Sharklife is a non-profit organisation addressing the alarming exploitation of shark populations and ocean fisheries in South African waters. They actively engage the urgent need for research and protection of many marine species and recently published this plea video on YouTube. It’s well worth watching. You can visit sharklife’s website here.
We really are a strange species, us humans. That we can stoop so low as to perpetuate the despicable acts you will see in this video is alarming. Don’t avoid the video – watch it right through to the end and then decide what you are going to do about it. It’s up to each and every one of us to live in harmony in this world we share with plants and animals. It’s up to us.
Courtesy of my friend Michael, I had the good fortune to visit Sofia, Bulgaria recently. Yes, Sofia Bulgaria which, I discovered at the local MacDonald’s, is some 9 760 kilometres from Cape Town…. or should that be Cape Tawn?
Sofia reminds me very much of my hometown Johannesburg. It is a city in flux, changing, adapting to a first world economy all the while trying to find its own identity.
I took this brief introduction to Sofia from Wikipedia.org and you can read more here.
Sofia is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city by population in the European Union, with 1.4 million people living in the Capital Municipality. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha, and is the administrative, cultural, economic, and educational centre of the country.
One of the oldest cities in Europe, the history of Serdica-Sredets-Sofia can be traced back some 7000 years; prehistoric settlements were excavated in the centre of the present city, near the royal palace, as well as in outer districts such as Slatina and Obelia. The well preserved town walls (especially their substructures) from antiquity date back before the 7th century BC, when Thracians established their city next to the most important and highly respected mineral spring, still functioning today. Sofia has had several names in the different periods of its existence, and remnants of the city’s millenary history can still be seen today alongside modern landmarks.
Right, history/Geography lesson over then, back to my trip. It really was a whistle stop tour of Athens airport, Sofia airport and Sofia itself – 6 days all in all. My friend Michael is in property development and luckily (or unluckily) he was experiencing a quiet patch at work – thank you worldwide banking crisis – and was able to spend quality time with me showing me the city.
Notwithstanding the history lesson above, recent history can be summarised as: Sofia – conquered by the Ottoman empire, saved by the Russians, incorporated into the USSR and then liberated with the fall of the USSR in 1990. These conquering influences can be seen all round the city and if you have the time and inclination you can find influences from the Romans too.
I was less interested in the historical stuff on this trip – which is probably a reflection of my state of mind at the time – and more interested in the people I met and walking around clearing my head.
I was amazed at how little attention is given to general maintenance and infrastructure upkeep. Apart from the main roads (and there were not that many) most roads are pot-holed and curbs are home to many weeds and grasses. Coming from Africa this was an anathema to me – after all this is Europe for goodness sake. Feral dogs roam the streets and parks and I think this will become a problem sometime in the near future. One night, a pack of 6 dogs chased our car down a main street. And I did hear about one of Michael’s friends who was harassed by a pack of dogs when he was walking home one night from a party…. He was a little drunk so I guess the story should be taken with a pinch of salt.
But weeds, grass, feral dogs and potholes aside Sofia is a wonderful city to visit. The people are very friendly and accommodating. English is not widely spoken but more and more people are learning the language. Equipped with a few words and using sign language I managed to communicate very effectively when necessary. I walked the city in safety at all times of the day and night and never once felt unsafe.
There is a mafia of sorts in Sofia/Bulgaria and I had to laugh to myself often when I saw mafia “big men” being escorted by burley bodyguards. Why do they always drive black cars and wear bling jewellery and what’s with those darn Cuban cigars? From what I can gather, hiring a bodyguard will cost around 300€ a month and so it’s become a bit of a status symbol. C’est la vie.
Here is a selection of photographs I took over the course of my visit. The two churches are: The Russian Church or the Church of St. Nicholas the Miracle-Maker, built in 1914 and dedicated to the patron-saint of the Russian Tsar at the time, Nicholas II and the gold-domed Alexander Nevsky Cathedral built in the early 20th century in memory of the 200,000 Russian soldiers, who died in the Russo-Turkish War, 1877–1878. It is one of the largest Eastern Orthodox cathedrals in the world. The cathedral’s gold-plated dome is 45 m high, with the bell tower reaching 50.52 m.
In South Africa we call traffic lights, robots. It’s a peculiar South African habit but it’s descriptive and I like it. Green, orange then red and then green again. Day in, day out, 24-7, they run through the cycle of colours determining how we behave.
