Melbourne Pride March 2026, part 3

Finally, here my photos of some of the dogs at Melbourne’s Midsumma Pride March 2026 :)

Tiny puppy

Photo of a tiny, tan-and-white puppy straining on a leash in a grassy field. The puppy is only slightly taller than the ankle of the person it is standing next to. A small Progress Pride flag has been attached to its leash.

Dog playing fetch

Photo of a medium-sized, brown-and-white dog wearing a baseball cap. The dog is walking across a grassy field as it carries a stick back to its owner.

Fluffy white dog

Photo of a small, fluffy, white dog with lots of pride paraphernalia attached to it. The dog is being walked on a lead across a grassy field.

Fluffy white assistance dog

Photo of a small, fluffy, white dog wearing an assistance-dog harness and a poofy, colourful skirt. A rainbow pride flag has been attached to the dog's harness. The dog is being walked on a blue leash that has an “assistance dog” label on it. The dog and its owner are walking across a grassy field.

Pride noodle

Photo of a greyhound dog wearing a rainbow-coloured sweater is being walked on a yellow leash across a grassy field before Melbourne Pride March 2026.

Fluffy backpack dog

Photo of a fluffy, white, medium-sized dog in a backpack. The backpack is being work by a man in a bright orange t-shirt with the Commission for Children and Young People logo on it. The man has a Progress Pride flag sticker on his cheek.

Fluffy white dog in a backpack

Photo of a fluffy, white, medium-sized dog in a backpack. The backpack is worn by a man in a bright orange t-shirt. Next to the man is a woman wearing a rainbow-heart-themed tie-dye t-shirt, with rainbow paint on her cheek and a rainbow hair tie.

Enjoying the event from a distance

Photo of a woman and her large, white dog sitting calmly in a children's play area close to the start of Melbourne Pride March 2026. The dog is looking off-camera at the crowd of people preparing to march.

Melbourne Pride March 2026, part 2

Here are my photos of some of the marchers at Melbourne’s Midsummer Pride March 2026.

The kids are alright

Photo of dozens of teenagers holding pride signs getting ready to march at Melbourne Pride 2026. Signs include, “Bi, shy & ready to cry”, “Non-binary & proud”, and “Lesbians are lovely”.

This is pride at work

Photo of a placard being held by employees from Seek as they march at Melbourne Pride 2026. The placard reads, in bright-pink, all-caps lettering, “this is pride at work”.

RACV Pilot Service car

Photo of a bright yellow 1967 Morris Mini Deluxe car with “RACV Pilot Service” painted on it. The car is being driven along the Melbourne Pride March route by a woman in a bright pink t-shirt and a rainbow-coloured feather boa around her neck. A woman in the passenger seat, who is wearing a bright blue t-shirt, is smiling a she looks straight at the photographer taking this photo.

All-sparkly

Photo of two women in red and purple sparkly, strappy dresses and rainbow-coloured headpieces marching at Melbourne Pride March 2026.

Rainbow earrings

Photo of a woman smiling while marching at Melbourne Pride March 2026. The woman is wearing a blue RACV t-shirt and rainbow earrings.

Melbourne Pride March 2026, part 1

I didn’t spend as much at time as I wanted at this year’s Midsumma Pride March in Melbourne, but I did get a few good photos.

There are my general photos and photos of some of the kids there. Coming up after this are my photos of marchers and dogs :)

From Paris to Melbourne

Zoomed-in photo of a man wearing rainbow coloured sneakers and rainbow coloured socks with an outline of the Eiffel Tower on them. The man is standing in a grassy field alongside other people and a black-and-white dog.

Kinetic’s Pride Bus

Photo of a man wearing a rainbow jacket attaching a rainbow flag to a city bus that's been painted in rainbow colours. A heart shaped sign attached to the front windscreen reads, “You are loved”.

Riding along

Photo of a young girl in pink-and-blue clothes, with long, light-pink coloured hair extensions in two braids, riding on the shoulders of a person walking through the crown at Melbourne Pride 2026. Slightly out of focus, and in the background on the photo, is a large Progress Pride flag.

