Sleepless Nights & A Heart Full Of Adventure

Starting an adventure, I always begin before the sun arises, the earlier you leave the more time you get to have on your first day. The anticipation of the journey keeps you restless the night before, adrenaline and the sense of adventure runs through you as you lay sleepless on your pillow, when I go on road trips I am so excited, simply because I love the feeling of driving and the unexpectedness that comes with it. You never know what you might see as you are driving in the dusk of morning.

This drive brought with it many surprises, I saw foxes, wombats, kangaroos all making that decision to cross the road or not as cars come past them. Taking great care in the morning to ensure that we get safely to our destination is number 1 priority. These poor animals are often seen by passbyers squashed on the road from other weary travellers.

One of the most magnificent sights was awaiting us, as we got closer to Dubbo the moon was setting and the sunrise was coming through the clouds, this sunrise was so spectacular it felt like we we're driving on the clouds, a picture could not do this sunrise justice in the moment you connect with the sight, the feeling is almost unreal as your hear and eyes are filled with the never ending beauty of our natural world.

The welcoming that sunrise gave to us couldn’t prepare us for the adventure we were about to embark upon

The Lost Traveller And His Compass

While traversing through the majestic forests of the Blue Mountains I stumbled upon a travellers lost compass I saw it on the ground as the reflection of the light shone upon me. Felt it was a sign to use as I retraced my steps back to the path that would safely take me home.

Imagine the places this compass has been and I wonder if it ever aided a traveller who needed the use of it. I will be sure to keep this with me incase I will be needing it on my adventures in the coming weeks

With adventure on my mind I kept it interesting and decided to create my own path with my compass in hand and adventure on my mind. I knew it was a sign to get as lost in the moment as possible.

I like to create my own path in my walks to go where others may not have been to discover new photographic opportunities and to have encounters with the ever so elusive Lyrebirds.

The Savannah Zebra

Zebra, like many other large African herbivores, are constantly on the move in search of water and food. In East Africa, zebras are part of the “Great Migration”, an annual occurrence where millions of zebra, wildebeest and other antelope travel on a 500 mile circuit in Tanzania and Kenya, across the Serengeti, Maasai Mara and Ngorongoro Crater.

In Southern Africa, researchers have tracked zebras traveling even further: 300 miles on a straight line across Namibia and Botswana. While this is shorter than the overall Great Migration circuit, it is longer in one single direction, making it the longest migration among all African mammals

Each zebra has no 2 patterns of stripes makes each one of these amazing animals unique and amazing in there own way, I wonder if it would be like us having names, the stripes are like each one of the members know who is who and will know when they are missing from the herd.

The African Plains Zebra is classified as endangered. The species in their habitat is currently under threat from on going hunting and poaching. Habitat loss due to human encroachment, agricultural practices, and live stock grazing issues remain an issue with the continued conservation of this species.

Especially severe in the northern half of their range, over-hunting poses a serious danger to zebra populations. They are hunted for their meat and their distinctive skins. These problems seem to be especially prevalent in the southern half of their range and account for much of recent population decline.

The Lion & The Lioness

I truly love the different elements in this photo if you look closely you can see the different aspects of the subject, the darkness and growth of his mane are signs of a mature adult, the deep lacerations around his eye and nose are indications that he has been in altercations with other lions to earn his place as the dominant male.

His body position and the way he is angled looking at me gives the impression of curiousness and a warning to stay where you are and not to come any closer. The way the grass hides the impression of where the lion will create his pathway and emerge through the tall grass gives an impression of not knowing where to expect his next step.

This photo doesn’t do justice to seeing this magnificent animal in person, when your eyes interlock with him it creates such an emotional connection as his character shines through his eyes leaving an impact to be careful around his presence.

I have always seen images of lions running and capturing that perfect moment of freezing time and getting the lion in an element of him running, in this instance it was him running and stopping mid way to examine his surroundings. I love the way his body is turned and how hunched over he is like he is entrancing his prey, the way his tail is extended gives you the impression he has been running and on the hunt for the meal ahead of him.

I have always dreamt of capturing an image like the one below, there are elements that I love and wish could be better but with wildlife its so unpredictable and so grateful for these shots that I am able to showcase of these beautiful animals, to see there stories and to help create my own through my experiences, this time I spend with them is not wasted as animals heal everything people do and don’t do. My life is to dedicate to these animals and to help raise awareness for them no matter how small of big that contribution might be.

