Did I mention also that we only had a short window in which to do this trip?  Three days.  Yep, we must’ve driven a bit over 1000km each day, which in a way made the very hot temperatures irrelevant thanks to an air-con car, which, contrary to my dad’s warnings, did not collapse, overheat or have its tyers melted by the road.

Don't walk backwards around Coober Pedy

An overnight in Coober Pedy saw us staying at the Underground Motel (at least we had all agreed not to camp in this heat).  The Underground Motel was a mine that had been converted, thus the rooms are quite small and without the usual kitchen facilities of a motel room.  Instead there’s a communal kitchen area where continental breakfast is included in your fee.  Small is not necessarily a bad thing, it certainly feels more like a cave than other underground motel or hotel rooms in Coober Pedy, with the room shape still resembling a rough cut mine shaft.  Just be prepared to possibly roll over in bed and find your cheek resting on rock rather than pillow.

The next day we ate our continental breakfast (toast with vegemite) over the local paper and enjoyed such headlines as ‘For those leaving our town, we salute you’ and ‘Christmas Nativity play a huge success says coordinator’.  Then we were off to Uluru.

As we got close the silhouette of a similarly shaped Mt …….. fooled us all into getting excited too early.  We checked in at our accommodation (everything there is a part of the Ayers Rock Resort – a conglomerate of different hotels, shops, restaurants, campsite etc) and forced ourselves into the car again to get to the rock for sunset.  It was hot and busy but not frantic, though busier than I expected for summer.

The Rock at sunset, very grassy due to recent rains

Before I go on I want to make note of something about the NT.  It’s relaxed.  We had earlier mused at the 130 speed limit but as we returned to our hotel after sunset and decided to have a swim in the pool I really noticed it; It was about 10pm, the pool was empty and noone was around and I found myself checking for signs, signs about what not to do – what time were we not allowed to swim after?  Where’s the no alcohol sign?  As we sat in the pool with our champagne waiting to be told off I noticed also that the pool had no fence around it – wow.  SA must really be a nanny state.  Rules are engrained in me.  This NT assumption that you’ll do the right thing and be ok without being told how – this is what normal should be.

The next morning we forced ourselves awake at 4.30am to catch the sunrise.  Not that it was difficult dragging myself from the lack of comfort of my hotel room – not impressive, no air-con, toilet smell (which they officially blamed on wet weather) and questionable bed sheets.  At this, The Lost Camel hotel, I can only recommend the pool, at night.

I laugh now remembering how I thought the sunset viewing area was busy and hoped that that lot would sleep in.  This sunrise viewing spot was super busy – as it also allowed for the buses.  Streams of bleary eyed tourists poured into the three vantage points for the sun to hit the rock, then headed out again to the base in case it opened for walking.

The manoevering to get a vantage point at Uluru, sunrise

Another vantage point at sunrise

It did, so we gave it go.  It’s a pretty steep climb, quite a different experience to walking up Mt Lofty.  The rock is smooth, round, tantalising, and tough for many.

Since we were there in summer, during a week of 40+ degree days, apparently it hadn’t been opened for climbing for a while.  We were lucky to chance a day when they did open it for climbing before 8am.

The bus-loads of tourists poured out of their vehicles and marched up the rock.  We were behind a load of very eager Japenese tourists, all very well equipped if not a little over dressed for the weather in long pants/jeans and long-sleeved tops (I don’t mean the light, summer kind to just protect from the sun, I mean jumpers), hats, good solid hiking shoes, backpacks with water and even white cotton gloves (not sure what for).  As we pulled ourselves up the chain they slowly dropped off to the side for a sit down.  It seemed all were giving it a go, from the perhaps height-phobed gentleman who couldn’t move from all fours on the face of the rock as we walked vertically past, to the white-haired grandparents who made it higher than the young folk before taking a break.  Nearer the top the nos had thinned out, as many decided to stop where the chain stopped, rather than go all the way.  We exchanged photo-taking with a young friendly couple who were independent from the bus-load and were making their way down to Adelaide.  So friendly, they seemed to be bursting with pride and glee at being there, yet humble, you wouldn’t notice them unless you needed them.

