The Permanent Teddy Bears picnic

Yesterday I was covering a wedding in a place that I had never been, located some 90 minutes from my home was the little village of Cumberland Reach.

A wonderful little hamlet on the Hawkesbury river. I was there to cover the wedding of Shelly and Daniel and what a great couple they are.

On the way down into the valley I was driving on Laws Farm road when I noticed stuffed toy characters, tied, suspended and hanged from the roadside trees. Intrigued, I found a safe spot to park and then photographed this unusual attraction.

Later in the evening I was told the story behind this place, when a local unravelled the mystery for me! She mentioned to me that there had always been a rag doll tied to the tree and no-one knew its origin, but it became poplular when a frustrated parent after countless entreaties for her children to tidy the kids rooms, took some of the toys and consigned their remaining days to the trees on Laws Farm road. It caught on and now there are dozens of characters in the woods to play.

An interesting place was this Cumberland Reach and the homes were grand, and lovely. I included a picture I took from the wedding as well! Which I still have a lot to go through but thought I would share at least 1!

Thank you to all of the Bridal party, Carla from Elegant Invites, Reel EFX Make Up, Crumbs Cake Art, Ann Dally wedding celebrant and the amazing hospitality of the hosts and the guests. Whilst I was lonely without a mobile signal for so long, and was contending with the overcast, muggy humidity that reminds you what sweat glands are there for, I loved it.

Australia Day 2012

Well, here we are, another year on and it is Australia day 2012. This time last year in Australia, Queensland in particular there was a cyclone called Yasi, flooding that sent torrents of water down city streets turning cars into corks and toys. There were lives lost, flooding and more, and as I write this all of the official Australia Day celebrations in Queensland have again been cancelled because of rain and flooding. The weather has in my observation stopped following patterns and started on a new course of direction.

The inclement weather has hit the entire east coast of Australia and yet in Perth and Adelaide they are sweltering through heat bordering on extreme.

Yet through it all, Denzel and I arose this morning, I made him a lovely omelette with some juice and I had some with some cereal, washed up and he is watching the Wiggles on TV and singing along as though nothing else in the world matters, and I guess to him, it doesnt. I am very happy and thankful to be sharing some time with my little man, he is a great guy, and has a personality devoid of causing or taking offence, he is guileless and a person I am honoured to have in my life.

It is a fantastic Australia Day today, all other considerations notwithstanding, I thought I would put last years Lamb commercial here as a bit of fun! Enjoy.

The Nikon D4

All this is done from an amazing camera....soon to be in the stable!

Here is a quick summary again of the game changing D4 features.

Performance:

· New 16.2 MP Nikon FX-format CMOS image sensor
· New EXPEED 3 image-processing engine with superior, high-speed processing capabilities
· 91K-pixel RGB sensor for a more accurate Advanced Scene Recognition System
· Faster and more accurate AF with 51 focus points
· 10 FPS (with AE/AF) and 11 FPS (without AE/AF)
· Ability to shoot up to 200 photos (JPG) continuously without maxing out the buffer memory
· Wide ISO sensitivity - 50 to 204800


Video:

· Multi-area mode, Full (1080p) HD movie recording (first for FX bodies)
· Max recording time of approx. 30 minutes at Full (1080p) HD 30p
· Variable frame rates
1. Full (1080p) HD – 30, 25, 24 FPS
2. 720p HD – 60, 50, 30, 25 FPS
· Live View in movies as well as stills
· Large, 3.2” LCD monitor with automatic brightness control
· Direct recording of uncompressed videos to an external recorder (10-bit Apple ProRes format)
· Mic and headphone input with easily accessible microphone sensitivity controls
· Dedicated movie record button that has been repositioned next to the shutter release


Workflow:

· Ethernet and optional WT-5 Wireless LAN capabilities to save photos/video directly to any FTP server in the world
· Ability to remotely control the camera from any web browser enabled device (e.g Computer, iPhone, iPad etc)
· Ability to synchronise the shutter release of up to 10 cameras.
· Back illuminated buttons for low lit situations

Love and Loss....

This story was sooo sad, but amazing at the same time.

IN LIFE they were inseparable, best friends who became lovers. Tragically, when death came yesterday it claimed them together, too.
Shawn Whiting, 20, and girlfriend Bronte Fordham had spent the evening at the Mullaley Hotel, near Gunnedah in NSW's north, but left in separate cars.
On the way home Ms Fordham lost control of her yellow-coloured Mazda sedan and slammed into a power pole on the Oxley Highway.
Mr Whiting, who left the pub about 30 minutes later, came across the accident.
The Daily Telegraph reports that as he ran from his car to see if he could help her, he stepped on a fallen power line brought down in the crash and was electrocuted.
A passing motorist made the horrific discovery about 1km from the town of Mullaley, where the couple lived, when he saw a Toyota Land Cruiser parked on the side of the road with the motor running and headlights on about 4.30am.
Inspector Fred Trench said: "He's got out to investigate and found the body of a male lying on some fallen powerlines."
The motorist called triple-0 and, while waiting for the emergency services to arrive, made another shocking discovery.
"While waiting, he's turned his own vehicle around to shine the headlights, because it was still dark, and he's seen another vehicle about 40m away, lying on its side in a paddock," Insp Trench said.
The witness went over to the wreckage and found the body of Ms Fordham lying beside it.
Friends said the pair had been together at the Mullaley Hotel earlier that night with a group of friends but they set off in separate vehicles after the pub closed.
Police believe the accident which killed Ms Fordham happened about 3.30am, but Mr Whiting did not stumble across it until about 4am and was electrocuted soon after arriving at the scene.
Hotel owner Owen Jerry, who has known Mr Whiting and Ms Fordham since they were children, said they were two of the best kids in the town.
"Bronte was like a mother to all the young fellas here. She was only 19, but she was like an old hen," Mr Jerry said.
"Shawn was the type of bloke who always thanked you before he left, very polite and very level-headed."

