Auckland's Sky Tower At Night

Another photograph of the Auckland Sky Tower. This one was taken at night from my apartment balcony. I like the way the clouds have taken on the light from the tower. This building - the tallest in the Southern Hemisphere is New Zealand's most popular tourist attraction. The viewing experience offers breath-taking views of more than 80 kilometres in every direction. Night visits are possible and offer amazing views of the North Shore and beyond !

Cornish Leaves

One of the great things about living in England is the change of seasons. Autumn with it's golden leaves is especially welcome. This very simple picture was taken near St Neot's in Cornwall. You can't escape the richness of colour at this time of year and Cornwall is a great place to experience Autumn at it's best !

Waterfall At Karekare

A close up of the Waterfall at Karekare. This magnificent sight is about a 5 minute walk from the car park at the bottom of the valley. I imagine this place has hosted it's fair share of full moon parties and I'm sure a great number people have swam in the perfectly preserved pool of water at the bottom of the falls ! It's a beautiful spot and a great place for a Sunday afternoon picnic !

Signs In The Sky

Shopping arcades, restaurants, underwear, the latest electrical goods, ice cream, flights, cafes, bars, CD & DVD releases. All these (and more) get the neon light treatment in Hong Kong ! Advertising is most definitely king and shopping is a religion in this vibrant city. It was easy to get lost amoungst the streets of Central or the avenues of Wong Kok. Bright lights lead the way at every turn.

Lady Knox Geyser

Rotorua is the thermal capital of New Zealand. Geyser's and bubbling mud pools are plentiful. This particular geyser gets a helping hand every morning at 10.15am ! Heights of up to 20 metres can be seen and it can continue to erupt for up to an hour ! In 1901 the first open prison in New Zealand was established at Waiotapu, its object was to accommodate some of the better behaved prisoners from around the jails of the Rotorua Lakes District. It was a gang of these prisoners that first discovered the clearing in which the geyser is situated and that the bubbling hot water spring could be made to 'erupt' by adding soap. A fact discovered when they first used the hot water to clean their clothes in ! Rocks were subsequently placed around the base of the spring to enhance the eruption and over the years silica from the eruptions has built up to give a white cone shaped appearance.

Clouds At Muriwai

I love clouds and this was a good day to capture a few 'fluffy ones'. As mentioned previously - the South Pacific sky seems more vibrant than others I've experienced. This was taken on a sunny afternoon at Muriwai Beach - on the West Coast of Auckland. Are these beautiful shapes telling us something ? Answers on a postcard :)

Mokoroa Falls

Mokoroa Falls is a wonderful retreat that forms part of the Goldie Bush Walkway in the region of Rodney. Take my advice and wear strong footwear if exploring this area. Even though the picture captures a place of tranquility, getting here was no picnic. Due to very wet weather conditions the day before - the mud around my feet was extremely slippy and dangerous. Almost fell into the surrounding stream on numerous occasions ! Thankfully I got a few good pictures out of it. This one is my favourite from the day.

Piha / Lion Rock

Lion Rock in all her refective glory ! This natural formation is named after its similarity to a lying male lion. Visitors to Piha are able to climb the rock, though (be warned) a certain amount of stamina is required. Lion Rock divides North and South Piha beaches. This landmark is immediately visible to visitors as they descend along the only access road. Lion Rock is an iconic sight synonymous with both the West Coast and New Zealand in general (it's even been featured on stamps in the past) ! This picture was taken one late afternoon. Managed to get a good reflection on this one.

Koala Bear

This Koala Bear picture was taken at Steve Irwin's Zoo (Australia Zoo) just South of Brisbane. Early European settlers to Australia called the Koala the 'Native Bear', but in fact it's not a member of the bear family, it's a marsupial. The Koala's scientific name (Phascolarctos Cinereus) comes from the Greek: 'phaskolos' meaning "pouch" and; 'arktos' meaning "bear". It was the only Koala I could find awake. I guess the others were asleep due to being 'high' on eucalyptus leaves !

A Word To The Wise

Time to mix things up a bit. From South China Seas to Southern Ireland! A selection of photographs from Ireland and more specifically the little town of Blarney will come soon. I had a wonderful Christmas break close to here with family. A real chilled affair. Apart from playing with my beautiful niece, watching rubbish on TV and eating way too many Christmas snacks, I took the time to walk to Blarney and take a selection of pictures in relation to the Castle and it's grounds. The best ones will show up on my web-site soon. The Blarney Stone is without doubt the most famous part of Blarney Castle. Also called the legendary Stone of Eloquence, it's located at the top of the castle’s tower. Legend has it that if you kiss it, you’ll be struck with eternal eloquence and you will never be at a loss for words. That's why I've been writing so much on this web-site of late! This picture features the castle in all her glory.