I feel sorry for robots because no-one cares about them. We ignore them, take them for granted and occasionally we abuse them by plunging our vehicles into them and completely wrecking them.
I found this particular robot in Rocky Street, Yoeville. Rocky Street has become an amazing fusion of street life, energy, commerce, and of course, more seedy stuff. And in all this energy and chaos, this robot just gets on with what it has to do.
The man on the corner
The gentleman in the foreground took time out to simply stand in the comforting predictability of the robot. And I particularly like the effort someone took to pay homage and leave a collection of plastic bags at the foot of the robot.
He walks the corridors
pacing, mumbling, confused.
Like a tree
not past its prime
yet withered, bent and broken
a victim of the winds that blew
and starved of water and light.
Followed by his shadow
which stretches long behind him
and glides over all it passes
he paces, and paces and paces
He is his shadow now
untoucheable and not to be held
just passing through
I sit with him sometimes
sit in silence, sit and wait
sit and hold on to my thoughts
the thoughts that know, that know the truth
but cannot be said
Once he was a man
once a Dad, a husband, a person
now he is all that but not
He waits too
waits for thoughts and words and images to come
but they don’t,
they pass through him
and fall on his shadow
which touches me as he passes
again and again
We wait together
He and I
we wait for death, for it looms
Okay so I enjoy watching rugby. Super 14, Tri-Nations, Vodacom Cup; you name it I watch it. But I’ve never been to a live Springbok game, preferring to watch on TV. This weekend, however, I was in Durban and my friends there all had tickets for the Lions/Bokke 1st test to be played at the Shark Tank – did I say I am an avid Sharks supporter? Anyway, I was quite prepared and ready to watch the game on TV but my friends procured a ticket for me. Joy!!!! Read more
Dori wrote a brilliant piece on Bruce and Alyson’s wedding in her blog. And there wasn’t much I could add to what she’d already said. You can read what Dori had to say and see her images here.
In the meantime, here is a sneak preview of my photos from Bruce and Alyson’s wedding at Thaba Ya. I’m not sure which of Bruce or Alyson has the most infectious laugh but boy did they make us laugh and enjoy their wedding. To see more pictures from Bruce and Alyson’s wedding click here.
Here’s a copy of a photo I’m hoping to take on 28 March, somewhere between the hours of 830pm and 930pm (local time). What’s this all about you ask? Well, the folk at WWF are behind this little intiative and their aim is to have everyone in the world switch off their lights at the same time – together, taking a stand against climate change. They have managed to get unbelievable support from all over the world, including major landmarks such as Times Square and the Sydney Opera House, and many others.
All you have to do, is follow suit and switch off your lights at the designated hour for an hour. Check out www.earthhour.org for exact times at your location and other initiatives you can take/follow/get involved in. Oh, and sign up to show your support.
It’s going to be amazing to go out on Saturday night at 830pm and see the stars again. Come on, go for it!!!
So here are Dimitri and Marcelle outside the church celebrating their Catholic wedding ceremony. They went on to celebrate it again with a Greek ceremony before partying the night away. A great couple, two great wedding ceremonies and a fantastic party. Read more.
Mirror and bridal couple, wedding photography, cormac mccreesh, palazzo hotel
South Africa really is a potpourri of cultures and traditions. A heady mix of European, African and Eastern cultures all blended in a rainbow nation, that is unique. And Saturday’s wedding was a perfect example – a joining of Greek and Polish cultures and traditions in an action packed, helter-skelter wedding day….read more
South Africa is renowned among divers and underwater photographers for its sardine run. Much has been written about this phenomenon and many film documentaries have covered it. What follows is one of my experiences on one of the annual runs….read more
Every now and then I get to shoot photos just for fun – no client brief, no pressing deadline to meet and loads of time to explore the images contained in my viewfinder.
Taking photos under these conditions is great fun. It takes a while before my eye kicks in and I start to see compositions, unusual scenes, quirky interesting stuff.
A couple of weeks ago Dori and i took our cameras and headed off to Sandton to just shoot pictures for fun. These are a few of my favourite images from the afternoon.
Wedding photography is the most exhilarating photography challenge I have ever undertaken. On a wedding photography assignment, I need an ability to deal with pressure, be a people’s person, manage the clock and still be creative. It is a pressure cooker environment and I love it.
