Australian Flowers, Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
On our recent holiday in New South Wales, ACT and Victoria we visited five different botanic gardens. While in Sydney we spent an afternoon in the Royal Botanic Gardens which are within an easy walk of the CBD.
While we were generally quite disappointed in the representation of Australian native plants in the gardens, we did find two small sections with a few interesting plants. Some of these were in flower at the time so our cameras naturally came out of their cases. The photos shown here are just a few of the nicer plants in flower.
A colourful resident of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
One of the delights we enjoyed while visiting the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney was the prolific bird life. Included in my list of birds was the Rainbow Lorikeet shown in the photo above.
This bird kept screeching at people passing below the tree. I suspect it was investigating the hollow in the tree as a potential nesting site, or it may have already established a nest in the hollow. I caught it in mid-screech in this photo. Click on the photo to enlarge the image.
Fort Denison in Sydney Harbour
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
An interesting little slice of Australian history sits on a prominent island in the middle of Sydney Harbour, not far from the Royal Botanic Gardens. It is clearly visible from near Mrs Macquaries Chair as shown in the photo above. This is the closest we have been to this interesting island. Next time we are in Sydney we must take the time to visit this historic site.
This fortress on an island in Sydney Harbour was commenced in 1841 and completed in 1857 to protect the small colony of New South Wales against a feared Russian invasion during the Crimean War. It is now a museum and tourist attraction. You can take a boat trip to the island and a tour of the island and the museum. The island is now administered by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Further reading
- Check out the Wikipedia article about Fort Denison.
Sydney Harbour Bridge and photography
Our holiday in New South Wales
September 2007
It doesn’t take much imagination to realise that the Sydney Harbour Bridge is probably one of the most photographed features of Australia. It may even be the most popular photographic subject of both local and foreign visitors to Sydney. It is certain that it is instantly recognisable as one of our most popular landmarks.
On our recent visit to Sydney we had a beautiful day exploring the Royal Botanic Gardens and nearby parks. Late in the afternoon however, the weather changed the lighting conditions. Light cloud came in and the light became diffused and more subdued. This made an interesting challenge for photographers that afternoon, myself included. Because we get to Sydney so infrequently – this was only our third visit in eight years – I wanted to capture some images of the old “coathanger”, a term of endearment given to the bridge by many Aussies.
I was also on the wrong side of the bridge in the late afternoon. Shooting into the sun presents many challenges – and can bring interesting results. Although on the dull side I am still quite pleased with the above shot. It could perhaps have been improved by including a little more of the Opera House. I think, however, that it captures the mood of the harbour that afternoon.
Views of Sydney Harbour
Our holidays in New South Wales
September 2007
When we visited the central part of Sydney on our last day of our holiday there this year, we visited the Royal Botanic Gardens. Later we walked around Farm Cove to Mrs Macquaries Chair. Here we had an icecream and sat looking at the wonderful views of Sydney Harbour.
This area is popular with locals and tourists alike. From the point one can get wonderful photos of the harbour and its vast range of water craft constantly on the move, the Sydney Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.