In hilarious contrast were a bunch of young Italian men, also happy to be there, loud, showy and perhaps just a little too cocky, one of which was the only tourist to bite it on the descent, slipping and coming down hard on his butt, as he showed-off for photos to his friends at the base.

An Aussie father and son duo impressed everyone as this kid, who must’ve been about 4, made it all the way to the top – without being carried.  He became the tourist attraction as some young ladies asked him to pose for some photos with them and his dad advised “enjoy it while you can son, it won’t last”

Everyone carried water with them of course, everyone that is, except for an American lad, who, as we began our descent and passed him on his way up, stopped us and puffed, sweaty and red-faced – “They got any kind of water up there . . . at the top?”  Why yes – and a Burger King too, next to the Starbucks . . .

After our walk we packed up and filled up (at $2.03/litre!!!!) and headed back to Coober.   Coober Pedy was like a furnace but it was a welcome relief to be OUT OF THE CAR!!!!  This time we stayed at The Lookout Cave underground motel and were much more impressed.  These rooms were created specifically as motel rooms so they are more square shaped and spacious, with the minimal kitchen facilities and SPACE.

The view of Coober Pedy, complete with air vents, on top of our underground motel

To celebrate being out of the car we took our beers up to the motel’s lookout, which is on top of the motel’s dugout rock, with 360 degree views of Coober Pedy.  Then dinner at John’s Pizza Bar and Restaurant which really did have very decent pizza, testimony to its ‘I heart Food Awards 2010’

We took our leftover pizza back to the motel (four people will only need one large pizza, unless you want brekky).  Cut into pure rock, dug-outs in Coober Pedy have a constant temperature of 25 degrees so they don’t need air-con.  A fan to move the air around is ample to ensure a fantastic sleep.  With no noise or light in the mornings, a late sleep-in is difficult to avoid.

Finally the last 1000km home to Adelaide was not without its highlights – including a speeding fine (nanny state, see He Said), buying a country road-stop coffee and being asked if I want “instant or machine?” Also a bush fire in the Flinders Ranges (just out of Port Augusta) and the sad sight of an emu still alive but not looking good after being hit on the road.  FYI if your car hits an animal and its still alive you can call the general police no 131444 and they’ll contact the local police to deal with it (eg. They’ll shoot cattle, I don’t know what they’ll do with an emu).

All in all, I ended up being very glad the in-laws made us do the trip.

Cheers

Keturah de Klerk, Photography Life

 HE SAID

“Why is is 130km/hr safe in the NT but not in SA”?

 SHE SAID

 “There’s always a pube in the hotel bedsheets when you neglect to bring sheets of your own”

The pictures were pretty straight forward, to be used for credentials etc. Flat light and a white background was to be used. As it so happened, on one of the pictures I took of young South Australian super talent Jack Bobridge, one of the flashes had not recycled yet. This meant that the picture was taken with only one flash from the camera right.

In the past, I would have probably just binned the image, as it was not the picture that I was there for. I liked the look of it though, it took me back to my student days when we were only given one light to play with. I ran it through some post production and viola.

I like it.

Hope you do too.

Morne de Klerk

The 'official' picture that I was after

One light from camera right. Retouched.

There are only 2 things that you need to know about Oodnadatta. The water in the shower is hot and the beer is cold. It doesn’t matter which direction you are travelling in, by the time you arrive in Oodnadatta, you will certainly need one, if not both of them.

Oddnadatta is a town in South Australia’s far north and sits bang in the middle of the desert. It gives the name to the main thoroughfare in these parts, the Ooodnadatta Track, an extended scraped patch of dirt that counts for a road.

On first glance, Oodnadatta can look a bit intimidating. There are car wrecks and scrap spare parts all around the place and a pack of dogs roam the streets. The town is completely dominated by The Pink Roadhouse. Built in the old American style, it has morphed into a place where you can buy just about anything, from the basic petrol and snacks through to scrap spare parts. If something is broken, chances are you can find a quick fix solution here, if you are willing to go rummaging in the back shed.

