Today’s selection comes from near the local river (Nepean) and a family property in Goulburn. In this regard, having a phone camera always at the ready is really a plus!
Till next time!
Written & Photographed by David Johnson
5 October 2026
Tag: against the light
Things That Attract My Eye – Part 32!
Five of the following images were taken at the Nepean River near where I live. The 4th image down was taken at a local cafe/restaurant/bar also near where I live. It is an indoor plant. Contre jour (against the light), a favourite of mine.
Till next time!
Written & photographed by
David Johnson
5 June 2026
Things That Attract My Eye – Part 31!
Here is a random selection of images that I have taken over the last month.
The first three are of the outside of the gym I go to. When I was leaving it one early morning, the light was just gorgeous, so I just had to get a few shots.
Two of the images are from a walk alongside a river near us, the peeling paint is on an old car on my Wife’s parents’ property, and the night tree image was taken outside the meeting place where my Toastmasters Club meets.
It pays to keep an out as every day there are beautiful subjects to photograph even as we go about our normal day.
Till next time!
Written & Photographed by David Johnson
30 May 2026
Things That Attract My Eye – Part 29
The following images were taken on recent walks close to home, except for an image taken at the Bombo Geological site known as Bombo Quarry, near Kiama, NSW, Australia, which is roughly 1 and a one-and-a-half-hour drive from where we live.
Hope you enjoy them! 🙂
Till next time!
Written & Photographed by David Johnson
21 March 2026
Things That Attract My Eye – Part 28
Seems a great day to catch up on a few things, as, in Sydney, South-West it is 43C /109.4F today. Yesterday, it was 41C and the day before, 39C. Tomorrow, It’s supposed to be only 24C. Phew!
The following selection of images were taken across two walks I did this week in the same vicinity, one in that beautiful time of day before Dusk, and the others were taken earlier this morning (before the heat of the day arrived).
Last Wednesday, I walked 4.6 km / 2.86 miles & this morning I walked 7.25km / 4.5 miles.
Till next time!
Written & Photographed by David Johnson
10 January 2026
Contre Jour – Leaves
We are very fortunate that we live close to a really relaxing place to walk. Fortunately, we are higher up away from a river that has been known to flood over the years, and in particular, the last 2-3 years.
Normally, it is a wondrous place to walk…so relaxing and because light is what it is, you get to see different subjects lit differently even if you walk at the same time each day.
One of the things I really like to watch out for is ‘Contre jour’ or ‘against the light.’ In particular, trees, shrubs and of of course leaves really come to life with this type of lighting. Here are a few recent images I took. Hope you enjoy them.
Till next time!
Written by David Johnson
2 October 2023
Things That Attract My Eye – 3
Welcome to my third post of ‘Things that attract my eye’.
All of the images below were taken in the last couple of months on walks, excursions and as I go out my daily life. All were taken on my iPhone 8 Plus.
A famous Photographer was once asked, ‘What is the best camera to have?’ His answer was, ‘the one you have on you at the time…’. That was Chase Jarvis.
My interpretation of this comment is that we all probably wish that we could have our DSLR, Mirrorless or high-end compact camera with us every moment of the day to capture every beautiful image. This is often not possible, nor practical e.g., if I took my DSLR out on my early morning walk before I started running my business that day, my walk would take longer…and thus impact the running of my business.
With the phone camera, I just take a quick snap and I’m on my way as I have a certain amount of time allocated in the morning for exercise. That is the best camera to take the images on, given that circumstance.
Similarly, when I go out sketching, often, I will not take my DSLR with me as it can be a distraction.
Here are the latest things ‘that have attracted my eye’.
Written by David Johnson
23 October 2022
Mental Transfusion
A Beautiful Place
Last Sunday, after enjoying a nice afternoon tea at one of our favourite cafe’s in Picton which is about 15 minutes drive South from where we live, we decided to head out to Lake Burragorang which is part of the Sydney Warragamba Dam Catchment, Sydney’s main water source.
We are so fortunate to have such a majestic and beautiful spot that is only 32 minutes drive away.
Lake Burragorang is a man-made reservoir that was created by a Dam. Unfortunately, to create the reservoir, it was necessary to relocate residents who had lived farming towns in the Burragorang Valley since the early 19th Century. The lands actually belonged to Gundungarra Aboriginal tribe.
Construction of the Warragamba Dam commenced in 1948 and was completed in 1960 and is surrounded by a 3km exclusion zone to ensure the integrity of the water supply. It is sad that such a beautiful spot was created in this way, however, the end result is certainly a jewel to the eye.
My first visit there dated back to the 1980’s when I was just getting into Photography. I’ve been back there with social clubs and with my SLR/DSLR on a number of occasions. It has BBQ facilities, seats, amenities and is a great place for a picnic.
My previous visit was back in 2018, a year before those horrendous bushfires ripped through various parts of the state, including the Burragorang Valley. Even the though a lot of the green has returned in the past year, down in the valley, you can still see clear through to the ground where there is still little or no undergrowth. It will take time, but it will eventually recover.
The only camera I took this time was my phone as I wanted to concentrate on sketching and also writing some Poetry (if the mood captured me). My wife, Susan took her Crotchet with her, and after a brief walk we settled down to enjoy the surroundings for the next 2 1/2 hours.
The light was impressive throughout the afternoon as it danced and highlighted different sections of the landscape intermittently. I felt so relaxed.
I went away with the feeling that ‘I had indeed been away’ and not just been on a Sunday drive. The light, the ambience felt almost Spiritual.
We certainly won’t be leaving as much time between visits next time.
Written by David Johnson
16 February 2021
Sources of Historical information:
https://www.theland.com.au/story/5702018/painting-revives-rich-burragorang-history/ ; https://historyofaboriginalsydney.edu.au/south-west/location/burragorang-valley ; https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-03/how-sydneys-water-needs-drowned-burragorang-valley/9390170
Winter Joy
