Well, I have decided to bite the bullet and sell all my Canon gear to fund more lenses for the H system (big gulp there!). This has been a really hard decision but the quality of the images is just so much better.
Close offers considered and if anyone wants the whole lot and the Billingham bag that I also have for sale email me and we can talk turkey on a combined price.
Note all lens shades, while in good order, do have a few scratches on the outside. Otherwise all enses in excellent oder.
So, I will have (or not have once they go) the following (blurbs from the Canon webpages):
1DsMkII body $AUD 2,250 – PRICE DROP TO $2,100.00 – SOLD
in good order, charger, 2 batteries, 1Gb San Disk ExtremeIII CF card. A few wear marks round the shutter button area.
EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM $AUD 1,250.00 SOLD
In excellent condition, caps, pouch etc (S/N 959187; lens code: UV1003 so manuf Oct 2006) Sorry, no box for this, I was mistaken)
EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM $AUD 1,100.00 – PRICE DROP TO $1,050.00 (offers accepted)
In excellent condition, caps, box etc (S/N 1196848; lens code: UW0512 so manuf May 2006)
This easy-to-use standard zoom lens can cover a large zoom area ranging from 24mm wide-angle to 105mm portrait-length telephoto, and its Image Stabiliser Technology steadies camera shake up to three stops. Constructed with one Super-UD glass element and three aspherical lenses, this lens minimizes chromatic aberration and distortion. The result is excellent picture quality, even at wide apertures. Canon’s ring-type USM gives silent but quick AF, along with full-time manual focus. Moreover, with dust- and moisture-resistant construction, this is a durable yet sophisticated lens that meets the demands of advanced amateur photographers and professional photographers alike.
EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM $AUD1,250.00 SOLD
In excellent condition, tripod ring, caps, box etc. (S/N 439444; lens code: UX0618 so manuf Jun 2006)
There are probably other odds and sods of kit too, but I’ll post them up as I think of them.
This image went through to the semi final round in the Veolia Environnement Wildlife Photographer of the Year Competition. As wildlife photography is not my main focus, but an ‘incidental’ I am well pleased.
This ANZAC Day, as we have done since moving to the area 7 years ago, we attended the dawn service at the small northern NSW village of Tumbulgum.
The turnout of families here is heartening, with local schoolchildren, this year represented by Charissa Birtwell and Luke Hewitt, keeping the Anzac spirit alive by reciting their essays on what ANZAC Day means to them.
This service grows every year and is a simple and moving tribute commemorating the gratitude we feels and the debt we owe to our servicemen and women.
Geoff Provest, State member for Tweed and ex Naval officer Dan Austin, service organiser
Service organiser Dan Austin with Charisa Birtwell & Luke Hewitt, local schoolchildren who read their essays at the service.
The Meaning of Anzac day
Odille Esmonde-Morgan
Is ANZAC Day, as some claim, a celebration of war?
I do not believe so. It is a commemoration the bravery and self-sacrifice of the young men of all wars, who gave up their dreams, youth, health and happiness, and in many cases their lives, so that we can enjoy those things.
Ninety five years ago today the ANZAC spirit was born at Gallipoli. At 5.38 on a dawning Sunday morning they went ashore at Ari Benu to meet fierce resistance their foes, the Ottoman Turkish defenders. Unknown to the troops, they had been landed at the wrong place, the enemy were well dug in to fortified positions, and the campaign was doomed before it began. Planned as a bold stroke to knock Turkey out of the war by advancing to Constantinople, it quickly became a stalemate, and the campaign dragged on for eight long and bloody months.
Towards the end of 1915 the allied forces were evacuated, after both sides had suffered heavy casualties and endured great hardships. Over 8,000 Australian soldiers were killed over the eight months of the campaign. 25 April soon became the day on which Australians remembered the sacrifice of those who had died in the war, with the first commemorative ceremonies held in 1916.
The ‘War to end all wars’ sadly dragged on in bloody sacrifice until November 1918.
The Tradition
ANZAC Day has gone beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli to become the day we remember ALL Australians who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations. The spirit of ANZAC, with its human qualities of courage, mateship, and sacrifice, continues to have meaning and relevance for our sense of national identity.
Australians recognise 25 April as an occasion of national remembrance, with commemorative services at dawn – the time of the original landing – across the nation. Later in the day, ex-servicemen and women meet to take part in marches through the major cities and in many smaller centres, and participate in more formal commemorative ceremonies held at war memorials around the country.
The Services
The Dawn Service has its origins in a military routine still followed by the Australian Army today. The half-light of dawn is one of the most favoured times for an attack. Soldiers in defensive positions were woken in the dark before dawn, so by the time first light crept across the battlefield they were awake, alert, and manning their weapons; this is still known as the “stand-to”. As dusk is also favourable for attacks, the routine was repeated at sunset.
After WWI, returned soldiers sought the comradeship experienced in those quiet, peaceful moments before dawn. A dawn stand-to, with its symbolic links to the dawn landing at Gallipoli, became a common form of ANZAC Day remembrance during the 1920s. The first official dawn service was held at the Sydney Cenotaph in 1927.