Pink Roadhouse

We stayed in the Pink Roadhouse’s camp area. It has all the basic facilities, but they are basic. It is here though that I found a hot shower, and it was excellent after a dusty day-long trek along the Oodnadatta track.  It is peaceful save for the nearby school, where children played basketball under lights until about 8 pm, but that was the only noise until the crows started their yelling a little before sunrise.

Everyone in town seems friendly and approachable, not only the shopkeepers who are great with information and directions, but local residents are easy to talk to. A chat to locals in the general store might have you there for a while, hearing stories of the surrounding area.

So, as they say:”don’t judge a book by its cover”. Oodnadatta is one of those places. Many travellers come in, fill up and head off and miss out on some of the friendly local hospitality, and if there is one thing I hate to miss out on, it is an ice cold beer!

Pink Roadhouse Sign

Old Petrol Bowser

Oodnadatta House

Hope you get a chance to visit!

Cheers

Morne de Klerk

He Said:

Cold beer and hot showers and really nice burgers!

A mechanic/handyman’s dream and also his worst nightmare. If something is broken and need fixing in Oodnadatta, chances are you will have to get creative. If the Pink Roadhouse does not have a part or some distant resemblance to the part you need, there is always the scrapyard. Because of the remote location, spare parts are expensive, it is not like you can just go somewhere else.

Dusty and dustier, we pull up into Oodnatta in the north of South Australia and go into the Pink Roadhouse as all travelers are recommended to do, indeed there is nowhere else to go.

The official welcome to Oodnadatta, South Australia

Pink Roadhouse, Oodnadatta, SA

As we pay for our petrol we ask about the road to the Painted Desert which is where we were headed,  we ask also if there are any sturt peas in the area.  ‘A few’, the Canadian  behind the till tells us; they’ve been seen but she’s not sure if they’re still there.  There’s an elderly Aboriginal man standing next to me in the queue.  Wearing the classic  Akubra hat and rather grey haired he looks both approachable and knowledgeable, so I ask him if he’s a local and indeed he is.  He’s able to tell us a little more specifically where the flowers are and he’s pretty confident that they’re still there now.  We thank him and he pays for his bread and leaves.  The area they both indicate is some 50km  in the opposite direction that we are heading and we are getting close to only having a couple of hours left of light to travel our 100km to the Painted desert and set up camp.  Assuming we should stick to our planned destination, we pensively drive off toward the desert, for about 10 minutes, when we actually pull over and talk ourselves into turning around and pursuing this remote possibility, the remote possibility of an excellent adventure in Oodnadatta!

So we turn around and head back to the Pink Roadhouse.  Back inside we enquire about their camping and also tell the Canadian in more detail, why we are so keen to find this flower.  Another aboriginal man is brought into the conversation about the Marlu Kuru or kangaroo eyes – the indigenous name of Sturt’s Desert Pea.  He thinks he knows who would be good to talk to and photograph about it and it turns out to be that the man they both suggest is the very same old bloke I had spoken with at the counter earlier.  Rossi is his name, they tell me, and he loves having his photo taken!  He would likely be back in tonight and in the morning if we want to catch him.  So we decide to go set up camp and catch him at dinner time.

camping this way

The CBD, Oodnadatta, South Australia

Unfortunately as we unpack our camper trailer we find a major distraction in the water pipe – it has been broken from our earlier 4-wheel driving to lake Eyre.  Morne is fantastic at fixing it but I just miss Rossi at the Roadhouse, seeing him walking home as I finally arrive there.  That’s extremely disappointing, to fail in this spontaneous turnaround would be annoying, Oodnadatta camping site is not the most picturesque place in the outback!  Have to try again in the morning.

From 8am we are sitting with coffees in the Roadhouse, stalking out the place until Rossi comes in, as he’s predicted to do.  After about an hour he does indeed come in for a cup of tea, as others come in to collect mail.  I approach him and remind him of our meeting yesterday and ask if he’d be able to take us to the flowers.  He says he’s too busy today and recommends asking others, particularly another man, Audrey.  Disappointed I wait to ask the Canadian, Martha, about this Audrey, when Rossi calls me over again and says his wife wants to talk to me.  Its difficult to understand but it seems she (Kaye) would like to come and then a bit later it turns out they will both come with us.  It’s great news, though its taken a long time to pan out and we set off at about 10.30, taking with us the mail for Mt Sarah Station which is on our way.