As a wedding photographer, I need to be skilled in portraiture, photojournalism, macro photography and fashion photography. I needed all my skills at Fabio & Joanna’ s wedding yesterday…….read more
cormac mccreesh, professional wedding photographer
Let me begin by saying that at photos4africa we are absolute converts to digital photography. The instant feedback, the ability to experiment, to take loads of photos and, of course, the joy of editing, compositing and creating art in the computer afterwards. And when we are shooting a wedding, when the pressure is on, it’s great to know the photo is in the bag.
But sometimes, when the time is right, when there’s enough time to indulge in the process of photo-taking…it’s great fun to pull out my trusty old film camera and shoot a roll or two of slide film. But it’s even more fun to cross process that slide film as colour negative. The results are never predictable but always interesting and, very often, really funky.
wedding photography, cormac mccreesh, professional photographer
These photos were taken with slide film and cross processed. I love the colour shifts and grain in the images. Yes, I know you can digitally get a similar effect with photoshop but, hey, this is way more fun. Thanks to Francois and Yolandi for giving Dori and I the time to shoot these. Enjoy them, they’re weird, funky and very different. But we like them.
There’s a reason I choose to stay in Johannesburg over the festive season while the other Jo’burg residents migrate like lemmings to various coastal and mountain resorts. Apart from the obvious crowding that occurs when we Jo’burgers invade the rest of the country I prefer to stay at home and enjoy the delicious weather.
The living really is easy: restaurants are relaxed and not crowded, shopping centres are deserted and spacious and many many retail sales abound. Traffic jams are a distant memory and the weather turns favourable.
Most mornings are overcast and cool. But during the day, the clouds burn off and reveal an azure blue sky; something Lord Tennyson would find inspiring. Sometimes we are treated to an afternoon thunderstorm, other times not. Storms or not the afternoon and evening skies are always spectacular and a source of fascination, inspiration and joy.
These past few days have been no exception and I found myself reaching for my newly acquired point-and-shoot digital camera to test its limitations. I shot these awe-inspiring skies with this little camera and am most impressed with its capabilities. Enjoy them and keep the weather a little secret lest we find ourselves inundated with sky-shooters next year
It’s been a while since my last posting but I’ve been hard at work processing photographs, designing albums and editing videos. It’s been fun and rewarding but it’s getting time to kick back, relax a bit and put up a few posts.
If you’ve been following this blog, you’ll see that I love incorporating movement in my photographs (click here to see my previous post on movement photography). Rear sync flash, slow shutter speed etc etc. Technically, it’s a bit of a bore, but the unpredictability of the results makes movement photography terribly exciting. I never know what I’ve got until I download the photographs and examine them. Children make for beautiful subjects in movement photography because they become so self absorbed and oblivious of the camera.
I got these three gems at Fabio and Joanna’s wedding. The children were amusing themselves on the dance floor whilst the adults were socialising and they made fantastic subjects. Hope you enjoy them.
Today I drove to Prest-ige dive school with my heart in my throat and my stomach in a knot. The drive took 40 minutes and all the while I was driving I wished it would take double that time. My mind was filled with thoughts of all the other things I should and could be doing and I wished I had not agreed to do Trevor Hutton’s advanced free diving course.
While I am an avid and experienced scuba diver and underwater photographer, I am not an accomplished free diver and I pretty much knew that today I would either push my boundaries or capitulate and give in to my fears.
I am pleased to report that I pushed my boundaries today and conquered my fears; well today’s fears that is.
I learned so much today: I learned to disassociate myself from my mind, to relax into my soul and to observe myself from inside my own personal box. Today I learned how important and life-giving breathing is and how much we, I, take it for granted. I learned how to fill my lungs with the air of life and how to control my instinctive reactions to breathe. These are by far the biggest lessons from today’s sessions. There were other technical lessons, about snorkel positioning, how to duck-dive and so on, of course but the stuff about learning how to breathe and use my body to sustain myself on one breath was by far the most important.
Trevor’s confident, encouraging and relaxed style of teaching took me places I never dreamed I’d go. His understanding of the physical and mental side of free diving is both deep and intuitive and he imparts his knowledge in an easily absorbed manner. My breath-hold today improved 4 times. That’s a massive improvement and what makes it more impressive is that this was done whilst performing tasks underwater. I still can’t believe how effortless it all became – which is of course what Trevor had been trying to teach me all day long: less effort, more bottom time.
Here are some photos from today’s session. Tomorrow’s session will push my boundaries further and I am looking forward to it. But for now, my body is exhausted and I need to sleep and recover. Enjoy the photos.
Day 2 of my free-diving course; more pool work, more training and more boundaries to push.