The male African Lion has been one of the big cats I have been solely focusing on capturing that one photo that truly captures the essence of there characteristics, in the wild they are the true king of the Savannah, there roar can be heard for miles on end, there speed and ferociousness are not matched, there character of pride, grace, beauty all come together to create this amazing animal.

In these photos I wanted to display just how immersive there presence is, when coming face to face with a Male African Lion its an experience in itself, there manes cover most of there head and the colours and different pallet of light and dark bring to bring out the softness in the eyes, I always try to captivate the eyes of the animal I shoot as I feel thats where you can really connect through the emotions of the beast.

One day I will be moving my life to the African Savannah to help do my part to save and create awareness for the various species that reside there, the African Lion is one that I dream about most nights, taking photos as the Sunrise comes up, I cant wait too see the warmth shine upon the mane of the Lion as he prepares for another day.

The lioness to me is very special, a mother is so strong to any species, they give birth, raise there children and protect them from anything and everything, a mothers love is undying and nothing gets between her and her cubs. The strength that the Male Lions show is just as strong in the Lionesses, there scars run deep of fights they have with there interaction with prey to altercations with other pride members.

This photo is still to this day one of my favourite of the Lioness, she was posing so well for me and I still remember the experience to this day being it was 2 years ago. It’s like she was a model and me the photographer, I definitely captured something unique as the rain was covering her coat, the raindrops have the effect that her presence can stop time as she is so powerful.

Book Review No. 7 The Book Of Hope: A Survival Guide For Trying Times

Hope seems like something we could all use in our lives, holding onto hope in difficult situations where you don’t think it will end well, hope is a word that should be clung to during our darkest times, very much like the Sumatran Tigers, there species have been eradicated in the wild only leaving 200-300 in the wild. There is still hope even though at there lowest numbers to date in there existence we hold onto hope that one day they may increase vastly in range and numbers.

The mountain gorillas slowly losing there homes to deforestation, poaching reducing there numbers to only 1000 left in the wild. How sad is it that us humans as a species have allowed our natural world to become so increasingly selfish to take away what was once here before us. Conservation programs are taking action all around the world to support such species.

This book is about the hope we should install in our hearts to prepare ourselves and our future families for. The wisdom and lifetime experiences of stories that run free in these pages are some to keep with you in day to day conversations, having a conversation a day can help to change the environment that we must dearly protect.

15 Waterfalls In 1 Day

Nature is that one place you can go to and be at peace as it feels all the worries in the world have come off your shoulders and your mind is at ease. The feeling of walking in the bush surrounded by the constant sound of little birds and the surprises of not knowing what is around your next corner, I was pleasantly surprised at my recent adventure.

I was heading for Blue Mountains, to be more exact Wentworth Falls and the surrounding waterfalls that are around there. What a morning it was I got up at 4am adventure ready with my camera in one hand and a coffee in the other. The sense of adventure is thrilling and unexpected, keeping the sense of adventure on a day to day life is how you keep yourself happy and you never feel bored in what you do. This also comes with doing what you love and being able to do things that make a difference both to yourself and others.

Blue Mountains is only located 1.15 hours away from Sydney, hidden in the deep valleys are many things to be discovered, along my journey I encountered many amazing animals both birds and mammals, my favourite encounter and my first time having an encounter with a wild Lyrebird.

I spotted him deep in the valley, walking into this valley the sun quickly dissipates as you slowly descend into the undergrowth below, the greenery and the mixture of both light and dark is overly compelling as waterfalls are in every corner of your eye and you are instantly transported into another dimension, my mind was in array of what I was seeing then I was welcomed to the sight of this beautiful Lyrebird having a little bath in the creek before me. I was so shocked as I was not expecting to spot him.

These beautiful birds called the Superb Lyrebird, its very easy to see why they are called ‘Superb’ the things they are able to do is so unique and amazing, not only do they have the ability to mimic and imitate any sound they also have this amazing dance they perform to entrance viewers and nearby females for mating.

Along my adventures I also spotted 2 echidnas, as soon as they saw me they went into hiding and dug themselves into the ground, I hid for a 5 minute period and once the noise stopped from my footsteps they dug themselves back to the surface from which they hid to secretly watch me as I walked my way back onto the trail before me.

Waterfalls truly are magical, its like one big tear as the rocks carve themselves from the force of the water, the colours of the rock as the water hits them, is magical each rock is different showcasing the true beauty of nature and all its majesty, the darkness and lightness of the rock shown in the photo below gives you an idea of the sorts of colours entranced by the eyes.