Martha most helpful, Pink Roadhouse, SA

It’s a very long, somewhat uncomfortable drive, at least for me, as its difficult to understand the English and accent of them both.  But they are both very agreeable, pleasant and amusing as they point out eagles, emus and snake tracks to us as we drive.  We discuss how they have family everywhere and after a couple of hours we see some men at a cattle area on the side of the road. Rossi thinks it might be the farmer of Mt Sarah Station so we pull in, hoping Rossi can get some directions for the flowers.

Good decision, the farmer is able to tell us quite specifically where we can find the flowers and seems to indicate that it wont take long.

It does, however, seem to take a very long time and we haven’t seen any flowers at all.  I start to feel quite desperate, how awful to have driven these two out here so far and to no avail!  I even begin praying to st Anthony to find them for us.

Finally we see the windmill which was the described landmark – our last hope, and drive in towards it.  Aha!  A tiny patch of flowers feel like a miracle at Christmas time!  Tiny and not very impressive at all, I do not care in the least, in fact it is the best patch I’ve ever seen, like a muddy puddle of water after walking for days in the Namib desert!  I leap on them and take some shots of Rossi.  It’s horrible midday light but its just too bad.   Rossi tells us that often there’s a ‘big mob’ of flowers around there, but not this year.

Searching around the windmill

Soak in the Sturt Peas

Back into the car we drive a bit further as Rossi thinks he can do better than that patch, but not until we turn around, giving up, does Kaye Kaye spot a few more, deeper in the bush, what great eyes for a grandmother!

Rossi is keen for a pic with the windmill

On the way back We stop in at the station to deliver the mail and Julie gives us a cup of tea and some home made rum balls.  Finally we can head back to Oodnatta and after a mammoth 5 hour day trip with Rossi and Kaye Kaye we buy them some lunch back at the Roadhouse.

Rossi has me lined up to look for all sorts of stuff for him back in Adelaide; Slim Dusty cd’s, an AFL football and some second hand clothes!  Laminated prints of his pics goes without saying! They are gorgeous lovely people and it was a fantastic day, well worth turning the car around for, i think we found much more than just the flowers.

cheers

Keturah de Klerk

Photography Life

It’s great when a photographer has a regular client who really knows the value of quality images for their company.

funky patterns in the office

hiding in curtains brings complimenting colours

LifeCare have been an interesting company to photograph for over the last few years, always valuing the impact of images in there newsletters, magazines and annual reports.  Recently they upped the anti and gave me a pretty open brief to take 30 pics of 30 of their staff who were nominated for awards – something fun & relaxed, different from the norm, was the brief.  And so i head off, with lenses 10mm and  50mm 1.2 to go on a full frame 5D.  Cool results.

a relaxed workplace

Taking a break at the office

The 10mm on the 5D gave a great warped effect, not unlike the freaky mirrors that stretch you top to bottom, or the caricatures that are drawn to make fun of politicians’ well-known features of big noses or teeth.

stick your face into the lens!

10mm lens stretches the face

no effort required for photos with this lens

this lens for very full lips . . .

In contrast the beautiful 50mm at f1.2 makes everyone look stunning, no matter what sort of awkward situation you might put them, and in dark environments this lens is just wonderful, giving you the option of flash/ lighting, rather than them being a necessity.

great colour in office chairs

f1.2 in a dark workshed = magic

Many thanks to great staff members of Lifecare who were willing to have a go and try my suggestions!  Especially those who climbed trees, fell off staircases, ate giant apples, posed with puppies, walked on walls (not water) and pulled fantastic faces!

Cheers

Keturah de Klerk – Photography Life

Having just traveled and photographed around South Africa extensively and freely, I was suddenly met by subjects in Malawi who wanted money for being photographed.

