Look, there’s a foreigner in town…

I have recently moved out of District 1 in #Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) to an area called Binh Tan, about 30 minutes from the city.  I am (as far as I know) one of only 3 Foreigners living in Binh Tan (I’ve heard about the other 2, one an American guy and the other a Brazilian girl but never seen them).

It’s interesting being (nearly) the only foreigner in the area.  #Vietnam is still very much a mono culture country – by that I mean foreigners like me are still quite rare, particularly foreigners living here.  In a few suburbs like District 1, District 2 and District 7 you get quite a few foreigners, but out here we are a rare bunch.  When I go to my local markets, it is not uncommon for the vendors to stare at me while I walk around.  They don’t see many foreigners, especially not in the local markets.  When I ask for something in (limited) Vietnamese, they generally smile like Cheshire Cats – a foreigner who can speak Vietnamese!

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I have been trying to learn Vietnamese for the last -7 months – it is a difficult language to speak – much of the pronunciation is very different to English and learning to make some sounds is very difficult (a lot like Vietnamese trying to learn English).  But living here, I am learning more and more every day, which I love.

The people here are so friendly and they love to try and help me out.  I go to my local “coffee shop” just about every night and drink local coffee and sit around and “talk” with my neighbours – there is a lot of laughter, especially when I manage to say the right thing at the right time ,which happens occasionally.  But I like to sit and listen to them speak, even though I understand very little (chút chút) I am improving my comprehension and also my pronunciation. It is slow, but fun.

The images in this post are from Chọ Phú Lam ̣(Phu Lam Market) only a few minutes from my home.  I arrived at 4am to take some photos and the markets were already bustling.  By 7:00am the customers were there in droves. Many of the stall holders start setting up in the very early hours of the morning.  It is a very social place to be – many of the vendors know each other and you can hear them talking and laughing (it will be nice when I can understand them better!) and you get the feeling that this is there work but it is also their social gathering for the day.

Refrigeration is a luxury in Vietnam, so most people, especially in this area, buy their food fresh every day.  Meat is hung in the open and many foreigners are horrified – but when you think about it, it’s not really so bad.  The meat was butchered the day before and delivered to local markets all over the country that or the next day.  It is delivered to the market early in the morning in the relative cool and the bulk kept on ice and only hung on display as required.  People take the meat straight home and cook their daily meals.  Really, when I think about how we do things in the west, I prefer here.  In the west the meat is butchered and frozen.  It is kept for who knows how long before it is delivered to the butcher shops, who then keep it for who knows how long.  The meat is dressed in the butcher’s shop and stored in styrofoam trays, with the blood pooling in the bottom of the tray and then taken to your hoe and frozen or kept in the refrigerator for who knows how long.  Doesn’t sound that great to me any more!

Seafood is generally kept alive and sold live, or slaughtered at the market, depending on what you ask for.  Again, it is pretty well taken straight home and cooked.  Again, it’s a lot fresher than in the west where nowadays it is dropped on ice the moment it is caught and stays there for who knows how long, taken to the markets where again it’s kept for an unknown period of time and then sold to the consumer who puts it in their refrigerator or freezer for who knows how long before it is cooked.

When I was taking the photos, most of the locals thought it was a great laugh and were more than happy for me to take snaps of them and many posed amidst great laughter and cries of “đẹp” (beautiful).  I lady spent quite a bit of time dragging me to different friends of hers for me to take their photos.  All in all, it was a wonderful experience.

Living here in Vietnam is fantastic.  The Vietnamese are a very friendly and sociable people.  They still find foreigners “exotic” and they are more than happy to socialise and spend time helping foreigners.  If ever you want to visit a charming, historical and friendly nation, give Vietnam a try, I love it!

MY Digital Photography runs custom tours across Vietnam.  If you want to experience the real Vietnam, not just the tourist spots, give me a call on +84 122 370 1250 or email me at mark@mydigitalphotography.com.au

Allambie Orphanage

I have been volunteering at Allambie for about 6 or 7 weeks now and thought it was probably time I wrote something about it!

Before I could meet the children, I met up with Suzanne and we had a coffee and she told me all about Allambie and wanted to know why I had approached them.

