Fireworks in Sydney

The title says it all!

I left the shiny stuff to the professionals, instead i took five minutes of time during work to take a few quick snaps from near the Opera House. I shot on old 200iso film and tried a combination of f11 to f22 1 second exposures, some f22 shots on bulb and a great big smearing pan from the house to the bridge. To those that don’t speak that language but are still interested i let in as little light as i could but for longer, thus giving us the long streaks of light effect you get as the fireworks shoot upwards. It was all handheld and so very shaky, i’d love to try with a tripod sometime but i like how these turned out- much better than i thought they would at the time!

Wilco Mixtape

I was recently asked to prep a Wilco mixtape for a friend enjoying their latest album, here’s what i came up with, any more suggestions other Wilco fans?

1 – At Least That’s What You said – A Ghost Is Born
2 – I Am Trying To Break Your Heart – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
3 – Impossible Germany – Sky Blue Sky
4 – I’m Always In Love –  Summer Teeth
5 – Wilco (The Song) – Wilco (The Album)
6 – Bull Black Nova – Wilco (The Album)
7 – Radio Cure – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
8 – I Shall Be Released (live Bob Dylan cover) – web release w/Fleet Foxes
9 – How To Fight Lonelyness – Summer Teeth
10 – Handshake Drugs – A Ghost Is Born
11 – Poor Places – Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
12 – Hate It Here – Sky Blue Sky
13 – Jollybanker (Woody Guthrie cover) – web release
14 – Misunderstood (live) – Kicking Television

Love of Diagrams, The Laurels, Circle Pit

1-12-11 – FBi Social
A very good night of music put on by Radiant at FBi Social. These are the three i caught most of and each was better than the last (sorry circle Pit). Circle Pit started it off for me with a nice stripped back set. Between each song they seemed to stop for more than i thought was normal… then i saw that they were actually explaining how to play the next song to what must have been a ring-in drummer. Rather than being frustrating it actually made the set more fun for me, maybe i’m just weird. Even though they probably were not at their best the set was enough for me to now be keen to catch them again at full strength in the near future (hopefully near!). After the start-stop set from Cricel Pitt, The Laruels just blew me away but it wasn’t too much of a surprise. They’re just always a force of nature on the stage and no recording that i have listened to has ever really managed to captured this. 
When Love of Diagrams first started playing i was a little underwhelemed, i don’t know why but it just deflated me- but by the second song it was a complete turn around! I loved their set and cute banter, it’s great to see a true live band discuss what song to play next as the show goes on.

There are more  pics on the Facebook gallery.

“I don’t want gay marriage… i want marriage”

3-12-11

Ten thousand people turned up in a park to support the cause earlier this month, it was great to see so much support gather and march across Sydney.

The Touch

02-12-11
Donny Benet was a champ at FBi Social the other week. He laid down a great set that i think was meant more for the ladies than the very sausage-festy front row that Friday night…

If you haven’t experienced The Touch make sure to catch Donny next time…