This pulls the head and the heart in two opposite directions.   Am I callous for not wanting to give money to these people who are living in poverty?  Of course I want to help them, but as a photographer, the rate at which I desire to take photos would make it near impossible to do if I were to pay everyone who appeared in my photo.  I prided myself on making a connection with people and sending back photos to them as a thank you.  Or of course you can always buy something from their store or contribute to their football club or school.  (this is all for non-commercial photography, where the subject has not gone out of their way for me to photograph them. Anything that requires them spending time with us as models, for commercial intended images, was considered as hiring their services and we payed them for their time).

However this was a lot harder to do when I was unprepared with my language and not able to indicate anything more than ‘can i take a photo?’ by holding up my camera to show them.  This was immediately met by the English they knew ‘give me money’.  An unfortunate phrase that had been learnt, i don’t know how, certainly Australians would never teach anything so direct and ineffective.  It grated hard, especially from children as young as two, and was wide-spread across the country.

The result for me was that i put my camera away, unable to deal with it.  I was disappointed for them, that this is what they’d been taught, when something else could’ve been more effective.  I especially don’t like that children think its a good idea to approach strange tourists, it could be dangerous for them.

Of course I understand it (as much as I can) from their perspective, but I know there could be a better way.

And so I’ve endeavored for our photography tourism company South Africa Photography Tours, to uphold Responsible Tourism as it was identified in the Cape Town declaration of 2002.

Responsible Tourism means recognising the opportunity and responsibility of tourism to make areas of the world more sustainable and equitable.  In 2002 in Cape Town, a declaration of responsible tourism was agreed by 280 representatives in the tourism industry from 20 countries around the world.  In the 2002 conference that brought about this declaration, the representatives observed that they were:

“Recognising the importance of the World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics, which aims to promote responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism and sharing its commitment to equitable, responsible and sustainable world tourism and its STEP initiative with UNCTAD, which seeks to harness sustainable tourism to help eliminate poverty.”
www.icrtourism.org/Capetown.shtml

There are set standards to this declaration which we’ve laid out on our website: http://www.saphototours.com/about-sapht.html

Our tours are focused on ethical photography and giving back to the communities that tourists photograph.  We have gained the collaboration of locally run tourism initiatives including tracking tours run by Kalahari Bushmen, as well as charity groups such as Oasis Reach for your Dreams in Cape Town and grass-roots football teams in the Kalahari area. These football teams have been specifically set up by locals, to create opportunity and motivation for youth of the area living in shanty towns and makeshift housing.

The hope of South Africa Photography Tours is to donate money for the charity and football teams directly from our tours, as well as increase their opportunities for sponsorship, while sharing a remarkable part of the country with visitors and giving them meaningful experiences with locals, through ethical photography practices.  SAPhT also hopes to bridge the social gap between these township communities and the more affluent city communities by promoting the successful interactions and tourism opportunities that can occur.  We hope to incorporate further community involvement as tours progress and expand to other areas.

We are in the process of checking wheelchair access with our accommodation providers.

During our tours we model our ethical photography practices to our clients, aiming to pass on the awareness and desire to ensure dignity is maintained for subjects being photographed,  and that any compensation for being photographed is fair to the effort of the subject involved as well as the designed end-purpose of the photographs (eg. street photography vs an hour spent modeling for photographer for commercial use).  Depending on circumstances we believe in making a connection, asking and having a reason for taking a photo, and ensuring it provides a benefit in some way, to the person and/or the community.  We don’t encourage handing over cash to an individual (especially to children) to take a quick snap and leave.  Our belief in ethical photography is not only to benefit and avoid the risk of exploitation of the subjects but to maintain photography friendly environments for future photographers.  We follow the AIPP (Australian Institute of Professional Photography) Code of Ethics

cheers

Keturah de Klerk

Jasmine's Flowers

Jasmine's Flowers

Remember the corner shop?

As a kid on the way home I would duck into the lolly shop with a few cents left over from lunch money and get a gob stopper or a fireball.

Nowadays after school, kids pop into department stores and supermarkets to get their sugar fix.

The humble corner store is sometimes forgotten, dwarfed or swallowed up by the the corporations who boasts billions of dollars in profit.