Having an important conversation

Photo of two toddlers sitting near a crowd of people who are preparing to march at Melbourne Pride 2026. One of the girls is pointing her finger at something while explaining something to the other girl. A slightly older boy who is walking nearby is looking at this exchange with a smile on his face.

Unicorn toddler

Photo of a small child sitting in a stroller while wearing a rainbow-coloured unicorn-horn headband.

Stepping up to take a photo

Photo of a young man in a purple t-shirt standing on something so he can raise himself well above the spectators and supporters lining the Melbourne Pride March route. The man has a phone in his hand is taking a photo or video of the group that is marching by.

Cleaning up after the crowds

Photo of a man in the section of a large, grassy, sports field that is now empty of people. The man is wearing a high-visibility vest and blue, plastic gloves. He is picking up fallen bits of pride-march costumes and is packing them into a very large garbage back. In the far background are marchers who have not yet started marching at Melbourne Pride March 2026.

It is cool to see how much I’ve improved as a photographer since 2023 (part 1, part 2), which is when I last took my mirrorless camera (Fujifilm X-S10) to Pride to take photos.

Because I got almost everything right in-camera, this year’s photos are brighter and cleaner, and I’ve had to do far less cropping and post-processing on them.

Also, because I now know how to use my camera’s burst modes properly, this year I missed far fewer “moments” and expressions that I wanted to capture.

The difference in skill is even more stark when you look back at the photos I took in 2020 (with my Google Pixel 3XL phone) or, heck, my photos from as far back as 2010 (with my Canon IXUS 80 IS). Though to see those 2010 photos you’ll have to scroll to the bottom of my ‘Melbourne Pride March’ album of Flickr.

So yay for experience and, of course, better cameras and lenses!

Dogs at Melbourne Pride 2023

As promised, here are my best dog photos from Melbourne Pride 2023.

Watching the humans

Photo of a small, fluffy brown-and-white dog with the name ‘Oscar’ written on his harness. The dog is standing in a large, green field with several people around him. He is looking at something off-camera. There are several rainbow-coloured flags and ribbons placed around the field where he is standing.

Handsome dog

Photo of a large, handsome dog wearing a harness, a nose halter, and a rainbow coloured bandana around his neck. The dog is being walked on a leash in a large, green field. There are several people wearing brightly coloured clothes sitting and standing in the field.

Good boy

Photo of a dark tan dog looking off-camera while standing in a large, green field with several people standing around him.

Staring at another dog

Photo of a small grey-and-white dog standing in a large field with several people around her. The dog is wearing a purple bandana with pride flags printed on it. The dog is staring at another dog, who is sitting off camera.

Must pet the dog…

Photo of a small girl and a smaller black dog. The dog is sitting in front of the girl in a large, green field. The girl is holding the leash that is attached to the dog’s walking harness. The girl is reaching forward to scratch the dog’s head.

Successfully petting the dog

Photo of a small girl and a smaller black dog. The dog is sitting in front of the girl in a large, green field. The girl is holding the leash that is attached to the dog’s walking harness. The girl has reached forward and is scratching the dog’s head.

Floofy white cloud

Photo of a puffy, bright white dog on a leash. The dog is standing in a large, green field and is looking at another dog off camera.

Hugging its human

Photo of a woman standing by the side of the road watching the marchers at a pride parade walk by. The woman is carrying a black, curly-haired dog in her lap. The dog is facing away from the marchers and has its chin resting on the woman’s shoulder.

Long tongue dog

Photo of large, fluffy, white dog standing in a large, green field with several brightly dressed people around it. The dog is wearing a rainbow bandana and is looking at something off-camera with its long tongue hanging loosely out of its mouth.

Stretching to play with a nearby dog

Photo of a brown dog in a large green field. The dog is wearing a jacked with rainbows printed on it. The dog is straining against its leash because it wants to pay with another dog off camera.

Pretty dog

Photo of a small, light-brown-and-tan dog standing a large, green field. The dog is wearing a large, pride-themed bandana around its neck and is looking at something off camera.

Waiting for the ball to be thrown

Photo of a small, white-and-brown dog excitedly focused on a scruffy tennis ball on the grass that its human is just about to kick for the dog to fetch.

Melbourne Pride 2023

I took a lot of photos at this year’s Melbourne Pride march. Here are my favourites.