These photos were taken handheld and surprisingly the results came out quite well, my shutter speed was set to 10 - 13 seconds, Low Iso, F13 Aperture, its not that I didn't forget my tripod just forgot its an essential piece of Equipment for shooting waterfalls and the results would come out more creatively with a hand held point of view, good way of testing my steadiness along with my creativeness for each of the shots I took.

The African Cheetah

This experience with the African Cheetah at Hunter Valley Zoo is one of my most memorable. I find with the eyes of the cheetah they have very dark underlinings which can cause the eye to be very dark and you can’t see the full eye, the lighting on this day was perfect just enough of a mixture of darkness and light to capture the essence of the cheetah through his eyes.

On this particular day they were very active I think due to the cool weather the cats definitely enjoyed it as they were posing in full form. The cheetah is one cat I haven’t properly captured before as I always felt they are very fast cats and their movements are very erratic and hard to judge from their behaviour.

Using faster reaction times to capture these images helped me to achieve my desired results on this day, this is my 5th encounter with the cheetahs at Hunter Valley Zoo, they are beautiful cats

The saddest facts about the cheetah is that approximately 6,700 adults are remaining in the wild and only a 5% survival rate for the cubs to reach adult hood. These numbers are the direct result of increase in human population causing the cheetahs habitat to be reduced in the near future, 76% of cheetahs live on unprotected land there numbers are steadily declining with our numbers growing they will slowly start dropping in numbers.

The illegal trade in the East African Region is where the wildlife population is at greatest risk due to cheetahs being poached for the skin and for the pet trade.

Arataki The Sun Bear

Meet Arataki the Malaysian Sun Bear, Artaki has lived at the National Zoo & Aquarium since 2001. Arataki was bred as part of an Endangered Species Breeding Program. Arataki is special in his own way as his skin has many different markings caused by Melanomas, being a sun bear still have to be super careful of the sun, due to his conditions he has had to undergo many procedures where they inject radioactive gold seeds under his skin near the tumours. The seeds are small pieces of gold that are radiated.

Arataki along with the other members (Otay and Mary-Taronga Zoo) are part of the foundation Free The Bears is an organisation that works with government organisations, charities, conservation organisations to save the bears from the illegal wildlife trade and help to restore numbers to the wild.

The Sun Bear spends most of there time in the trees, making them the most arboreal bear species, they are a key species to the ecosystem around them, they help break logs open, drop and disperse seeds.

They help the nutrient cycle by creating homes for other species. When you see a Sun bear you will always see there nose twitching, there scent is stronger than there eye sight ( 2-3,000 times that of a human)

Ankesh The Sri Lankan Leopard

My encounter with Ankesh and his family was very memorable, the first experience I only spent a short time with them as there was so much to see in such a short period of time, I knew on my return to the zoo I would be with the leopards for a longer period of time, I set up my day so conditions would be how I would want, cool as the cats are more active during these days, and oh what an experience I had.

Little did I know this would be an unwelcome visitor for the Leopards, while shooting they immediately came up to the glass and thought it was a toy of sorts as the arms of my hoody were moving from side to side, the first reaction was captured in this photo below they didn’t know what to think as it was new and moving

Meet Ankesh the Sri Lankan Leopard, this is my second time shooting with him at his home located at the National Zoo and Aquarium in Canberra. The meaning behind Ankesh in Hindi is ‘King Of Numbers’. Leopards are my second favourite big cat following the Sumatran tiger. Their eyes tell such an amazing story! Also with Ankesh is his partner Yakalla and their offspring Asanka and Chatura.

In the wild, there are only less than 1000 remaining leopards. This is due to human conflict, poaching for their skins, loss of habitat due to an increase in the human population. They are listed as Endangered and their population is decreasing.

While shooting with Ankesh he was close to the window, so I was using my hoody as a shadow blocker on the glass to deplete any unwanted reflections that my camera could pick up when you are in an open world situation using any piece of ‘equipment’ to get best possible shots helps in this situation. Get creative in your next shoot

There next reaction was one I will forever keep with me they started to roll on there backs and wanted to be playful, such a presence to see as they are so big and they could definitely do some more damage than a nomral house cat, apart of me during this moment made me think to the amazing individuals that dediacte there lives to saving these animals in the wild, how connected they are to the species. I could feel such a connection as I looked into the eyes of the leopard.




