Entries by Robert

I have tried and tried and tried to identify this Australia guy in Edinburgh. I have found images of him busking in various cities but no one has put a name to this busker's face.

He was good, really good but surely he must have been thinking he's at a piano the way he's hitting those keys.

Now, days later later going through my images I am lamenting the fact that I did not make that little bit of extra effort to find out his name.

Oh well, until I know any different I'll just have to call him 'The Busker' and remember to ask the next time I see him in the streets of, well; ... next time.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'The Busker', 1/1250s f/2.8 ISO320 105mm

If I had a drone and was brazen enough to use it in the streets of Edinburgh then I might have been able to capture an image like this. What I would have missed out on was the shear pleasure of this amazing castle vista, not on a device screen but with my very own eyes.

Scotts Monument however provided the perfect place to take in this unobstructed view of Edinburgh Castle with nothing more than a little hard work and 267 vertical steps. At 62 meters above the pavement I could not have asked for a more perfect platform.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Edinburgh Castle', 1/500s f/8 ISO100 70mm

There we were strolling down Marshall Street, Edinburgh in search of Elephants when without warning this object of desire pulled up beside us in traffic.

I immediately dropped to my knees. Not in supplication but to get a better angle of this green machine from Britain's most exotic (really the only) supercar manufacturer, McLaren.

Perhaps the streets of Edinburgh are crawling with 570Ss, 'The affordable McLaren'. Starting at around a quarter of a million Australian dollars I am sure they are a popular choice for the narrow streets and heavy traffic.

Tongue-in-cheek aside, the 570S is a beautiful creation giving those Italian machines solid competition in both style and engineering.

This is only ever the third McLaren I have personally seen in the wild anywhere in the world and this time I was just lucky to have been holding my camera while looking for Elephants on Marshall Street.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Envy', 1/500s f/4.5 ISO100 700mm

No, not the band but the city from which the Harry Potter stories emerged, Edinburgh.

This guy was on a falconer's arm in the streets as they thronged with festival goers. You can tell by the small pupils that this owl might prefer to be in bed at this time of the day. Still it seems relaxed enough.

Trying to identify the species has been a dilemma for me. It looks like a great horned owl but if it is it's a long way from its native America's to the streets of Edinburgh. It could also be a northern long eared owl, a potential local, in which case it must be holding its feathers flat. I'm all ears it someone wants to help me out here.

Regardless of the species this beautiful bird could just as easily be right out of a Harry Potter movie, in the wilds of the Scottish countryside or as it is here in Owl City.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Owl City', 1/500s f/2.8 ISO320 200mm

The French playwright Molière wrote 'Tartuffe' in 1664. Now more than 350 years later this young troupe of performers on the streets of Edinburgh were hawking their performance of Molière's famous play as part of the Edinburgh Festival.

At first I just saw a young group of performers in costume full of the vitality of the festival. Then I discovered the play and then the man who wrote it, Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, known by his stage name Molière.

The more I read about Molière the more I became fascinated with the man's life and his pursuit of his passion for theater at the expense of a comfortable high society Parisian life.

I now wish I'd gone to see these young artists perform Tartuffe at the festival (the biggest scandal of Molière's life's work) .

Still I am happy they walked past in the rain, stopped for a photo and introduced me to an extraordinary part of French history.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Tartuffe', 1/500s f/3.5 ISO320 70mm

Driving home one foggy evening recently I was amazed how all around me the steam and smoke rising from the myriad of factories in and around Port Adelaide seemed to just fill a low horizontal plane across the sky.

It was as if someone had placed a gigantic piece of glass over it all and the steam and smoke and fog were all trapped just above the highest chimneys. Try as I did I just could not capture that eerie feel with with a telephoto lens.

I picked out the highest stacks and tried to find a vantage to frame a shot from but now I was way too close to do that original feeling any justice.