Waiting for the march to start

Photo of a man wearing tennis whites with rainbow coloured accents standing in a large, green field with several hundred people standing around and behind him. The man is holding a large rainbow pride flag on a wooden staff that is taller than he is.

Queueing up to start the march

Photo of a young person marching with a large group of people during a Pride parade. The person is holding up a sign that reads "Let's get one thing straight, I'm not".

Queueing up to march

Photo of two young women, both wearing matching green t-shirts, walking in a wide group of people - several of whom are wearing brightly coloured, pride themed clothes. One of the women is holding a small brown and tan dog in her hand.

Huddled over a phone, bisexually

Photo of three young women huddled around a phone in a large, green field. There are several people standing in a rough queue on the other side of the field. The three women are wearing the pink, purple, and blue colours of the bisexual flag. One of them has a bisexual pride flag draped across her back.

Bored with all the waiting

Photo of a young child lying belly-down, as if bored and defeated, on top of an inflatable pink beach ball in a large, green field.

Hanging loose with search and rescue

Photo of a woman in a search and rescue uniform of bright orange utility pants and black t-shirt. The woman is walking away from the photographer and towards a red search-and-rescue truck that's been decorated with pride flags. The woman has pale green-blue coloured hair and is holding a rainbow coloured strap in her other hand. She is giving the shaka (or "hang loose" sign) to her colleagues off camera.

Capturing the moment

Photo of a young man wearing a red, black, and maroon coloured singlet. The man has rainbow-coloured paint finger-drawn on his arms and face. He is taking a photo of the crowd around him with an interchangeable lens camera that he is holding up to his eye.

Watching the march from above

Photo of a woman and a man, both standing on separate balconies of a five-storey building, and both looking down at what's happening on the street below. The woman is using a pair of binoculars to take a closer look.

Watching the march from her balcony

Photo of an older woman with bright, white hair standing on the balcony of multi-storey residential building. The woman is using a pair of binoculars to look down at what's happening on the street below.

Watching the marchers

Photo of a woman standing by the side of the road watching the marchers at a pride parade walk by. The woman is holding a black, curly-haired dog in her lap. The dog is wearing a rainbow coloured bandana on its neck.

Walking back to his friends

Photo of a boy wearing a bright orange school-branded t-shirt that has lots of marker-drawn signatures on it. The boy is walking parallel to the people marching in the pride parade. Slung over his shoulder is a large pride rainbow flag on a long wooden stick.

Post Pride

Photo of the back of a man wearing a t-shirt that reads "PostPride". The man is watching the rest of his Australia Post colleagues cross the road at the end of the Melbourne pride march.

Flying with pride

Photo of several people wearing bright, Jetstar-orange t-shirts. These people have rainbow flags and bright coloured flowers draped around them. Two of the people are wearing large, mascot-sized foam airplanes with Jetstar logos on them.

(FYI. I used to work for Jetstar and was part of the first ever Jetstar contingent to officially march at Pride in Melbourne. #FlyingWithPride)

Tomorrow I’ll upload all the dog photos I took at pride, so stay tuned for that :)

Melbourne Pride March 2020

Happy Pride, Melburnians! And happy 25th anniversary of the first pride march in Melbourne.

The backs of two people wearing body-length rainbow pride flags on their backs. The photo is taken in a large sports field with lots of other people in the background.

This year the Victorian bisexual community had the largest marching contingent ever!

A group of people are sitting, crouching, and standing in a large sports field. People are wearing bisexual pride flags colours are holding flags and signs that say things like ‘live and let bi’, ‘bi-fi’, and ‘not a phase’.

The weather was lovely, the crowd was great, and the march was lots of fun :)

A group of about 75 people are cheering as they post for a group photo. The group is wearing bisexual flag colours and are holding up flags and signs.

The biggest cheer of the march — and rightly so, particularly this year — went to this group, though: the Country Fire Authority.

Firefighters from the Country Fire Authority hold up large flags: one for the CFA and one rainbow pride flag.

Sadly, despite the plethora of dogs at today’s march, I only managed to photograph a few of them. So let me end with a photo of the adorable, friendly, and all-round good boy Charlie :)

A small brown poodle on a rainbow coloured lead.