My body was tired today, my lungs and chest muscles stiff and inflexible. It took me ages to kit up, to slip into the water and to find a rhythm.
Today ‘s training took place in an 8 metre deep pool and we started with, the now customary, breathing exercises. Trevor set me a few tasks in the 3-metre section of the pool and I struggled. My lungs would not respond and my mind was all over the place. What had seemed easy by close of the day yesterday was now a major insurmountable task. But under Trevor’s guidance, I began to relax and detach myself from the noises in my head and the panic in my body.
8 metres looked so deep and impossible but soon I was able to get down there and back up with air to spare. By the end of the day, I was spending a minute at 8 metres and able to perform the tasks Trevor set me and enjoy doing them, as well.
What really surprised me today was how slowly time passed under water. I am amazed at how irrelevant time became once I had relaxed and slowed down every movement I made. I became conscious of being in the present and my senses were heightened. The more I relaxed the more relaxing and peaceful I felt and the more I became part of the water I was in.
There were two scuba divers in the pool whilst I was training and each time I descended and sat on the bottom, I watched them. They looked so ungainly and unnatural. They were noisy and left great disturbances in their wake. I became so conscious of the contrast between the two styles of diving and I realised just how elegant and natural free diving is. Each time I left the bottom to surface and fill my lungs it was with regret. I wanted to just be able to stay under water in that peaceful quiet state, embraced by the water I was in.
Regrets aside, each time I surfaced I relished the air I took in. Air never tasted so good and I felt alive.
Tomorrow I have a break from the training but on Sunday, we resume with dives in a quarry called Miracle Waters. How deep will I go then, I don’t know. But I am keen to find out.
Finally got round to posting these photos. They were taken on the 5th of January just after the customary afternoon thunderstorm. It had been a spectacular thunderstorm with great earth-shaking claps of thunder and electrifying bolts of lightning shooting across the sky.
When everything settled and peace returned, the birds emerged from hiding and began to chirp, albeit quietly. A mysterious soft yellow light slowly covered the garden
Yellow light, Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
and turned the sky a mixture of gold and yellow.
Golden sky, Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Over a period of half an hour the golden yellow light became infused with pink and orange highlights and the yellow disapated.
Golden sky, Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Changing sky, Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Pink sky, Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Day 3 of my free diving course. Today we headed out to Miracle Waters for some deep dives. We were five students; 3 open water and 2 advanced. Miracle Waters is a great location for free diving, as visibility is quite good, generally. Today it was around 5 metres. For the open water students there is a sunken bus the roof of which is at 12 metres and for the advanced a sunken light aircraft. The tail of the aircraft is at 14 metres and the nose at 18 metres. For the more ambitious, there is a buoy marking a depth of 32 metres. Apparently, there is a sunken helicopter at a depth of 40 metres but we did not visit it today.
The open water students successfully dived the bus and Trevor descended the buoy line to a depth of 32.4 metres, bringing with him up an old road sign, he found on the bottom. Troy, the other advanced student managed a depth of 27 metres and my best for the day was a disappointing 20 metres. Some days, it just does not happen. I had to accept that.
On my second last dive I got to the nose of the aircraft but no further. The pressure on my chest and lungs was immense and I could feel the panic welling up inside of me. I turned back to the surface and kicked hard. Immediately the pressure decreased and I felt more relaxed and slowed my ascent as I felt more comfortable. I knew I could get past the nose but it just did not seem that I was going to be able to do so today. Trevor said to me, “sometimes you just need to do it with intent, succeed and then get out of the water and come back another day”. Which is how I went about my last deep dive of the day.
Lying on the surface, I watched the sunlight dancing in vertical rays that shone down into the depths. I closed my eyes and began to focus on my breathing. I became aware of how my body rose and fell in the water with every inhalation and exhalation. Each exhalation was an amplified roar as I tried to force all the air out of my lungs through my snorkel. Each inhalation was a rush of fresh air that filled me from the bottom of my lungs to the top. It was hard to relax. My mind was filled with the fear of failure, filled with the feeling of panic I had from the last dive. I struggled to control it, to slow things down. Only by closing my eyes was I able to bring some degree of focus. Finally, I took a huge lungful of air and reached down with a vigorous duck-dive.