Oh well I might as well just press the shutter anyway and take home a little something from that night, the Torrens Island power station, South Australia's biggest power point.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Power Point', 1/40s f/2.8 ISO1000 70mm

Entropy is a term commonly used in the physical sciences to describe how when order is created, the cost is paid for by more disorder elsewhere and how 'things' tend to higher states of chaos or disorder as time progresses.

When this Holden Ute was created, a lot of entropy (chaos) was created elsewhere. This is the cost the physical laws of our universe impose on the creation of order. In this case the work done transforming raw materials from the ground into a shiny new motor vehicle came at a price other than that imposed on the unfortunate owner.

I stumbled on this scene last Thursday night while driving home from work. Fortunately no one was badly hurt despite the driver managing to shear off a traffic-signals switch-box before coming to rest against this lamppost.

Perhaps this was just a case of entropy pay-back? More likely though a completely different set of physical laws were involved!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Entropy Payback', 1/20s f/2.8 ISO3200 140mm

... BATMAN!

Cosplay ( aka costume play ) is a big part of AVCon. Costume play is considered a performance art where costume and interactions closely represent a specific character.

Rather than being a stage performer, cosplayers interact with each other in a social ways and here in Adelaide there is a vibrant cosplay subculture with themes from manga, anime, comics, cartoons and video games.

AVCon is just one of the many events Adelaide cosplayers get to strut their theme!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Na na na na Na na na na', 1/20s f/2.8 ISO2000 200mm

I wonder if Martin Haese, the Lord Mayor of Adelaide, is a closet gamer or perhaps an anime fan in denial!

Well I'll leave you to speculate but his enthusiasm opening AVCon 2017 was unmistakable.

It's great to know the Adelaide City Council supports events like AVCon and Martin's presence Friday let us all know his heart is right there in it!

Gamer; anime fan or neither he is certainly a supporter of youth culture (young and old alike).


Photo: Robert Rath, 'The Lord Mayor', 1/80s f/4.0 ISO1250 200mm

On AVCon's opening night the performers danced us the story of 'Ayvee and Switch'.

In this scene Ayvee, performed by Alice Willamsen, spins a gift of silk cloth for her rescuer Switch.

Ayvee, in the form of a beautiful magical crane had been caught in a trap set by the people of Switch's village.

Despite the famine and hardship the village had endured Switch was so filled with compassion he chose to release the crane rather than bring it back to his village.

In her gratitude Ayvee spins fine silk cloth from her feathers which the villagers then sell to buy the food they need.

It was a delightful story and wonderful prelude to AVCon 2017.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Ayvee', 1/500s f/2.8 ISO2000 200mm

The opening night of AVCon at the Adelaide Convention Center was a spectacle I'd been waiting for several months now and finally it arrived.

I'm not really a big anime fan or gaming enthusiast. In fact I felt just a little bit fraudulent waiting in the long snaking queue surrounded by excited individuals and groups decked out in their amazing character costumes.

Still, the waiting was worth it for a front row seat and the privileged of seeing our daughter perform on stage heralding in AVCon 2017 with the story of Ayvee and Switch


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Heralding AVcon', 1/40s f/2.8 ISO2000 200mm

It's almost a play on words but I don't really think it works. Regardless, these mushrooms can be found on the side of the Adelaide Convention Center about half way up the building on the north western corner.

I had just arrived for the opening celebrations of AVCON, the Adelaide Anime and Gaming Convention 2017. It was a few minutes before sunset, almost every photographers 'dream time' and there they were, ten meters above me basking in that golden glow.

I nearly let that moment pass by but something drew may camera out of the bag for those fleeting moments before bright turned to pastel, turned to pale and and then grey.

If you ever visit the Adelaide Convention Center, look up and admire those unconventional mushrooms.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Unconventional Mushrooms', 1/250s f/3.5 ISO100 200m

... adieu and thank you.

Photo: Robert Rath, '... adieu and thank you'

This weekend just past was one of the saddest days for our family,
the end of a generation,
the end of an era.