Suzanne Hook, Allambie Orphanage

First Impressions?  Suzanne is a very attractive, well dressed woman in her mid twenties (she’d kill me if I told the truth! lol) who calls a spade a spade!  She rolled up in shorts, high heels, helmet in hand and we got straight into it.  She was very open about why she started Allambie, her childhood, her relationship with her adopted parents and why she needed to open Allambie.  No topic was barred and she was obviously a very energetic, opinionated and hard working woman with drive and passion.

When she started to talk about the children, I knew then and there I had made the right choice in Allambie.  Here was this dark skinned, driven AmerAsian woman, with a British accent all business – until she spoke about the kids.  When she mentioned any of the children, her eyes lit up and you could see the love, not just in her eyes, but her whole body reacted – it was as if she had just walked out of a  1 hour massage, she relaxed so much.

You could tell straight away, she loves her kids and is fiercely protective of the children and I respect her 110% for that.

When she asked me why I wanted to come to Vietnam and volunteer at the orphanage, I answered without really thinking – I talked about the beauty of the country and how much I enjoyed being here.  During our discussion, I really thought about why and by the end of our discussion, I realised why I really wanted to do this.

On my first trip to Vietnam, I ended up in Sapa in the far north of Vietnam, I went on a day trek with the M’Huong people and had lunch in their Village.  I am not a religious person, but I had the closest thing to a religious experience I have ever had when I was sitting there waiting for them to prepare lunch.  I was sitting on the verandah of a ramshackle house, with the poorest people I have EVER met, who were also the happiest people I had ever met, who were preparing a lunch to share with me – the very little they had, they were sharing with me.  Yes, I had paid them to take me on the trek and yes, they knew (or at least hoped) I was going to buy things off them, but I truly felt that this was not because they were going to make a little bit of money off me, but because this is what they do – they do not really care about money, they care about people and how they can use money to help their village and their ethnic group.  

This one experience I had is really the reason I wanted to come back – I wanted to learn how to give without expecting anything in return, even when the giving hurts.

We spoke for about 3 hours and I obviously passed the first test, because Suzanne asked me to come to dinner the next night to meet the children.  After I had met the children, Suzanne would discuss with them if they wanted me to volunteer there.  If I didn’t pass the 2nd test, meeting the kids, then it wouldn’t happen.

The next night I rolled up at 4:30pm to meet the kids.  I rocked in and spoke with the kids and pretty much straight away the 2 younger boys, Long and Chuyen seemed to take a liking to me.  I seemed to get on well with the girls too, but it was obvious the young boys enjoyed the company of a man – even an old guy like me!  By the end of the dinner, I was pretty sure I would be coming back, but you never know for sure.  I left that night hoping that I would get a call back from Suzanne saying that I had passed the 2nd and final test.

Allambie Orphanage

Well, I obviously got the call back and now I spend 3 days a week with the kids doing photography or just hanging out.  Tuesdays and Thursdays I teach photography and on Saturdays I go out with a couple of the kids (or even all of the kids) for a fun day, sometimes doing photography, sometimes not, whatever they want to do.

 

 

10 Tips for travellers in Vietnam

This is by no means an extensive list and I welcome input from you guys.  I had a discussion with a group of expats from America, Canada, Philippines and England last night as well as a few local Vietnamese.

Now, I want to preface this by saying that in my own personal experience, I have had nothing but respect and friendliness from the Vietnamese and I have not personally experienced theft or violence, but I’m not silly and I realise it is out there.

1. When carrying cameras, phones etc try not to make it too obvious.  One of the biggest problems is that tourists (like me) like taking photos and we extend the camera/tablet/phone at arm’s length on the side of the road.  We’re asking someone to please steal it.  When walking down the street, keep your electronic gadgets on the side furthest away from the traffic.  They ride in pairs and the passenger’s job is to snatch the item.  They are gone before you even realise what has happened.  Same goes for handbags ladies (and metrosexual males).
   

