Little did I know but Melbourne's street artists could rival those of Barcelona and Madrid for their creativity and style, although their collective canvas is a little less obvious than the main thoroughfares targeted by their Spanish counterparts. In a handful of alleyways in central Melbourne, there are long stretches of anarchistic graffiti, ranging from basic stencils through to elaborate and fantastic painted scenes. It's just the sort of thing I love. These alleyways aren't your pampered and protected tourist showpieces however. They're lined with overflowing dumpsters, characters reclining in doorways with long ashes drooping from cigarettes, and the smell of urine - fresh and historic - pervading the scene. No wonder the city council took some convincing that these were actually worthy of preservation. So there is an entrance price to these galleries, but one well worth paying. This little gem was in the dimmest, trashiest, and most easily-overlooked of the alleyways, and apart from the scrawls, was the only art in this location. Even though some of the other work at locations is more complex, more storied, and perhaps more enjoyable, I found that the solitude and apocalyptic surrounds of its alley lent this one added relevance. Taken with the 5D Mk II and a 24-105mm f/4 at 1/25 sec handheld.
A shot taken from the balcony of a sixth floor room at the Royal Sands resort in Cancun. There was something in the combination of colors and shadows that drew me to frame the shot this way. The tongues of shadow from the lounges, the green of the palm tree and the blue of the pool all stood out nicely in the available lighting. I also like the emptiness - it's devoid of people but you can feel the preparedness for the next day's sun-seekers. It's orderliness is nearly clinical and I suppose, given the ubiquity of resort design, that it could actually be a shot from almost any beachside hotel in the world. It's that orderliness that draws my eye to it, especially given what the typical resort pool looks like on an average afternoon - strewn with towels and skewed lounges, with their backrests at various angles, and the detritus of flip flops, hats, clothes, drinks and bags. The 40D with a 50mm at ISO 400 and 1/3 sec.
A quick shot of our new kitten, Bruno, being shadowed by the incumbent feline, Sasso. Sass has actually adapted to the new arrival remarkably well. Some hissing, a lot of jumping around each other. But no malice, just a ton of curiosity. Not that this shot would support that assumption right? It looks like the furry enforcer in the background is having a good roar at the carpetbagger. Of course, it's just the final stages of a yawn, not a scary statement of intent or rejection. Still, looks nice and dramatic all the same. At 800 ISO with a 40D at f/5.0 and 1/60 sec with a 24-105mm f/4.
