Captured at the Melborne Zoo

Going to the zoo is not an activity I look forward to. I find that boring. There is a lot of difference between seeing animals in the wild and seeing them in zoos. The poor souls don't 'live', they simple exist in the man-made habitats. Any day, I would prefer seeing them on Animal Planet rather than in the unappealing confinements.

I wanted to see a live Kangaroo in Melbourne, and heading to the nearby Melbourne zoo seemed to be the convenient option considering that I couldn't find enough time to do a wildlife trip. The kangaroos in the zoo disappointed me that day, showing no signs of enthusiasm and few of them even looked sick. They might have been resting after a heavy meal, but I was disappointed of not being able to get any lively pictures of the national symbol of Australia. I decided to move on to other sections of the zoo and let them 'live'.The Zoo has a good number of animal species from around the world making it a favourite among the places of interests for the tourists.

Now you know what I went for and you can see what I have got. This picture was shot at the reptile section of the zoo. In this photo, it is all about the position of the light source.


Eagle Rock Marine Sanctuary

One of the best things I did, when I was in Australia, was to go for the Great Ocean Drive tour. It is considered as one of the most scenic drives in the world and after doing it, I totally agree to that. The drive is about 250 km long and extends all the way from Geelong (about 75km from Melbourne city) to South Australia.

What I did was a day trip with the tour operator 'Bunyip' in Melbourne. A day is too short to spend on a trip like this. We ended up rushing from one place to another in an attempt to avoid missing any of the places of interest along the drive. Two/three day trip is what a place like this deserves because the last thing you would want to do is to arrive at a beautiful place like this with no time to enjoy what the beautiful nature has to offer.

If you are riding a porche through this stunning coastline, there isnt any reason for you to not feel like a journey through heaven. Rolling green hills on one side of the road, bluish green water on the other. And if you feel like stopping on any of the clifftops for a view of this awe inspiring coastline, you might end up with a scenery like the one I captured above.

This was shot at the Eagle Rock Marine Sanctuary along the Great Ocean Road.


Australian Pelicans

Australian pelicans are huge water birds with very large wingspan and long beaks. They are mostly white in colour with black wingtips. They are found in abundance almost all over Australia.

This picture of a pelican sitting on a lamp post enjoying the sun, was shot at the St Kilda beach, Melbourne.


Loch Ard Gorge

The Loch Ard Gorge is in Port Campbell National Park, Victoria and is one of those breathtaking spots where you can relax, have a swim or take a stroll down on the beach. The constant erosion of the coastline, over thousands of years, has created these magnificent limestone structure formations, that stands out from the cliffs.

The colors of the sea and the rocks are enjoyed best during the summer season.


St Kilda

St Kilda is a bay side suburb of Melbourne. It is a vacation spot with picturesque views of the bay, good beaches and attractive shopping and dining areas. St Kilda Pier provides panoramic views of the Melbourne skyline and is a popular destination for strolling, cycling and fishing.

This is a view of the bay from the St Kilda Pier with Melbourne skyline as the background.


Bench in the garden

This was shot at the Fitzroy Gardens on a summer evening in Melbourne. The empty wooden bench creates a sense of silence and loneliness and the black and white composition adds to that feeling.


Cape Chestnut

Melbourne has a good collections of gardens and the Fitzroy Gardens is one of the best. They are wonderfully laid out across 26 hectares, with huge formal garden beds, walking paths and a superb collection of trees.

Cape Chestnut tree is noted for its flowering display in early summer. It bears masses of showy, light pink to dark mauve flowers. In bloom, the pink-draped Cape Chestnut is a magnificent sight.

A clear sky and a bright sunny afternoon helped me to capture the above frame of Cape Chestnut flowers at the Fitzroy Garden.


waterfront

This frame was captured at the Victoria Harbour, Docklands. The Docklands is an inner city suburb in Melbourne and is a primarily waterfront area centred around the banks of the Yarra River and therefore a waterfront tourism destination. The Victoria Harbour Precinct is the centrepiece of Docklands with 3.7 kilometres of waterfront.

The parked vintage car in the scene does add some mysteriousness to the shot.


sunset

This shot was taken in Melbourne Victoria from the Docklands area looking over the Bolte Bridge. From December till February its summer here. Australia enjoys longer days during summer and this beautiful sunset was framed at about 9 in the evening.