   Traffic in Saigon

2. When crossing the road, look left, look right and keep looking left and right.  In Vietnam it is not uncommon for people to drive on the wrong side of the road.  Once you decide to cross, maintain a steady pace.  Do NOT run.  The drivers here will anticipate your movements and drive around you.  If you run, you stuff up their anticipation and chances are you will get run over.  If you think you are going to get hit, slow down or stop, but DON’T run.  I saw a girl panic and run this morning and I screamed out to her before she ran into oncoming traffic.
3. Learn some basic pleasantries – like thank you “Cám ơn” and sorry “xin lỗi” and Have a Nice Day “có một ngày tốt đẹp”. Even if your pronunciation is bad (like mine) most people are appreciative of the effort and will go out of their way to help you.
4. When catching a motor bike or taxi (without a meter) negotiate the price beforehand.  It helps to have an idea of what the price should be, (ask someone if you can) but even if you don’t, act like you do!  It saves arguments when you get there.  same goes for any other service like shoe cleaning (I got caught today!).
   

   Shoe Cleaning in Saigon

5. Be wary of anyone asking if you would like to hold whatever it is they are carrying so they can take a picture of you.  They will try to hit you up for an unreasonable amount of money (I got caught on my first day – I held a coconut seller’s yolk and then got hit up for 150,000 dong – a coconut is worth about 15,000 – 20,000).  See rule number 4.
6. Street vendors are going to try and get as much money as they can off you.  Whatever price they first ask is probably going to be way too high.  Don’t be afraid to negotiate.  I had a girl ask me for 150,000 dong (A$8.33) for post cards I had bought the day before for 15,000 (A$0.83).  I told her she was “cong cong ding” which means “crazy” (phonetic spelling, I don’t know how to spell it correctly, or even if this is correct pronunciation, but she understood me).  I ended up buying 2 lots for 40,000 (A$2.22) total.  Still paid her a little more (because I enjoyed the bartering) but nowhere near the amount she was asking.
   

   Street Vendor in Vietnam

7. Try and make friends with locals – they will advise you of the things to do and not to do and help when you are stuck.  I have a few people over here I can ring if I need help.  I most often have to ring if I am trying to explain something which is way beyond my limited knowledge of Vietnamese (non la (hat), ao dai (dress), cam on (thanks)).  It is hard asking for directions when you can only say dress, hat, thanks!
8. Google is your friend.  I wanted to but a kettle, towel and a couple of other small things yesterday so I searched for “appliance sale” in google maps.  It gave me the address of a shopping mall not too far away and I managed to save 0ver 400,000 dong  (A$22.22), including travel costs, by not buying at a local shop.
9. Everything in the city centre is expensive.  A Café Latte in the city is generally 85,000 dong (A$4.75) which is about the same at home.  By buying just out of the city, it is anywhere from 28,000 dong to 65,000 dong (A$1.55 – $3.60).  Of course, if you go too far out of the city into the country, your chances of finding a Café Latte that tastes ANYTHING like a Café Latte is remote. Of course the local coffee is much cheaper, but it is an acquired taste – it is a very strong coffee generally served with condensed milk.
10. Don’t be scared to try the local food. My only rules with food (and I have only ever been sick once in Malaysia in about 1995 and I have been to Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Macau, Vietnam twice and Vanuatu in the pacific) is make sure it is cooked, be very careful with seafood (I tend to eat seafood early in the day when it is most likely to be fresh) especially in the streets and in local markets – restaurants are normally fine.  If you are eating fruit, don’t eat the skin (eg an apple).  When you buy it in the markets, it has been washed with local water and that will make you sick.  I like to eat fruits like bananas, oranges, dragon fruit (not the skin) and mangoes, otherwise I peel them.  Don’t of course, drink the local water – always drink bottled water.  I even brush my teeth with bottled water and I am careful when I shower not to swallow any water.
    

    Bánh Canh in Vietnam

     

Saigon – red lights are cautionary and zebra crossings downright dangerous

In a city of 10,000,000 people, it is estimated that there are 3,500,000 motorcycles and 340,000 cars and this makes for some extremely interesting traffic issues! (I actually suspect these numbers are out of date now – I believe not only have the numbers grown but also the number of cars has grown in relation to the number of motorbikes, but I have no proof of this).