Kepa Bush Reserve

At the entrance to this reserve you'll find a secluded picnic spot with tables. A sign shows where the track begins. The track (only an hour long) is a little beauty ! The vegetation is interesting and the bird's that frequent this spot make it well know you've entered their domain. After a short uphill climb you'll find two lookouts with excellent views of Auckland. The Kepa Bush is in the region of Orakei.

Auckland/Devonport

The city of Auckland as viewed from 'North Heads' in the beautiful suburb of Devonport (on the North Shore). Really love the view of the city from this spot. Auckland is known as the city of sails. It's easy to see why the city had won this reputation. Auckland's population is approximately 1.3 million, making it by far the largest city in New Zealand, with one third of the country's entire population. Many of it's inhabitants like nothing more than taking to the water on sunny weekends !

Rock Close

Rock Close (a short walking distance from Blarney Castle) is certainly worth a visit, although many people find it rather creepy at night and wait to explore it in the light of day! There are many interesting things to see, including many Druid-related structures. For instances, a sacrificial stone is situated so the first rays of the sun strike it at the appointed time for sacrifice. Other sights to see are the Wishing Steps, the Witches Kitchen, the Head Druid’s Cave, the Witches Stone, the Fairy Glade, and the Druids Circle. Here's a typical scene from this area. This would've been a great place for Peter Jackson to film some scenes for 'Lord Of The Rings'!

Starfish At Karekare

There are about 1,800 living species of starfish in the earth's oceans. The greatest variety of starfish can be found in the tropical Indo-Pacific. Areas that are also known for their great diversity include Australia and New Zealand. I photographed this little fella at Karekare beach one late afternoon while he was waiting for the sea to come back and reclaim him.

Tolaga Boardwalk

Tolaga Bay is on the East Coast of New Zealand's North Island (North Of Gisborne). The bay, named by James Cook is a popular holiday spot in the Summer. The beach or bay is famous for having the longest boardwalk in all of New Zealand. This picture was taken on an atmospheric afternoon. I stopped off on my travels to take this photograph of the famed landmark. I couldn't 'walk it' as it was closed for repairs at the time, but this picture captures a little of it's majesty. Liked the shot in sepia.

Fisherman At Muriwai

This photograph was taken a late December afternoon at Muriwai Beach (West of Auckland) and features a fisherman braving the rough seas lapping around him. This gentleman was having a successful day fish wise, but salt water was soon to get into his eyes. The waves can be treacherous here and it's best to respect the power of nature, hence my reluctance to get too close to the edge of the rock ! No doubt dinner tasted extra special this particular night.

Up Close

The grounds that surround Blarney Castle are a mini treasure trove of delights. I'm always on the look out to photograph things of interest. I hadn't used the macro lens facility (in order to focus in on things at close range) for a while, but this was the place to do it. It was great to have a nice bright, crisp Winters day to explore Blarney Castle and it's grounds. Here's one shot taken real close!

Skyward

Taken after a visit to Bar Street (Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong Island). I'm surprised I managed to get the picture in focus at all. I love modern cameras with anti shake features, especially after a trip to the bar ;) Just a simple street scene looking skyward. Bright lights, BIG CITY. I've mentioned this before, as a rule of thumb I hate taking pictures with a flash because this generally kills the life of a shot. More from the city coming soon.

Blarney Castle

The North Face of Blarney Castle in Southern Ireland. This now historic place was built in 1446. Over the years, it's become a world landmark and one of Ireland’s most popular attractions. Many travelers believe that a trip to the medieval Blarney Castle can’t be missed; it’s on par with the Guinness Brewery and other attractions and is viewed as an intrinsic symbol of Ireland and Irish heritage. It's located in Blarney Village, about 8 km northwest from Cork.

Skytower Jump !

Why does anyone feel the need to do this type of thing ? Believe it or not people pay good money to fling themselves off Auckland's Skytower. I'd much prefer to be standing on the ground taking a photograph with my trusty camera ! While this guy was screaming his lungs out for all of Auckland to hear, I took his photo. The Skytower always looks great in the sunshine. Liked the whispy clouds too.