Mum, you were one who kept us all connected, you supported our life projects,
and you made it your business to make sure we all made the little things important.

You leave behind demanding boots to fill for all of us.

We love you, I love you, may you now rest in peace.

Patricia, 1932-2017

Photo: Robert Rath, 'Patricia, 1932-2017'

A sliver of yellow algae wrests in the broken shells of a gritty Henley Beach.

With winter now here our beaches will be scored of their summer sand revealing the shellgrit below.

The carpet of broken shells makes for interesting images but it not so kind on bare feet.

I don't mind at all when it makes for sunsets like this.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Golden Algae', 1/3.2s f/20 ISO640 14mm

Every Autumn I get to admire the amazing colours of the liquid amber tree my mother's garden.

I don't remember the colours changing from green, to yellow, to orange.

At least I got to see them these last days of autumn before winter's chilly winds sweep them away.

Photo: Robert Rath, 'Last Days of Autumn', 1/3200s f/14 ISO640 100mm

Pick a funky graffiti adorned laneway in the heart of Melbourne.

Fill it with music, wine and food.

Watch the party unfold!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Hosier Lane', 1/800s f/2.8 ISO100 200mm

It's as if a rolling wave has come in from the ocean, traveled over the sand and grass and stopped just short of Henley Square.

Somewhere in it's travels this wave transitioned from water to wood, solidifying like a standing wave on a base guitar string.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Water to Wood', 1s f/5.6 ISO800 15mm

As the yet another gorgeous Henley Beach evening begins with a beautiful setting sun, up and down the beach I see people with phones in hand and cameras on tripods. It's good to see people enjoying moments like these.

As soon as that sun dipped below the horizon most put their phones away and turned their backs on the the changing sky of twilight. Only one or two stalwarts took the time to watch the visual feast that was sunset's encore.

Just just like waiting for the credits of a movie to end you never what surprises are in store. After the sun has gone show is never over.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'After the Sun has Gone', 1/4s f/5.6 ISO640 14mm

When the street music of the Adelaide Fringe have faded to barely remembered echos you don't have to go to far to get back into that festival feel.

We took a whirlwind weekend to visit Melbourne in the midst of the Comedy Festival and the street music was alive and jam'n.

I never got his name nor lingered long but this exponent of Saxuality, playing in his very own personal space, made this space and this saxual moment special.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'A Saxual Moment', 1/2000s f/2.8 ISO320 140mm

When I see an amazing setting sun sky unfolding in the western sky I immediately think of the our beautiful coastline and the ocean beyond.

How fortunate we were today to be elsewhere this evening!

Following a beautiful day with my family we spontaneously decided to visit Penfolds Magill Estate nestled in the Adelaide foothills for some cheese, wine and a view of the Adelaide plains below.

This was my first visit to what might be called the shrine of 'Grange Hermitage', Australia most famous wine. It was quite something seeing on display a full collection of Grange from its first clandestine 1951 vintage though to 2012.

Then as we were about to leave the sky lit up a fiery yellow and orange as the sun dipped into the vineyard.

How fortunate were we to be somewhere else this evening?


Photo: Robert Rath, 'A Penfolds Sunset', 1/500s f/5 ISO160 200mm

This amazing mess of red and crimson is destined for greatness, albeit an ephemeral greatness.

The purple black texted surface is a floating raft of grape skins and seeds.

The stream of red fluid is the juice of the shiraz fruit crushed a few days before.

What is actually taking place here is this fermenting vat of grape juice, skins and seeds is receiving its twice daily stirring.

The juice (gradually becoming wine) is drawn from below the raft of skins ('the must') and pumped back into the vat. The winemaker's job here is to work the flow over the entire surface to help infuse the tannins, the colour and the complex flavors of the skins and seeds back into the fermenting juice.

The stirring will go on for 7 to 10 days while the yeast works its 'grape juice into wine' magic. Every day the juice sits fermenting the winemaker will taste the wine and make adjustments to the process. At the end the entire vat, the juice and the must and the fallen gum tree leaves will be basket pressed and then barreled for the next part of this wine's amazing journey.