But rest assured, once all the little guys are out of the way, the prices will only go up and up and up with no competition.

So this project is to serve as a reminder to support local business. To remember that they are run by people like you and me, they make the world go round!

So we can remember what it is like to receive good service, a smile and a greeting as you enter, a personal touch.

Harriett's for the Perfect Gift, Winston Ave.

Harriett's for the Perfect Gift

Lucky 7

Lucky 7

So All Hail Small Business.

Cheers

Keturah

Morne gets his feet dirty

Driving to the Lake

We decided to stay at William Creek. Apparently the road from William Creek would be too much for our little for wheel drive, pulling a camper trailer that weighs almost a ton, well the way we packed it anyway.

At William Creek though, we are told: “That road is great, it has just been graded, you’ll be right”. And we were. But not before we had our fresh beers (two beers we had just bought at William Creek) turned into milkshakes along the bumpy road.

Oooh noo, 60km’s. That’s not very far. Ooh Nooooo, it’s only 4 o’clock. We will be there in a half hour. Ohhhh. Nnnnoooooooo WE WON’T!

As we leave the Oodnadatta Track, 7km’s outside of William Creek, towards The Great Lake Eyre, the sign reads 60! That means at least an hour! The sun goes down about 6. 60, sure, there is no one here to enforce that! HA! Nature will! Slow down for bumps, holes, creekbeds, cows and god knows what else.

As we shake our way down the “road” I suddenly think back to the tourist magazines. “A once in a lifetime event” it said. Lake Eyre only fills with water once in a lifetime! That is why we are here. And it better be worth it, worth our arses being numbed and worth every bolt being shaken loose in our car!

Along the road, we are greeted by quite a few cars going the other way. This late? We think that they obviously got there with the intention of camping, but once there, realised that is is SOOOOO not worth the effort, and hightailed it back to the relative comfort of William Creek in time for a sunset flight over lake Eyre.

With the sun drawing ever closer to the horison, we finally see our destination. The last kilometre or so the road winds right on the edge of the salt flats. We know we are getting close as we can see a few campers set up. Still not conviced! All it is, is a salt pan with water, right?

We set up our camper trailer and literally as we put the last tent pegs in the ground, we notice the other campers making their way onto the dune at the edge of the camping area. Sunset. The sun slowly makes its way behind the horison. A quarter gone, half, completely gone. We continue to take pictures well after the sun is down.

It was SOO WORTH IT. Just for that! Sunset, and 20 minutes after. Not that is was so much worth the drive, the money and the effort that it took to get here. It is the fact that none of that really matters right at this moment.  We are lost in the sunset, the changing light. The light changes from gold to a paddle pop sky… you know… those lollypops you used to eat as a child, they have different colour layers. It changes colour from yellow then blue to purple.

A once in a lifetime event, worth seeing once in your life.

Lake Eyre Salt crust

My dreamtime version

Lake Eyre mud is hard to get off

Driving through a desolate landscape

Feel free to comment.

Cheers

Morne de Klerk

He Said:

Hell of a long drive just to see a salt lake.

The toilets (long drop) were sub standard even for me, and that is saying a lot.

Bring a few essential tools because after driving on this rattly road, you might need to tighten a few screws.

The sand in the camp area is really loose and thick, so bring long tent pegs.

Don’t try and drive on the salt flats, you will get bogged, just walking or standing on it lets the water slowly seep through.

No power or water, so bring plenty of both.

Nice and peaceful after a long day’s trek.

Buy a cold drink at William Creek, the turn off to this part of the lake is only 7km’s and you will really appreciate it as you set up your tent.

Andamooka Local Frank reads his morning paper

I have been to a few places in my life that I have thought, “I really only ever need to see this place once”. You know, to be able to say that I have been there. You never expect to go back, or even care to. One of these places for me was Roxby Downs.

The town is famous for two things, a Uranium mine, and the Sturt’s Desert  Pea, a flower that grows wild amongst the desert sand dunes of the area. The Olympic Dam mine is one of, or soon might be the biggest, open cut mine in the world. Most of the town itself, as it stands now, is no more than two decades old.  It feels like a plastic town, a façade. People fly in and live here for 10 days at a time. 10 days on, 10 days off, then fly out again.  We stumble upon the cemetery and all we can see is one grave. ONE! No character.