Descending the rope to the tail of the aircraft, I focussed on looking for the aircraft tail on the edge of my visibility. I was fining hard and I could feel the pressure building up as I went deeper. Finally, the tail popped into view and I slowed down, feeling confident. I slowly slid down the fuselage over the cockpit and down to the nose. As I passed the nose, I passed through a thermo cline and became acutely aware of the water temperature. I reached out to touch the rocks beyond the nose of the aircraft and then turned to head back to the surface. I wanted to be able to linger and feel comfortable at that depth but I could feel the panic building again.
Looking up I kicked hard for the surface. Now the convulsions came. My throat was convulsing, needing air. I could feel my nostrils involuntarily sniffing hard against my mask, my body desperate for air. But it passed. The closer I got to the surface, the less the pressure and the more my lungs expanded as the air left inside them expanded. Finally, at around 8 metres I was able to slow my ascent and enjoy the last few metres to the surface.
That first lungful of air was so precious and life giving. My head spun and my breathing was laboured as I sucked air through the snorkel to fill my lungs. It took me a while to calm down and get my breathing under control at which point I gave the okay signal to Troy, who was spotting for me on the dive.
That was it for me for the day. Taking Trevor’s advice I slowly finned back to shore. I did a few more dives to the roof of the bus on my way back to shore – just to build up some confidence and to feel better about the day’s diving.
I enjoyed the day and the challenge and I am pleased to have dived the depth I did. I am pleased for the rest of the students too – they also achieved an enormous amount.
This is a fantastic sport. It has everything; fitness, strength, focus, self-competition, and mental toughness. Here’s looking forward to more time in the water in the future.
Dori and I met Moby & Ola at an exhibition we did at Sandton City in October last year. There was an instant bond with this friendly and outgoing couple and we couldn’t wait to take their photos. Click here to read their story.
I love rugby and nothing is better than watching the Bokke beating the All Blacks in rugby. In fact, watching successive world cups is always pleasing. Luckily Nigel and Aine did their best for Saffer/Kiwi relations when they got married. Let’s hope that if they have talented rugby children in years to come that the Bokke get first choice.
Click here to see more images from Nigel & Aine’s wedding
I’ve been in Durban on holiday for a week and here’s the first of a few posts on what I’ve been up to. This one covers a dive to Geelbek Reef off Rocky Bay. It was the first day of the holiday and my favourite sort of activity. Click here to read the full post.
Divers at the boat, underwater images, Cormac McCreesh
What a name for a reef! Hardly inspiring of fair weather diving, I knew it would be an interesting day’s diving and so I readily agree to join the dive.
Interesting it was, and you can read more about it by clicking here
You either love sharks or hate them but you cannot deny their purpose and their beauty. They are fascinating creatures yet stir up so much controversy. The Natal Sharks Board is one of the world’s leading shark institutions and one of the most controversial.
Click here to read more about my visit to the Sharks Board
African Diver really is a labour of love. We’ve just published our third issue and we’re really pleased with it. This issue is a little more serious than previous ones and tackles some of the subjects that we find fascinating and interesting. There’s stuff on freediving, sharks, whales, diving in Benin and much more. Have a look and feel free to send us any comments at info@africandiver.com
Hemmingway’s novella the old man and the Sea, was published in 1952 and tells the story of an old man’s battle with a “giant” marlin. It’s a book I have read many times and I expect I’ll read it again. The story is of an old man (Santiago) who had lost his luck with fishing and then finally strikes the big one. The story unfolds as Santiago battles and finally subdues the giant fish only to lose it to sharks. Santiago’s elation at “landing” his catch is replaced with remorse as he realises that in subduing the marlin he has only succeeded in “sacrificing” it back to the sea. Ownership and control of the fish ultimately leave him empty-handed. There’s more to the story than I’ve made out and I urge you to read it to see.
What makes the story interesting is the knowledge that Hemmingway loved marlin fishing and almost single-handily romanticised it. You’ll notice that I have refrained from calling it a sport because it would imply that the fish is willingly partaking in the action.
Anyway, let’s get to the point of this blog. On January 24 this year I dived off Rocky Bay on a reef called Kev’s Ledge. It was an uninspiring dive as the conditions were awful, to say the least. But as they say, “a bad day’s diving is way better than a good day in the office”.
On returning to the launch site, we were confronted with the truly awful sight of a fisherman proudly showing off his catch – a 135 kilogram Marlin. By now you’ve figured out where I stand on this issue – big game fishing, like sport hunting, is anathema to me. I fail to see the value in a “trophy” fish (or animal for that matter) and I very much doubt this now dead fish would be used to feed starving or homeless or equally needy people.