The traffic here is one of my main sources of amusement.  I can sit at a cafe and just watch it for hours.  In fact, that’s what I’m doing now!  U-turns in the middle of a busy street, horns honking continuously, lanes ? what are they, red lights – cautionary at best and zebra crossings, well they are downright dangerous for a westerner.  Two only on a bike? you’ve got to be kidding – you can fit the whole family and then carry a load as well.  Helmets – well they are compulsory and apparently there are large fines for not wearing one – but most of them are softer than an ice cream carton at home. Driving  up the wrong side of the road seems to be totally acceptable as is driving and parking on the footpath.

Traffic in saigon

Traffic in saigon

We teach our kids at home to look right, look left then look right again before crossing the road.  Well here of course they drive on the right hand side of the road, so here it is “look left, then look right, then look left again and start crossing the road, then look left and look right, walk at a steady pace, look left and look right, look left and then right and step onto the footpath after you have looked left and then right – then look left and right again”.

Why did I say zebra crossings are dangerous for westerners?  Because in the west, once we step onto a zebra crossing, the traffic must stop to let us cross.  Here, there is no such courtesy.  The only time I cross at a zebra crossing is when there are traffic lights and even then, remember red lights are at best cautionary and follow the “look left, look right” mantra.

The  worst and most dangerous thing you can do when crossing the road here is run – that’s how tourists get killed here.  If you walk at a steady pace, they will maneuver around you.  If you hesitate or worse, run, then they can’t anticipate where you will be properly and you end up causing an accident. In fact, here in Saigon they have traffic police whose sole job is to help westerners cross the road!

Parking – Vietnamese seem to believe that the footpath is for parking and the road is for walking.  Mind you, I have almost twisted my ankle a few times walking on the footpath, so really walking on the road is probably safer.  You have never seen anyone who can park motorbikes like the Vietnamese – they make sardines in a can look spaced out!

After saying all of this, the traffic flow in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is the best I have seen anywhere.  I was recently in Manila, a city of 16,000,000 and the traffic was gridlock.  Look at Sydney, Melbourne or Brisbane – traffic is a nightmare.  In Saigon, even in peak hour traffic, the traffic flows constantly, albeit slowly and so far as I have seen, it has the best traffic flow of any city in the world.

 

Has anyone been crushed to death on a train in Manila?

My first day in Manila was an interesting one. I caught a train. Now, I thought I’d been on a crowded train before, but I was wrong – very wrong. Now, I have been on a crowded train.  I caught a train in Manila from Upper Becutan to Vito Cruz and I have never had such a workout, forcing back the hordes of Filipinos trying to crush the air out of my lungs.  For these people this is a daily experience but for me it was unbelievable.  When it came time to get out, I had a flashback to the days I played Front Row forward in Rugby Union and I had to get out of a ruck – except it was easier to get out of the ruck!  I had to force my way past smiling people – with many of them calling out “push” and laughing and saying “only in the Philippines”.  Even though I was face to face and pushing as hard as a 100kg man can push, no one got even the slightest bit upset.  How happy are these people?

Jeepney

Inside a Jeepney

Me in a tricycle

Jeepney in motion

Tricycle from a tricycle

View from inside the jeepney

Tricycle

I also caught a number of Jeepneys and Tricycles.  8 peso for a standard Jeepney or tricycle ride (about A$0.20c).  Jeepneys can carry up to 20 people, unless the driver thinks he can squash a couple more on board and the typical ride takes 10-15 minutes.  They are like a local private bus service, doing the same circuit over and over again.  Tricycles are motor bikes decked out to take 7 people and they also charge 8 pesos but when I get on (6′ and 100kgs) they can only take 6 and I have to pay for 2 seats!

How good are your habits?

Habits

“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

It is so important to develop good habits for anyone, but I am going to talk specifically about photographers. What are the habits that you NEED to develop if you want to have a photography business.  These habits also apply to amateur photographers, but the consequences, whilst heartbreaking, are not as financially crippling.

Heartbreaking, crippling – strong words.  Hype or fact – you decide.

