I will fully acknowledge here that the way I went about this trip was a poor lapse in judgment. I had barely conducted any real research into my locations, and was not particularly well prepared in terms of booking any accomodation, buffering for unforeseen circumstances, and just in general having a good plan for how to go about getting my images.
Saturday 26 March ~10am
I have decided I need to get a move on and get some images shot for my folio. I throw some bare essentials (sleeping bag, change of clothes, camera gear, food and water, and my bike) into the car and head off onto the road. At this point in time I had no firm idea of where I would first head, but had a few places in mind from the limited research I had done, these were;
1. Perpendicular Point, Currarong, NSW.
Using Google Earth, I had located a rock formation in the water at a place called Perpendicular Point. I believed this rock formation would suit my plans for my "Research Station" shot for my first series.
2. Port Kembla, Wollongong, NSW.
Drawing on memory and from asking a few people, I came to the conclusion that Wollongong would be an appropriate place to visit to take photos of industrial buildings and areas (steel works etc) for my "Industrial Sector" image
3. Blackheath, Blue Mountains, NSW
Having decided for my first image in series one, "Communications Array", that I would require a mountainous region background plate, the idea of heading to the Blue Mountains had entered my mind. After a quick scout using Google Earth, I settled on the small town of Blackheath as it was in close proximity to a suitable looking vantage point that would allow me to get some nice broad views of the Blue Mountains, while avoiding any overly recognisable features i.e. I did not want the 3 Sisters to be in my image since I am trying to remove any obvious connection to Earth.
So with nothing more than the idea of these places, a few supplies and even less preparation, I simply set out with the hopes I could get some images I could use.
Saturday 26 March ~2pm
After driving for a while, I had decided I would make Currarong my first port of call to take some photos. On the way there I noticed signs for a place called Fitzroy Falls, and decided to take a detour and go check them out. When I arrived I noticed the scenery there seemed to be very similar to that of what I had seen of the Blue Mountains, and so I decided to spend a while there to get some shots I thought may end up forming the basis for my "Communications Array" image.
Here are a couple of images I took while there so you get an idea of the scenery (There is no guarantee these posted images are the images I will use in my final composite but it will be one like these)
Saturday March 26 ~6pm
Arrived in Currarong, too late to attempt to make the journey to Perpendicular Point. I also had arrived too late to secure any accomodation for the night, so for the next few hours I explored the area out of interest until it got dark, at which point I found a secluded spot to park the car and tried to get some sleep.
Sunday March 27 ~ 9am
After a rather uncomfortable night sleeping my car, I woke to the unpleasant sight of rain. I had little choice at this point but to simply sit in the car and hope the weather would clear up, otherwise the journey to Perpendicular Point would be pointless.
Sunday March 27 ~1pm
Thankfully the rain appeared to abate, and I decided I should attempt the journey to Perpendicular Point. Below is the journey I took, with the assistance of the GPS capability of my iPhone. Roughly 8km one way. (Click to full view, may be too small to view normally)
When I arrived at Perpendicular Point, I looked across the ocean to see the unmistakable sight of rain heading my way. I had a grand total of about 2 minutes to set up my camera and get a couple of shots before the rain hit.
Here is one of the images I managed to snap before the rain hit. I do not know if I will end up using this image.
I returned to my car after taking a few photos, at which point I packed all my gear back into the car, and headed off to Kiama, which is in between Currarong and Wollongong, as I did not feel I had the capacity to make it to Wollongong at the time.
Sunday March 27 ~7pm
Arrival in Kiama, and here I luckily managed to secure a small room in a local pub for the night. After I put my stuff into my room, I took a brief walk to see what was in the area, and to try to clear my head and decide what I should do next. I visited the Kiama Blowhole and decided that I would shoot some images in the area the next day before heading up to Wollongong. I headed back to the pub and settled in for the night.
Monday 28 March ~9am
I checked out of my room, and loaded the car back up. I spent the morning at the Kiama Blowhole taking various images I thought I could get some use from as element images (primarily had the "Research Station" shot in mind for this, so these images would only form small parts)
Examples below.
Monday March 28 ~11am
I decide to depart the Kiama Blowhole area and check out an area of land to the north that I had noticed while at the blowhole. Doing a quick overhead scout using the GPS on my iPhone, I plugged the address into my cars GPS and drove off.
Here are some example images I shot in that area. (Again these images were shot to possibly end up being used for my "Research Station" image)
Monday 28 March ~12pm
Depart Kiama, destination is Wollongong, to try to take some industrial building shots.
Monday 28 March ~12:30pm
Arrived in Wollongong, and spent a while driving around the industrial area, and here the reason for proper planning became very evident, I could not find any good vantage points to take the photos I would need.
Monday March 28 ~1pm
I decide to have lunch and try to figure out what to do next. After eating at the Harbourside Restaurant, I notice a lighthouse nearby and decide to go check it out. When I arrived on the hill where the lighthouse was, I looked across the bay and noticed the industrial area in full view. I grabbed my camera from the car and went back this spot and set up to shoot the area from across the bay using my 70-200 lens.
Below are examples of what I shot.
Monday March 28 ~4pm
I decide now that I will not head to the Blue Mountains, and that the images I shot in Fitzroy Falls will be a suitable substitute. I packed my camera gear into the car and headed home. I arrived home safely at ~8pm
Summary
So, this trip illustrated to me how key preparation, research and planning really are. While I believe I obtained some useful photos that will form the basis for several of my series one images, I still feel it was a poor way to go about getting the photos, and I will endeavour to have my next trip much more thoroughly researched and prepared for. Stay tuned.
Good start, I suspect you will have a more productive next shoot with appropriate research but don't beat yourself up, there has to a be a degree of free flowing exploration as well.
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