If this years vintage is good enough, and the twinkle in the winemakers's eyes suggests it is, this fermenting red and crimson mess will become Rockford's 2017 Basket Press Shiraz.

I am already looking forward to enjoying a bottle of this wine in perhaps 10 years from now (if I can wait that long).


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Filling Rockford's Basket', 1/400s f/14 ISO2500 14mm

For two days we searched the Golden Triangle, central Victoria, for just a little of that elusive colour.

That intoxicating lust the old timers must have felt was almost palpable here in a region which has given millions over the last 150 years.

Alas despite all our brazen confidence only Mark found the tiniest piece of gold barely larger than the echidna's face on our five cent coin.

It's more than enough however to make sure we come back and try again!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'The Echidna and the Gold', 20s f/16 ISO320 100mm+8mm Ext

Of all the little details that go into preparing for graduation day, the hair, the gown, the tam, ...

it would seem that shoes really do maketh the grad!

So proud of my beautiful wife on her doctoral graduation and of course of her choice of shoes for this special occasion!


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Shoes Maketh The Grad', 1/20s f/4.5 ISO800 145mm

Where do you find a bustling fisherman's wharf market with not a fish to be found?

I am sure if you looked hard enough, if you trawled long enough, if you ferreted through each and every eclectic stall you just might find an ornamental brass Murray Cod or a blown glass Mulloway.
If you are looking for fresh fish here you will be disappointed.

If on the other hand you just want to mosey from stall to stall and explore then the Fisherman's Wharf Market at Port Adelaide might just be the market for you.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'No Fish in This Fisherman's Market', 0.3s f/8 ISO160 14mm

Does a sunset have to have the sun in it? Surely if the sun has set then it will not be visible. Perhaps the more traditional images of setting suns should be called sun settings.

I have come to love that time well after the sun has set below the horizon but still lighting up the sky with it's golden fire. This is my kind of sunset.

Today we were fortunate enough to be in one of the Barossa Valley's most beautiful locations, the Steingarten Vineyard, when the sun and clouds and timing all converged to this spectacular mural of gold and blue and grey.

This is my kind of sunset.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'My Kind of Sunset', 1/25s f/8 ISO160 14mm

It was a cold, wet and miserable quarter past six and I was about to leave for work. One last glance to check I had everything then on a whim I grabbed my camera despite thinking it would not get used.

The as I passed by the old Goldsborough Mort woolen stores in Port Adelaide this happened!

With no time to spare and nowhere to park I drove up onto the footpath, grabbed my camera and captured this beautiful double rainbow over these wonderful old heritage listed buildings.

What a lovely reminder just how interesting a place 'The Port' is, how I should grab my camera a little more often and leave just a little bit earlier, ... because something extraordinary might just happen on the way.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Goldsborough Morning', 1/60s f/5.6 ISO160 15mm

Even in the stormy evening light the Grange Kiosk appears warm and cosy.

As much as I would have liked to have had dinner here tonight we made do with a couple of drinks at the Grange Hotel before heading home for a wholesome kitchen cooked meal.

Our Indian summer seems to be finally over now and places like the Grange Kiosk will need to keep their warm and cosy atmospheres to bring us back in the coming months.

Unless of course it's just for a photograph.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Grange Kiosk', 1/6s f/7.1 ISO160 14mm

We should never have had to remember ...


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Lest We Forget', 1/25s f/2.8 ISO320 165mm

The sun and its golden glow had long since disappeared beyond the western horizon. You could be forgiven for thinking the sunset was over.

Looking high up into the eastern sky however the golden orange light of a west bound sun still clung to the clouds.

There amidst that orange glow a waning gibbous moon shone incongruous in an evening sky.


Photo: Robert Rath, 'Lunar Sunset', 1/800s f/5 ISO320 200mm