Canberra Road Trip

First Stop - Lake George Sunrise

My first stop was Lake George which is just on the outskirts of Canberra, this lake spans as far as the eye can see overlooked by mountain ranges and wind turbines covering the landscape, due to the weather the lake was overflowing with water it’s not normally this high with water level numbers rising to numbers that haven’t been seen in many years. The lake itself is beautiful there are a number of different species of bird that I spotted during my stop there including fairy-wrens, plovers, various water bird species including the red - necked stint and the bar tailed godwit

Start Of National Zoo Adventure

“ Adventure is worthwhile in itself”

The sense of adventure is a feeling I always enjoy the most! It’s the feeling of unpredictability, not knowing where the path will take you and the things/ experiences you will have while you are lost on your adventure. Waking up before the sun rises and the city awakens to be in your car and hitting the road is another amazing feeling, the first destination for the week is Canberra, left Sydney at 4 am as I knew I would be stopping along the way enjoying the farms and its abundance of animals, was hoping to beat the clouds and see the stars as in the middle of nowhere the stars light my eyes up with wonder and I really get the sense of feeling lost in this beautiful world we live in, the clouds were surrounding the skies covering the warmth of the sun which made for amazing conditions for the coming day of shooting with the animals of National Zoo.

Next stop after Lake George I was heading towards the National Zoo and Aquarium to be in for some amazing experiences that I am still shocked by and will have with me forever. I always try to go in with the mindset of having no expectations as I am always so amazed at the experiences I have with animals, I always try to embrace every moment through what I see and how I can learn from each experience to bring my best the next chance I get to have another encounter with the animal. Little did I know this day would bring with it a very memorable adventure filled with unexpected surprises and encounters

Book Review No. 6 A Life On Our Planet

A life on our planet is the witness statement and a vision of what is to come in the future of Sir David Attenborough from his early years and seeing just how much the world has changed around him as his deep continuous work into the amazing Wildlife documentaries we have grown to love so much.

Documents how our actions will affect the future of our world and the wildlife that surrounds us. This book is great for any lover of wildlife or to those who are very much about protecting the natural world around us.

Hunter Valley Road Trip

‘The Lone Tree’

My first stop on my trip to Hunter Valley Zoo. I always drive past this tree and I always get this feeling of such tranquility as the energy and the serenity that surrounds this spot is incredible, the isolated tree and the hills surrounding it, while the lake the tree resides behind makes for quite a captivating photo, I have been here both at Sunrise and Sunset. I have to say watching the last light of the day here with the light hitting the clouds and the ray of the sun shining through on the reflection of the lake is magical. Being so close to a city this place seems like a different world when visiting. I am yet to take that perfect photo to showcase this particular spot but I know when that moment will arrive it will blow me away. Patiently waiting for that perfect opportunity where the conditions will align perfectly.

‘The Hidden Gem Of The Hunter’

My next stop after many numerous stops at local farms to pat the cattle and horses, Hunter Valley Zoo is home to many different species of cat, birds and Australian species, some of my favourites include the white lion, African serval, cheetah, maned wolf, the list goes on as for such a small park the countless experiences with all the animals will keep you entwined for the better part of a day. Hunter Valley is renowned for there wineries little do people know there is a zoo right in the middle of all of the wineries, definently recommended to check it out while you are there as it will only add to your experience of such a beautiful place

The Flooding Of The Hunter

Adding to the adventure of the Hunter, my normal route to the zoo was blocked due to the floods, my little Kia Rio turned into a 4WD as I went along the backroads going over every pothole imaginable, it was so much fun as I tackled my way through 3 km of dirt, mud and waterholes, what was supposed to be a 10 minute drive turned into a 30 minute drive through backroads that were built for 4wd I can safely say the Kia Rio is built for off terrain.

The Last Hope For Sumatra

Due to human-wildlife conflict the Sumatran Tiger is listed as critically endangered, deforestation plays a vital role as the more land we preserve for ourselves the more this beautiful species runs into conflicts with us, once a tiger feels threatened and its territory is being taken over it will take action and those actions lead to the reduced numbers leaving less than 400 in the wild to date. If action is not taken now then our actions of us will cause this species to be extinct.

I couldn’t think of a worse fate than to see my favourite animal extinct in my lifetime, these eyes tell a story of many of its ancestors and a time when their home was vast and filled with life and their home wasn’t threatened by our actions. Tigers are unfortunately killed in large numbers for their skins, body parts and bones.