Backups:

You must, must, must backup regularly.  How often is regularly? In my opinion it is after you have downloaded your images from a shoot.  For some that is once a week, for others that is every day and for some it is a number of times per day.  A number of times per day? I’m joking tight? NO.  I use Lightroom for editing my photos.  When I import my images into Lightroom, I tick the box that says “Make a second copy to:” and as I copy my images onto the local hard drive (I ALWAYS use copy, NEVER use move) I simultaneously make a second copy to an external hard drive.

Only then, once I have 2 copies of my files will I delete the originals from the camera.

Once a week I then backup my hard drives to another external hard drive.

You need to understand the difference between “copy” and “backup”.  In a nutshell, a copy allows you to simply copy the image and restore it wherever you like.  It is simply a copy and paste or cut and paste operation.  A backup however requires you to use a specific programme to restore your images because they are not just copies of the original.

So, make sure you do your backups regularly but also make sure you know how to restore your files.

Developing this habit was driven home to me when I lost a few hundred files.  At the time I was simply making a backup once a week and I wasn’t making a copy as I import the files.  I figured I wasn’t doing that much new work, maybe 3 or 4 shoots a week, no big deal.  Unfortunately, one night my computer went “bang” and just stopped working.  One of the shoots I lost contained some of the most popular shots I have ever taken.  I was devastated.  Not only that, but some months later I was looking for some shots from another shoot and only then realised that I had lost them as well.

Look after your gear:

Been down the beach, loving the shoot and having a great old time.  Salt, sand, wind – a good idea to give your camera and lenses a good clean afterwards.  Regular routine maintenance is a good habit to form.  Give your lenses a wipe with a soft cloth, give your camera a good clean, blow the dust out (I never use a brush or anything that is even mildly abrasive) with a blower – you can buy them at any camera store for a few dollars or you can even buy a small portable vacuum cleaner that blows – never try to suck the dust out as you risk damaging sensitive electronic equipment.

Cleaning your sensor?  You can buy a kit to do it yourself, but I prefer to get it done professionally.  Yes, it is not that hard (apparently) but I don’t want to risk causing any damage.

If you live in a tropical climate, like I do, it is a good idea to take the lenses that you don’t use all that often and put them in the sun for 15-30 minutes every week or so to stop mould and fungus growth.  One of the worst things you can do in a hot and humid climate is keep your lenses packed away in a dark cupboard – you are asking for fungus.  Then you can have a big problem with a big $$$ tag.  I once had fungus in a lens and it cost me $180 to get it cleaned.  They told me I was lucky it did not get into the lens any deeper or it would have been about $800.  Considering it was a $2,500 lens, I would have had to get it fixed.

Shoot regularly:

Sometimes you just forget to go out and shoot or decide it’s not worth the effort.  Even if you don’t have a particular project in mind make yourself go out and shoot something.  It is easy to get into the habit of NOT going out and as we all know, practise makes perfect so you want to make sure you shoot as often as you can.  I so often meet people that say “Oh it’s been so long since I took my camera out I can’t remember what to do” you want to make sure that’s not you because I assume if you are reading this post, then you are interested in photography.

Batteries:

When you come back from a shoot – put your batteries on charge straight away.  That way every time you want to go out, you know you have full batteries.  If you have a spare, use them in rotation.  If you leave a battery too long with no use, they can develop a false memory – they think they are flat when nearly fully charged.  If this does happen, discharge them completely a few times and often that will solve the problem and it happens more with older batteries.  I have a battery grip in my camera so both batteries get equal usage all the time.

Battery Grip

Memory Cards:

Look after your cards – get a decent card holder so that they are not rolling around in your bag.  Even though they may be in the little plastic case that comes with the card, these end up opening if left loose in your bag and you risk damaging the card.  Apart from the cost, there is nothing worse than being in the middle of a shoot and needing to change cards and the card doesn’t work.

It is also a good idea to format your cards regularly.  Always format your cards in camera, never on your computer.  The reason is sometimes the drives are slightly differently aligned and can cause a problem.  What is the difference between deleting and formatting?  When you delete a file, you actually only delete the entry in the index and this frees that space up for another file.  This is why you can recover files even if they have been deleted unless the area of the card has been overwritten with a new file.