Today dawn services are usually simple, movingly sincere ceremonies following the military routine, and attended by families. At the end of the service a lone bugler plays the Last Post and concludes the service with Reveille, the bugler’s call to wake up.
The more formal late morning ceremonies follow a pattern familiar to generations of Australians, with the attendance of local and national dignitaries and military officers, with more speeches and attendees.
——————-
On arriving home I managed to catch some shots of 3 vintage planes, a biplane and 2 monoplanes, as they performed for ceremonies on the coastal strip
The trio dip down for the fly past at Coolangatta, Tugun & Currumbin
Last night I was down at the Tweed Marina and noticed the trawlers heading out, so I went down this morning to catch them crossing the bar on the way home. The swell was very flat but the images came up quite nicely,
Go to my Flickr page to see the other 5 shots I have posted from today.
I toodled down to Duranbah yesterday and the surf was impressive but almost unrideable, the waves were only about 1 metre but they were just exploding with force. I caught a couple of nice wide view seascapes though and a seagull in flight I am fairly pleased with.
I entered a few images and was delighted to have this shot accepted for the 64th Bristol International Salon of Photography (2010). From 215 entries in the Open category from Australia only 39 were accepted. I feel very honoured.
The 2 tropical cyclones currently active (Ului – off Townsville/Mackay & Tomas – off Fiji) are affecting the surf on practically all the Qld coast. Tragically, a younf ironman from Sydney has died at competition at Kurrawa beach.
However, yesterday the southern Gold Coast beaches had a big pumping swell, with waves of about 2m and there were a lot of surfers out. The swells breaking over the rocks with huge bursts of spray sounded like rolling thunder, and I swear the ground shook a couple of times!
Spent the whole day at Burleigh, I arrived there at 6.15 am to get a good parking spot. Had a wander round, bought myself a delicious breakfast the The Bluff cafe, and had a great day shooting.
The event was won by Taj Burrow (AUS), claiming the inaugural 2010 Association Of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Qualifying Series (WQS) 4-Star, Breaka Burleigh Pro.
He defeated Josh Kerr (AUS), Owen Wright (AUS) and Dusty Payne (HAW) who finished second to fourth respectively in an exhilarating four-man final.
Burrow exploded out of the gates with a blistering 9.10 (out of a possible 10), going on to register a combined two-wave total of 17.30 (out of a possible 20) to Kerr’s 15.67, Wright’s 14.60 and Payne’s 8.73. The shot below is from his 9.10 scoring ride, and shows why he was a fitting winner in this event
Bound for Glory
And then he ‘rolled over’ and gave the crowd a triumphant fist pump
And a montage of this manouvre, showing 6 shots over 2 seconds of action (click on the image for a larger size) Full size image (18000 pixels wide) is available as a print, please contact me for a price
In the first heat of the day, on the very first wave surfed, Corey Ziems broke a board.
The board breaking ride
The handover of the new board by ‘caddy’ Mick Fanning
And the sad remnants collected by another surfer
Unfortunately Corey never seemd to quite get it back together and finished 4th in that heat.
While I had a great day’s shooting, I did get somewhat wet. Another fellow and myself were watching this storm front come closer . . . and closer and when it hit it was big. Lasted for about 75 minutes of very heavy rain, but you’ll be pleased to hear I kept right on shootin’. I squelched for the rest of the day, but I kept on. The camera had its raincoat on but silly me had left MY rain poncho in the other bag. Oops! Won’t do that again, no matter how fine it looks.
(click to see full panoramic image)
And a few more name surfers
Mick Fanning was unfortunate enough to have his heat in the worst of the rain, it flattened the waves and visibility was very low as well.
More coming . . . .
The first semi final was the pick of the day surfing wise and was a very aerial affair. One of the judges commented he had never seen so many aerials in one heat.
Among the marvellous manouvres, Josh Kerr of Lennox Head blasted his way to perfect 10 score (from a two wave aggregate of 19.7) with moves like this.
And also scoring high were Josh Kerr of Coolangatta
Brent Dorrington of also Coolangatta
and James ‘Taipan’ Woods of Byron Bay.
Owen Wright and Josh Kerr progressed to the final, along with Taj Burrows and Dusty Paine. With quality surfers like these guys on the circuit, I can’t wait for the Quiksilver Pro!
I had a great time but couldn’t process any pics due to power fluctuations last night. Done a quick couple before I set off for the day.
These are James ‘Taipan’ Wood who with a 15.33 aggregate pushed Mick Fabbing onto second place in their heat. Both these shots were taken in the same wave – he got the tube and rode it well and then had an incredibly long floater, I have 4 frames, it seemed to go on forever.
I will be down there again today, on the rocks in front of the commentary box somewhere. If anyone comes down, some over and say Hi. I plan to arrive at Burleigh at 6 (with DST I leave home at 6.30 and get there at 6, neat huh?) to get a good parking spot.
In the tubeRising the crest
My thoughts on my photography and what I'm doing, photographically.
Photography by Odille's Blog 