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/national/shawn-whiting-and-girlfriend-bronte-fordham-die-in-horror-accident-on-oxley-highway-at-gunnedah/story-e6frfkvr-1226244963625#ixzz1jZ6v14ML

Rainy Mood.....

Parallels

There are many thoughts going through my mind at present, but last night saw the end of one chapter and the opening of a new one in my life. There are many things to consider yet and many other things yet to be done but I am grateful, for so many things. I have been abundantly blessed to live the life I dream of.

I was out walking at 5am this morning and after a solid stride up the hill I stopped at the top of the golf course to catch my breath and take in the cloudy sunrise as the sound of crickets started to fade and the chirps of the birds started to greet the day with me. It was a symbolic parallel for me this morning, I walk into the dawn of a new and cloudy sunrise not sure of anything at present other than my desire to continue forward.

Australia's Own barbie girl...selling lamb? Happy Australia Day 2012

On January 26, It will be Australia Day and this is Australia's own Sam Kekovich ( a Great Aussie name) with Australia's own Babie Girl Melissa Tkautz with a host of good fun and all aimed at promoting Lamb Chops to celebrate Australia Day 2012. Enjoy this little lip smacking rap. It also features the Justice Crew and Richard Wilkins Enjoy!

The Angels@ QPAC in Brisbane

This is the poster for the Angels in concert at QPAC in Brisbane. It is here not simply to advertise the concert, but because it is my picture! I really liked taking this shot, and really enjoy working with the Angels and have lots of great pictures of these guys.

Balloon Tragedy in NZ

My Thoughts this afternoon are with the families and friends of those killed in an accidental Ballooning tragedy in NZ. One of whom was about to wed his long time partner, who sent out his wedding invitations just the day before.

How sad for all involved.

Police have released the names of 11 people killed when a hot air balloon hit power lines and burst into flames in New Zealand yesterday.

The youngest of the victims was a 19-year-old Wellington woman, Alexis Still, whose 21-year-old boyfriend Johannes (Chrisjan) Jordaan also died.

Balloon pilot Lance Hopping, 53, of Masterton, was killed in the accident, just months before he was due to marry his long-term partner.

His cousin told media Mr Hopping had posted the invitations to his Easter wedding the day before the tragedy.

Wellington couple Howard, 71, and Diana Cox, 63, Lower Hutt partners Stephen Hopkirk,50, and Belinda Harper, 49, and cousins Valerie Bennett, 70, of Masterton, and Denise Dellabarca, 58, of Paraparaumu were also among the victims.

Masterton retiree Desmond Dean, 70, and his wife Ann, 65, received the hot air balloon ride as a Christmas present from their children, nzherald.co.nz reported.

It is understood a number of the victims received the balloon ride as a Christmas gift.

Police have vowed to leave no stone unturned while investigating what caused the balloon to crash into power lines.

Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) spokesman Peter Northcote said the investigation would take some time.

"Six months to a year would be typical for an inquiry of this nature," he said.

Nine bodies remain at the site near Carterton and several investigations are under way into the cause of the accident. It is raining heavily in the area.

Two passengers jumped to their deaths from the burning balloon and nine others died when it crashed to the ground on Saturday.

The balloon hit power lines and the sparks started a fire in the basket, Wairarapa police Area Commander Inspector Brent Register said.

Two passengers, a man and woman, appeared to have jumped from the basket, he said.

The fire then flared and the balloon dropped sharply to the ground, killing the rest of the occupants.

Destination Wairarapa general manager David Hancock says the Wairarapa community is devastated by the accident.

"For more than a decade, visitors have come to the Wairarapa to enjoy a ballooning experience," Mr Hancock said.

"This will affect our community for some time and we will work closely with everyone as they come to terms with what happened yesterday."

Carterton mayor Ron Mark said the town was bracing to hear the names of those killed.

Wairarapa Area Commander Inspector Brent Register said two bodies were removed from the site on Saturday night.

"We're working towards removing the bodies of the other nine victims over the course of the afternoon," he said.

Insp Register said support was continuing to be provided to the families of the victims as they come to terms with the loss of their loved ones.

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/world/8399838/police-name-balloon-victims