Dead marlin, Cormac McCreesh
Regardless of my opinions on the matter, have a look at these photos I took. Witness the strutting and the frantic, and sometimes asinine, attempts to weigh the marlin to get that all important weight. Then wonder at how magnificent it must have looked in the water, its home, and look at how sad it looks hanging on the scale……
Mostly I dive Aliwal Shoal and Landers Reef, both of which are just south of Durban. However I dive Sodwana Bay, just south of the Mozambique border, a lot too. But every now and then, when the planets line up and the world seems too busy and hectic I feel the need to cross the Mozambique border and slow things down a bit.
This is an article I wrote for African Diver magazine. It’s about Ponta Mamoli – an undiscovered jewel in Mozambique. Click here to read the full article….
When I look through my underwater photograph collection I relive the dive and can remember everything about the subject matter and circumstances of the image I chose to frame in my camera….except for this one!!!!
I took it diving at the indonesia island resort Wakatobi. I was still shooting film those days and I only discovered this photo when I got home and had the film developed. I shot 14 rolls of film on that holiday and can remember every one of the pictures I took, save for this one. It was a pleasent surprise because it’s become a favourite of mine. Hope you like it too.
Okay, I am pissed off. First I go to Durban on a holiday and discover the terrible history surrounding the abusive whaling industry there.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Then I visit the Sharks Board, in response to all the publicity around tiger sharks dying in the shark nets, and learn that the Sharks Board intend employing drum lines to take out large sharks in our coastal waters.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
And then to top it all off, the day before I leave Durban I am treated to the sight of asinine fishermen trying to weigh a 135 kg Marlin they caught….for sport!!!!!
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
What is going on? Do we have no respect for our environment anymore? Have we completely lost the plot? My goodness, where will it all stop.
So, I’ve been back in Johannesburg for a couple of weeks and today I went with Dori to cycle Northern Farm – one of our favourite mountain bike venues. It’s a beautiful spot only open to the public on weekends and public holidays. It is home to a pair of fish eagle, goliath heron, crested eagle and countless other birds I have yet to identify. It truly is a magnificent spot in the heart of bustling Johanneburg.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Each day of the weekend, serious cyclists, families, and cyclists just having fun visit the farm, as do birders, runners, amateur photographers and people who love nature.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
You’d think this would inspire respect and love for this environment from these people. Yet it doesn’t. Today as Dori and I cycled along we were horrified to see plastic bottles and water sachets wantonly discarded in the grass and on the cycle track.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
Apparently, two weeks ago the Farm hosted a running race and this was the result. Ok, so let’s give the runners the benefit of the doubt – that they expected the organisers of the race to clean up after them, as hard as this may be to do. But can we forgive the organisers for not cleaning up? I certainly cant! And worse, I can’t forgive the other cyclists who simply cycled past the mess and didn’t stop to pick anything up. Only one cyclist stopped to help us. Her husband, who was cycling with her, stopped, bemoaned the situation and then continued cycling.
Cormac McCreesh, professional photographer
It’s so easy to be critical, so easy to point fingers and accusations, much harder to do something about it, much harder to care enough to have a positive impact.
The following photographs illustrate the beauty of Northern Farm. Enjoy them and imagine this beauty spoilt by litter and rubbish. Just pick your stuff up and don’t leave it for someone else to sort out for you. It’s not difficult to do.
There are some photos I keep returning to. Maybe it’s for sentimental reasons, maybe just because they’re interesting photos and maybe it’s just because I like them. Here are 4 I keep returning to.
Green tree frog, Cormac McCreesh
The first is this green tree frog. It was perching on a glass door of a house in Sodwana. I borrowed my friend’s ring flash and got this lovely close up.
Watching the sunset from Wakatobi, Cormac McCreesh
The second was taken at Wakatobi dive resort. The sun was setting and the model was settled down to a rum and ginger ale while he watched the sun go down. The passing bird was fortuitous and just adds to the photo. Wakatobi dive resort has to be one of the world’s best places to watch the sunset from. And as for the diving there – well it’s up there with the best.
White Azalea stamens close up, Cormac McCreesh
This one is a close up of a white Azalea flower stamens. I shot about 50 close up photos of this flower and this is the one i really liked the most. The textures and white flower background attracted me to the photo.
Footprints on the beach, Cormac McCreesh
Finally, there is this one of footprints in the beach sand. It was shot in Mozambique, Ponta Mamoli to be precise. It’s one of my favourite photos because it asks questions of the viewer.