When you format a card, the entire index is wiped (quick format) or the individual file space is wiped (full format).  Generally, in camera you only have 1 format option and as I said before, never format your cards in the computer, always use the camera.

Some people recommend formatting every time instead of deleting.  Personally, I delete my files and then every month or so I format all my cards – a habit I’ve formed.  I don’t think it makes a huge difference whether you delete or format – if you prefer to format every time, go for it.

When it comes to cards – buy the best brand you can and buy the fastest transfer rate you can.  The faster the transfer rate, the sooner the camera will be ready for the next shot.  This is particularly noticeable when in burst mode.

Buy the best brand you can afford

Conclusion:

Spend time developing good habits and breaking bad habits.  It is a conscious decision you need to make – bad habits tend to creep in without you noticing – normally because skipping some regular things (like backups) save a bit of time and it’s not until you have a disaster that you really appreciate the need for good habits.

Remember

“Your beliefs become your thoughts,
Your thoughts become your words,
Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits,
Your habits become your values,
Your values become your destiny.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

No sunrise but a great snake

This Carpet Snake was having a lovely snooze when I stumbled upon him

Mid December, I got up at 4:30am one morning, checked the sky and it looked like it could be a good sunrise so I packed my gear and headed out to catch a great sunrise!  Bugger! The clouds were too low on the horizon and went up too high so the sunrise ended up being a bust.

On the way back from the harbour I stopped off at the Melaleuca Wetlands hoping to catch a few birds or butterflies or even a couple of insects or spiders.  Did I get my money’s worth!  No birds, butterflies or insects, but as soon as I stepped onto the boardwalk I spotted this beautiful Carpet Python  or Carpet Snake as they are commonly known.

It was still early, about 6:10am so when I first arrived he was very sluggish because it was still fairly cool (probably about 23º C) in our neck of the woods.  I say “he” because a) I have no idea how to tell the sex of a snake and b) he was lying on the couch (boardwalk) doing nothing, so I assumed it was a bloke (mind you, I looked but couldn’t find a TV remote anywhere, so I’m not 100% sure).   As I started taking photos he would occasionally poke his beautiful purple/blue bifurcated tongue at me and after a while I realised he only poked his tongue out when I moved – of course, taking a clear and focused shot when you are moving is not so easy!  I took about a hundred or so shots before he started to get a little more active.

I found myself thinking, what a great shot it would be if he strikes!  Then as he got more and more active, discretion got the better part of valour and I decided to leave him to wake up on his own.

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

Sleepy Carpet Python Snake

What can you get for $10?

In Australia – not much

• Hamburger (maybe)
• 2 Cups of Coffee
• Coffee and Cake
• A cocktail in a hotel
• A case for your mobile phone
• 3 Rolls of Sticky Tape
• A Sub Sandwich at Subway

Not much at all really.

How about you forego a cocktail or a hamburger and instead donate just $10 to the Allambie Orphanage in Vietnam.  $10 over there can really make a difference.

Please have a read of the plans we have to teach the children Photography – it won’t take long and maybe you will realise that your $10 can make a big difference.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

Chuyen

Long

Nhi

Sa

Truc

CLICK HERE TO FOR MORE INFORMATION AND DONATIONS

Don’t wait too long to do cool stuff with your life

I started photography in 1992 when I was 33 years old.  I had always enjoyed taking photo’s with my little point and shoot cameras so I was on holidays on the Sunshine Coast when I saw a SLR camera in a 2nd hand store – so I bought myself a $250 camera – a Minolta X-300 with a 50mm lens, a zoom lens and a couple of bits and pieces.  Thus began my love affair with photography.

I am self taught and I read hundreds of books and articles and magazines (no Google then) and practised what I read.  I practised on inanimate objects, animals, trees, flowers lizards – anything but people.  In all my years of shooting film, I was always fascinated by photography that didn’t include people.  I shot a couple of weddings for my sister and my niece but generally I stuck to landscape & nature.  I often mused about being a full time photographer, but life was too serious and I had to make a lot of money and I had a wife and family – very responsible.

“Keep your thoughts positive
because your thoughts become your words.

