Rodney Campbell's Blog

Inside Empress

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 14-30mm f/4 S @ 14 mm, 8 sec at f/13, ISO 64

A nice little spot partway up Empress Falls in the Valley of the Waters in the Blue Mountains

My feet were already wet so … time to make my way out onto these very slippery looking rocks 🙂

CPL working wonders here with glossy wet rocks everywhere 🙂

Sylvia Falls

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 36 mm, 8 sec at f/9, ISO 64

A classic composition of the beautiful delicate Sylvia Falls at the Valley of the Waters in the Blue Mountains

The (MANY) steep steps down to here from Conservation Hut at the top were significantly better than I remember from my last trip down here a dozen years ago 🙂

All That Glitters

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 43 mm, 47 sec at f/9, ISO 64

Day 2 of our Focus long weekend away in the Blue Mountains. Three of us have made the trip down to the bottom of the waterfalls in the Valley of the Waters. The last time I was here was over a dozen years ago back in 2011

This nice spot which Graeme Gordon has shown us is just below Sylvia Falls, which itself is a little below Empress Falls

It’s still basically pitch dark so I’ve added a little selective light with my warm light head torch during the long exposure

Presumably this rock has split open during a fall and revealed it’s golden orange interior (before it blackens over with grime and moss over time)

Blue Hour

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 39 mm, 132 sec at f/8, ISO 64

From the first shot of the sunset session right to the very last at Cahill’s lookout in the Blue Mountains

The sun had now set (alas with minimal colour in the clouds along the way)

Here I’m stacking an ND64 (6 stop) ND along with the (0.9 or 3 stop) reverse grad and a polariser. The aim to really drag the shutter and maybe get a little streaky cloud movement (they weren’t moving much at all)

So a moody dark frame to finish off the day

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.

John Olsen

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 10 sec at f/8, ISO 64

Vale John Olsen who passed away, age 95, on the night of April 11 2023 before he was able to see some of his creations come to life on the sails of the Opera House. He was a giant of Australian art and his work will live on for generations to come

Here are a few of my favourite long exposure beam shots with Olsen’s projections on the sails

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 30 sec at f/8, ISO 64

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 15 sec at f/8, ISO 64

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 30 sec at f/8, ISO 64

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 10 sec at f/8, ISO 64

NIKON Z 7 + NIKKOR Z 24-120mm f/4 S @ 54 mm, 15 sec at f/8, ISO 64

Note: These photographs (especially the wider shots) look much better when larger. To see larger versions in an inline overlay slideshow gallery viewer click any of the images.