Because of this the Sumatran Tiger is labelled as Critically Endangered.Awareness for this species and action must be taken to ensure that this beautiful species can remain free in the wild and ecosystem restoration programs are in place to rebuild upon the damage we have caused

Mother Frala & Baby Fikiri

Meet Mother Frala & Baby Fikiri, they reside in Taronga Zoo. This moment resides as one of my fondest and deepest connections while I was shooting my subjects. There are moments in time you wish to stay with forever and you will always remember, this moment when Mother Frala was glaring through my lens piercing my eyes with the light from her eyes, almost with a smirk of sorts letting me know who is dominant and would do anything to protect her own, while little Fikiri was safely asleep arms latched around her mother knowing that he is safest while with his mother.

Female gorillas give birth to one infant after a pregnancy of nearly nine months. Unlike their powerful parents, newborns are tiny—weighing about four pounds—and are capable of doing no more than clinging to their mothers' fur. These infants ride on their mothers’ backs from the age of four months through the first two or three years of their lives. Young gorillas, from three to six years old, spend much of their day at play, climbing trees, chasing one another, and swinging from branches.

The Western Lowland Gorillas face many threats in the wild these include farming, grazing, and expanding human settlements are shrinking their homes. Almost 80 percent of the Western Lowland Gorilla population live in unprotected areas that are vulnerable to poaching.

Book Review No. 5 The Last Elephants

The Last Elephants follows the various wildlife photographers, scientists, conservationists and journalists come together to forward this book, its filled with photos that captivate the story throughout and bring a sense of how dire the conservation and the efforts we must bring to protecting the African elephant, on average every 15-20 minutes an African Elephant is killed, poaching plays a big part, bringing a new way for communities to thrive will be very beneficial to the survival of not only the African Elephant, but also the many other species that roam the plains of Africa.

The Koala Bear's Last Hope

In NSW alone during the 2019-2020 bushfires 6,000 koalas were killed. Not only is their population at risk from climate change and loss of habitat due to deforestation their population is slowly recovering and efforts are being made to ensure this species is not taken away from us. Unfortunately Australia is at the front of loss of animals being the highest loss of mammal species anywhere in the world. This is extremely sad and action must be taken before we lose any more of our native wildlife. In Australia we are lucky to have certain places such as Taronga Zoo located here in Sydney, they are working on establishing breeding programs to help restore the population and ensure the species keeps its numbers high.

The Little Pied Cormorant

I have never experienced anything like this before, to witness a mother cormorant feeding her children is truly a wonderful experience, as I arrived the young just started to awake from there sleep, signalling that they might be hungry and alerting there mother that stays close to them at all times while they are sleeping that they are indeed hungry, a mothers job is to ensure that her children are safe while they rest in the nest from nearby predators. I love this shot with the elements it was a rainy day and the rain drops add a natural element to the scene, the 3 babies with the one patiently waiting for his turn to get a feed in, in nature its very much survival of the fittest and nature can truly be cruel and harsh but its beautiful in all forms, the way the mother feeds there baby is by letting the baby eating out of the mothers throat as the mother regurgitates the food in her belly and the babies will proceed to eat it.

Colours Of Spring

This time of the year brings so much light into nature, through the seasons of spring to summer birds are in mating season and with that new life is blooming, during these times the small but beautiful Fairy Wrens are in full swing, I love these little birds they are full of life and they tell such a beautiful story, I am sure anyone has seen these birds in there local park/woodland, the smallest of creatures have the biggest stories to tell, imagine what these birds see in there lifetime, so much to dream about that us humans couldn’t even comprehend. Unlike humans in birds the male is the more beautiful one being all colourful and the female is bland with colour but during these times both change colours the male with the brightest of blues and darkest of blacks, the females with there browns, whites and reds all coming out, this truly is the colourful time of the year for new life and the colours that come with spring/summer, enjoy these times outside with nature and see what you can witness, nature truly is amazing at this time of the year.

Book Review No. 4 The Jungle Doctor

The jungle doctor follows the adventure of Dr Chloe Buiting where no day is the same working along side the amazing animals the African Savannah has to offer, this story is one that is truly remarkable and will help you feel like you are travelling the world through her words, passion and perseverance are 2 very important things in wildlife conservation and this book reflects that perfectly, you will feel captivated through each chapter as you go along on the adventure. Highly recommend this book if you are missing that adventurous side in your life.