Wollongong Harbour — sunrise macro (~90 min)
Textured stone, tidal pools, rusting metal, ropes and reflective water — ideal for the 90mm macro on the a7R III. Route runs north→south, ~20 min walking.
- Belmore Basin (45–30 min before): rope + reflections, salt-crystal textures, boat-hull detail. f/4–f/5.6, ISO 100–400, Manual Focus (MF) + Peaking, Optical SteadyShot (OSS) on (handheld).
- Breakwater Lighthouse (blue hour): barnacles, droplets on seaweed, rusting bolts. Focus stack on a tripod at f/8–f/11; frame a macro foreground with the lighthouse blurred behind.
- Sunrise (Flagstaff Hill side): backlit seaweed, glowing droplets, illuminated nets. f/8, ISO 100, −0.3 to −1 EV to hold highlights.
- Golden light (rock pool): tidal-pool reflections, sky in puddles, cracked sandstone. f/11, low-angle macro landscape.
Five must-captures: barnacle macro with lighthouse blur; backlit seaweed at sunrise; boat-rope texture reflection; tidal pool reflecting the sky; rust + salt on harbour metal. Kit: a7R III, 90mm macro, small tripod, microfibre cloth, optional polariser, lens hood.
Beechworth — two-lens town + bush (24mm + 90mm)
- Historic Precinct: wide street perspectives, converging lines, low angle for cobblestones; f/1.4–f/2 to isolate a detail. Anchor scale with a small figure.
- Courthouse: 24mm symmetry; 90mm for handles, sandstone, locks/hinges — shoot in side light.
- Woolshed Falls: wide cascades with leading rock; 90mm for lichen, moss, mineral patterns; tripod for silky water.
- Chiltern–Mt Pilot NP: shoot up into the canopy, trunks as framing, bark textures, backlit leaves, fungi/pods.
- Lake Sambell (sunrise/sunset): reflections, silhouettes, backlit reeds; morning mist if it lines up.
Method: tell a "wide → detail" story at each stop — 24mm for context, 90mm for abstraction. Theme: "Echoes of the Goldfields" — where time, decay and nature intersect.
Cockatoo Island — shooting list
Gear: tilt-shift lens, 35mm lens, tripod, hand tripod/remote, flash unit. Shots: focus stack; exposure bracket; slow shutter at f/8–f/11. For manual focus stacking, focus on the nearest point in MF and advance focus 1–3 steps (camera + button or the RMT-P1BT remote) until the scale reads infinity, then blend in post.
Consolidated from notes: Photo shoot (Wollongong Harbour sunrise); Beechworth Photo shoots; Cockatoo Island