Not a place worth visiting twice, until, we did. In search of the very beautiful wild flower, the Sturt’s desert pea, we rolled into Roxby Downs once again. Last time we were only after the flower. We found fields of them scattered in various places near the town. This time around we were after photos with people and to try and hear the personal stories that they have to tell. As it happens, there were very few of the wild flowers around this spring, little rain and the unseasonal cold weather were not ideal conditions for their growth.

With very few flowers to find,we spent more time getting to know the locals. And how friendly and accommodating they were. We spoke with the brigade captain at the Roxby Downs CFS station. There is a neat little patch that grows wild out the front of the station. We also see a few flowers outside the local school. A visit to our old hunting ground outside of town provided little more that memories of the splendour of the previous spring, so we continued on to the nearby Andamooka.

Here we met Frank and his friendly dog. Frank was from Prussia but ‘is now Australian”. He also “fought in the war for Australia” and “fought in the war for England” before suffering from a stroke. He swears by the Andamooka fresh air to keep his 89 year old body young.

Back to Roxby for a drink and a schnitzel in the pub. There are a lot of young families enjoying a meal in the pub on a Saturday night. There are prams and babies everywhere. It looks like this place is having a boom. Who knows if they will stay here for longer that a few years? You certainly get the feeling that some of them will, and that is all a community needs to build character, a couple of old timers sitting out the front of the local shops with their trusty dog, reading the paper.

Working hard to get the best angle.

Not ideal conditions for wild flowers

Andamooka Golf course.

I’ve included mostly pictures from Andamooka as the Roxby pictures are TOP SECRET.

Feel free to comment.

Cheers

Morne de Klerk

He Said:

The camp grounds in town are fairly good, but they are really residential areas where fly-in, fly-out mine workers stay, so don’t expect a family friendly holiday park.

It gets really hot.

The area around Roxby Downs is great for soft 4×4 enthusiasts like myself to cut your teeth. There are some easy tracks over the sand dunes you can follow and get more confident in your off road driving skills.

Make the time to drive to Andamooka. Only 30 odd km’s from Roxby, it is really a little hidden gem. You can also gain access to Lake Torrens from here.

The restaurant / pub is modern and serves a really nice steak.

Naked photography this is of course.  No nudity, just stripped bare of all my equipment and technology as I head out before sunrise with just my light meter and Konika Autoreflex T3 with its 50mm lens.

Brighton jetty at sunrise

i have no idea of this camera’s specs and was just taking it out for a spin to see if it worked after it had been sitting as a decorative relic on my mantel for a few years.

I was immediately impressed with its functionality and after a few practice landscapes i spied a couple of dolphins following the shoreline, one just a metre or so from the beach, it was such a great justification for my painfully early rise!

Dolphin cruising along the shoreline is difficult to photograph when you have to guess where it will next surface

As i followed it i noticed an early-morning swimmer up ahead, indeed my dolphin and this swimmer were heading directly for each other! Could such a fantastic thing happen while i was actually there with my camera ready in hand?  It was too much to dream, but nonetheless i ran ahead, trying to guess each time where the dolphin would surface and if and how i could get them both in the same frame.

Early morning swimmer, at least more predictable to photograph

Agh! A dorsal fin and a head maybe, possibly, in the same frame, I couldn’t be sure if i’d actually snapped in time, the suspense staying with me because I couldn’t check, it was great!  Two days passed with that vaguely familiar feeling of wondering, wondering how the shots turned out.

The dolphin moves further out to avoid the swimmer who I dont think realised his close encounter

I loved the quality of the photos i got back from the lab.  I’ve recently been falling back in love with film, after leaving it for digital back in 2004, and these ‘test’ results confirmed it for me.

btw, ive added watermarks but otherwise did nothing digital to the scanned images.

so i’m googling the Konika now . . .well looks like it was a good camera in the 70s and still is now! yay! You can read about it here

Cheers and happy snapping

Keturah de Klerk

Photography Life