Keep your words positive
because your words become your behavior.

Keep your behavior positive
because your behavior becomes your habits.

Keep your habits positive
because your habits become your values.

Keep your values positive
because your values become your destiny.”

Mahatma Ghandi

It wasn’t until the last couple of years that I realised I was stuck in a rut — my destiny was starting to look a bit bleak to me – what was I doing? Responsible job, making money, being reliable and industrious – and hating it!  So I went back to my passion – photography.  As I started doing more and more photography again, that desire to do it full time came back – even stronger.

So, in May of 2013, I was driving to work and I started a mantra “Do not quit, do not quit, do not quit…….” Over and over again. I walked in and said “I have to leave”.

Three weeks later I was a full time photographer.

Responsible?  No

Make money? No

Cool?  YES

OK, let me say here – I am now on my own and no real responsibilities any more (other than work) – so why not?  I have worked long and hard all my life (I am 54 now) and for the first time in my life – I didn’t NEED a lot of money? Did I need the responsibility of running someone else’s company? – “No”.  So, I decided to change my destiny.

Eungella National Park

Stars

Hanoi by Night

Coming down into the H’muong village

Pre Dawn

New Years Eve Fireworks in Mackay

Sugar Cane

Koala Peeking (low light, little movement)

Slade Point Sunset

Male Platypus Grooming (low light, some movement)

Harvesting Sugar Cane

Alone

Minutes after Dawn

Finch Hatton Gorge

Cane at Sunset

So what do I do with my life now?  I still work hard, I still try and be responsible and I am still industrious – what have I done since May?

• Designed a web site
• Started a Blog
• Built a studio
• Published 2 photographic books
• Held a Photography Exhibition “Mackay through MY lens”
• Sold some of my images (Yay!)
• Creating (it’s a work in progress) postcards using my images
• Heading back to Vietnam via the Philippines in February/March
• Going to teach orphans in Vietnam Photography

If you would like to help me with my volunteer work in Vietnam at the Allambie Orphanage please click the link below:

DONATE 

Eungella, sleepy, pristine, beautiful…and really hard to say!

Eungella – it’s an Aboriginal word meaning “Land in the Clouds” and it’s pronounced young-gella.

Eungella is about an hour’s drive west of Mackay – through the beautiful Pioneer Valley.  You leave Mackay and go through or past some lovely spots like Marion, Pinnacle (good pub with great pies) and Finch Hatton Gorge (that’s worth a day trip all on it’s own!).

Broken River is famous for the Platypus sightings – early morning and late afternoon is best, but I have heard of people seeing them all throughout the day.  There are a couple of really good spots for catching a glimpse of these wonderful creatures – they are small (30cm long FULLY grown male), quick and very shy.  If you go there, you need to be quiet as they are easily spooked.  Unless you are lucky like I have been, then you generally only see them for a few seconds – they come up for air, have a quick look around and then vanish for another 10 minutes or so – to pop up again who knows where!

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They are also VERY hard to photograph – they normally only come out at low light, they are fast and you never know where they are going to surface and they are often quite a distance from you – and they are already very small!  But patience and perseverance will pay off.  I prefer to get there early in the morning – not only are they very active early, but there are less people around, especially kids.  Don’t get me wrong, I love kids, but hen you have been waiting for an hour or more to see a platypus, and just as it surfaces – you hear and feel the vibrations of running feet on the timber boardwalk followed by screams of “MUM, LOOK – there’s a PLATYPUS”.  Needless to say, these timid creatures disappear even faster than usual!

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But that’s not all there is at Eungella – walking tracks through the rain forest with a fantastic array of sights – landscape & wildlife galore.  Eungella sits at the top of the Clarke Range, which itself is an interesting drive (for the passenger!) and there are many little viewing platforms along the side of the range where you can look back along the Pioneer Valley and further to the west from the other side of the mountain.

MY Digital Photography runs day and weekend trips to Eungella for aspiring photographers and experienced photographers alike.  We guarantee you an opportunity to capture a shot of a platypus (I can’t guarantee you will get a good one, that’s up to you!) or you can come back again at no charge!

If you are interested in arranging a trip, fill in the contact form below

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