Being able to catch the golden hour of photography in the morning or in the evening can be a tricky exercise in being in the right place at the right time. And obviously to be able to make the most of that lighting you also need to be able to have some level of freedom. Freedom to be out and about first thing in the morning or at sunset – not ideal for everyone as we all too often have other commitments at that time. I am no different. My responsibilities usually see me busy with my children at golden hour at each end of the day. Be it getting ready for school or at the other end making sure that homework and dinner happen. It is not a complaint but just a reality. I make do when I can.

But last week in Melbourne there was a really unusual situation. Bush and scrub was being burnt off out in the country and this resulted in a decent smoke haze that hovered over the city for a couple of days. First thing in the morning it was at its most intense as there was really no breeze to dissipate it. It was a sunny morning and the higher concentration of smoke particles in the air seemed to create a sort of filter that resulted in a constant golden light throughout most of that day. Having dropped my son at school I made the short journey down to the Yarra River. The Yarra cuts right through the middle of the city as well as dividing inner city suburbs like South Yarra and Richmond.

I made my way to Morrell Bridge which spans the Yarra River just near the South Eastern corner of the Botanical Gardens. This bridge is quite old and is now only used for pedestrian traffic. From the bridge you can gain an amazing view West to the city and then back East to Richmond.  Apparently it is a great vantage point for watching fireworks, although I have never made my way there for such an occasion. I also walked along the Main Yarra Trail back towards Richmond and the Hoddle Bridge (Punt Road). This trail runs all the way into the city and is popular with walkers and cyclists. Many of which use it as their main thoroughfare on a work commute into the city.

As the title of this blog suggests, all of the images were shot with the Fujifilm X70. The great thing about the X70 for this type of photography, is that it has a relatively wide angle lens at 18.5mm.  I find this an adequate focal distance for the small amount of landscape shoots I do. And because it is so small and compact and has the flip out screen, I can get down really low to get a more dynamic angle for the shot. Along the river were very small landings that jutted out onto the river that created an ideal photography platform. So this created an excellent opportunity to get down low and go, go, go! I am really happy with this collection of images especially given that this photo opportunity was fairly random, unplanned and fortunately I had my X70 in my bag with me. Happy shooting.