Dreamland

 J-Bay really is just that: dreamland. I always find it so incredibly hard to leave the place. The boyf and I took a few days off and wandered up the coast for sun, surf and shell-collecting in one of our favourite places. Lucky for us, our trip coincided with a visit from Mark Mathews and Dean 'Dingo' Morrison. It was quite a treat to watch them surf. I also spent some time shooting with local talent Matt McGillivray and Emma Smith...I'm expecting big things from these two in the future! More pics of them coming soon.

The Sky's on Fire

One of my favourite things about Winter in Cape Town are the sunsets. At the end of a calm and clear Winter's day, the sun goes down and sets the sky on fire. Here's just one of the many beautiful sunsets I've witnessed over the past few weeks.

Shipwrecked

In the early hours of Saturday morning, a 50m long Japanese fishing trawler (the Eihatsu Maru) carrying fish and fuel, ran aground in thick fog. It's new harbour being none other than the upmarket Atlantic seaboard suburb of Clifton. Now for any international readers, homeowners pay a fortune to buy property in this affluent suburb, which offers breathtaking views of the Atlantic and it's coastline below - a rusting Japanese fishing trawler is definitely not something they would want on their beachfront. There have already been attempts to refloat the vessel, all of which have proved unsuccessful. Upon my visit last night it appeared to me that she isn't going anywhere soon (unless they can try on a spring tide perhaps). Surfers have been quite excited about the new arrival hoping it will generate a new surf spot, but that too looks unlikely. There was actually a surfer in the water last night who obviously wanted to be the famed first to ride the new wedge, but all he got was a lot of pounding on the head by ruthless shorebreak. A lot of questions are being asked as to how, with today's sophisticated navigation equipment, can an experienced fishing vessel run aground? Some are skeptical and think it's all in a bid for a fat insurance claim; others blame it on the fog, which was unbelievably thick on Saturday morning. Whatever the reason, she sure is drawing a lot of attention and I doubt she'll be leaving our shores anytime soon.

 

 

Friday Favourite - Stepping Stones

Here's today's Friday Favourite - a once-off shot from my archives posted (almost) every Friday. Titled 'Stepping Stones', this was a spontaneous shot that I took back in 2008 of a friend of mine, Lauren, crossing a stream of water on the beach. I desaturated it slightly to give it a more muted & moody feel (especially because the weather was overcast and grey), and added a vignette. This image has special significance to me because it reminds me how far I've come as a photographer. Pursuing photography as a career definitely entails numerous 'stepping stones' along the way and when I look at the images in my archives it's always great to see the progress I've made along the way.

If you have any questions about my photographs, please feel free to ask me.

Surfing Safari

Cape Town never ceases to amaze me, and I am truly grateful for every day that I get to live in this beautiful city. Last weekend myself and friends literally went on a surf safari, deep into the peninsula. And despite the horrid weather, here's what we were fortunate enough to find:

Warwick Wine

The boyf and I headed out to Warwick Wine Estate this past weekend. Situated on the R44 towards Stellenbosch, this wine estate offers a Big Five Wine Safari and Gourmet Picnic Experience. I didn't take many pics because I was too busy enjoying the experience but I wanted to share a few to promote this beautiful wine farm. It really was a lovely experience and I'd recommend it to anyone living in or visiting the Cape Town area.

 

Goodbye, Day

I love shooting the sunset. I don't care that it is stereotypical or easy to shoot a sunset. They're beautiful. And they're never the same. There's something very metaphorical about watching the sun set and these shots always serve as reminders about the day I had before the sun went down. I'd love to do a project where I shot a sunset every day for a year (I'm sure someone has done this already) but logistically that's a bit difficult for me to do because it sets behind Table Mountain...and I live on the other side. Here is last night's sunset over Outer Kom in Kommetjie, Cape Town.

A Panoramic Weekend (Part 2)

I had so many great panoramic shots from this last beautiful weekend in Cape Town that I decided to split the pics over two posts. These one's are of Long Beach, Kommetjie, Glen Beach, Camps Bay, Big Bay and the scenic drive from Llandudno to Camps Bay. For the Part 1 shots of Chapmans Peak and Oudekraal click here.