowman' 1.3s f/2.8 ISO100 100mm

I found it impossible to capture this image of the Swarovski Christmas tree in the Queen Victoria Building as it works its way up from ground level through the atrium void to the ceiling above.

At ground level it completely fills the void with only it's crystal trunk and understory visible. At the top it simply looks like another festive tree, albeit covered in Swarovski crystal.

Here on the second floor you get to feel the scale of this 'sehr schöne Weihnachtsbaum' rising to its crown and the ornate glass dome above.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 721, Swarovski Tannenbaum' 5s f/7.1 ISO1000 15mm

I don't normally make a habit of leaving my camera on the ground and walking away from it in the early hours of the morning but looking up I decided on making an exception.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 720, Looking Up' 5s f/7.1 ISO1000 15mm

When I came upon this stone entrance leading up to 'The Rocks' area of Sydney it felt like and anxious invitation to climb.

Then I noticed people at the top descending back down here again after their own good time and could not help laugh at the symbolism.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 719, Descending From Heaven' 0.6s f/14 ISO640 15mm

The Sydney Opera House, icon of Sydney along side it's famous bridge is probably the most photographed object in Australia.

I thought long and hard about doing yet another 'Sydney Opera House'. In the end I could not help myself.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 718, Operatic' 10s f/7.1 ISO100 70mm

Fire juggler's batons lay on the ground burning bright yellow and orange, the black sooty smoke forming tight curls before being ripped away in the breeze.

These batons will not be passed to any one else just yet.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 717, Burning Batons' 1/500s f/3.2 ISO160 200mm

I love tall buildings covered in glass.

The mirrored surfaces of ordinary office windows bring to life the surrounding city scape in crazy and interesting ways. Sometimes the reelections are so complex it is hard to make out anything sensible.

This time I saw something very simple. One lone building in a blue sky full of clouds.


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 716, Reflection' 1/1000s f/7.1 ISO320 200mm

I'd seen the words 'Town Hall' many times on Sydney train timetables.
I'd seen the words 'Town Hall' many times on the train station siding.
I'd even gotten off at the 'Town Hall' station a few times but had never actually seen 'Town Hall'.

Well now I have...


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 715, Capturing Town Hall' 1/250s f/10 ISO640 15mm

Why go on a photo-walk at all when you can kick back at a street side cafe and let it all come to skating down to me!


Photo: Robert Rath, ‘Day 714, Skater Inbound' 1/3200s f/2.8 ISO320 190mm