Random tangent (blog)
Ameel Khan's personal blog. This is a blog about life, technology, photography, typography, the internet, science, feminism, books, film, music, and whatever other random stuff I come across or happen to be interested in today.
Some more photos from the various suburbs near where I live.
Photo of a narrow strip of grass outside a residential fence that’s had its edges very carefully trimmed.
Close-up photo of a triangular give-way sign that’s mounted on a pole along a residential street.
Photo of three, brightly coloured, plastic children’s toys lying on a residential nature strip.
Thanks to a bout of post-viral fatigue, I didn’t take a single photo with my mirrorless camera in all of April.
It’s only now that we’re approaching the middle of May that I’ve had the energy to go (a) out anywhere and (b) take my camera with me – even if it’s just when I’m going for a walk, to the shops, or to a cafe in a nearby suburb.
So here are some more of my photos from around the northern suburbs of Melbourne.
Photo of a ceramic sculpture placed on a tall tree stump in the front garden of a weatherboard house. The sculpture is of a bald, large-headed baby – the child Buddha – hugging the back of a small elephant. The elephant’s trunk is reaching back to touch the crown of the Buddha’s head. The tree stump has a string of lights wound around it.
Photo of a male AFL footballer standing in front of the goal posts at a local ground. The player is standing alongside a player from the opposing team and in front of an official. The player is pulling at his shirt so that he can brush some dirt off it.
Photo of a AFL game being played on a local football ground, as seen through some trees are there to provide shade to spectators.
Photo of the back of a small, black, AKAI CRT television lying in the nature strip outside a house in a residential area, awaiting hard rubbish collection.
Photo of a small, black, AKAI CRT television lying in the nature strip outside in a residential area, awaiting hard rubbish collection.
Photo of the front of a house with a jet airliner in the sky far behind it. Their airplane has its wheels down in preparation for landing at Melbourne Airport.
Photo of a small roundabout in a residential area. A tree and a few low bushes are growing out of the centre of the roundabout. Cut off by the right edge of the photo frame is a car that is waiting behind the line to enter the roundabout.
Photo of a rusted, half-broken satellite dish mounted to the roof of a house.
My first photo walk of the 2025 was a quick one on a bright, sunny day during summer break at the University of Melbourne.
Wide angle photo looking up at the first four stories of a 1970s Brutalist-style university campus building with a light-brown brick facade. A sign above the entrance reads, “John Medley Building East Tower”. The photographer is standing under the third-storey walkway that connects to the west tower. Outside the building, on both sides of the entrance, there are several bicycle hoops, one of which has a bicycle locked to it.
Wide angle photo looking up at the first four stories of a 1970s Brutalist-style university campus building with a light-brown brick facade. A sign above the entrance reads, “John Medley Building West Tower”. The photographer is standing under the third-storey walkway that connects to the east tower. Outside the building, on both sides of the entrance, there are several bicycle hoops, and there are four bicycles locked to these hoops.
Photo of a long, wide lawn between two walkways on a university campus. There are several tall, old trees growing in a line along one side of this lawn. Some wrought iron outdoor tables and chairs have been placed the shade of some of these trees.
Photo of a single, yellow coloured, wrought iron outdoor chair lying in the shade of a line of trees alongside a lawn in a university campus. To the left of the photo is a wide walkway leading to a campus building.
Photo of one part of a 1920s Tudor-Gothic style building with a light-brown freestone facade, as seen through a gap in the branches of a tree.
Photo of a small, brick courtyard surrounded by trees on three sides and, on the fourth side, a 1920s Tudor-Gothic style building with a light-brown freestone facade. In the courtyard are five wrought iron chairs arranged around a wrought iron table.
Photo looking through a long row of bicycle hoops installed in a brick walkway next to a garden.
Photo looking up at the windows of a five-storey, modernist, 1950s design, university building with floor-to-ceiling windows along the outside.
Photo of a man facing the mirror-wall of a 1970s, all-wood-panel elevator. The man is wearing olive green shorts, a black printed t-shirt, and a black cap. His t-shirt reads, in stylised bright yellow-and-orange text, “The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy” and, in all-capital letters, “don’t panic”. He is wearing glasses and has a short-cropped, salt-and-pepper beard. The man is holding a camera at stomach height and is taking a photograph of himself, as reflected in the lift's mirror.
It was a hot day in Melbourne today. But if you’re smart about it, you can stay mostly in the shade when you walk from my office to Flinders Street Station along the Yarra River :)
Photo looking down to the banks of an urban river where a black swan is floating, its red beak inside the water as it investigates something below the surface.
Photo looking down to the banks of an urban river where a black swan is floating. The swan has noticed the photographer and is looking straight down the barrel of the camera lens.
Photo of an urban river framed by the underside of bridge that the photographer is standing under. The photo shows three adults and one child in a small, flat-bottomed, motorboat with a table affixed to the middle and bench seating around the sides. This is a rental boat, with the brand name GoBoat painted on its side. An employee of the rental company is standing on the pier from which this boat has just been launched. With one hand raised, the employee is explaining something to the renters inside the boat.
This third set of Brisbane photos is from our department’s Christmas party, which was held at a bar that’s underneath the Story Bridge.
We didn’t get “Sunny Queensland” while we were up in Brisbane. Instead, in rained almost the entire time we were there. Oh, and the temperature was 30 degrees C in the afternoon. *sigh*
Photo of a couple of restaurants built on a pier along an urban river. The restaurants are open to the outdoors and appear to be half full. Outside it is raining.
Photo looking up at the underside of a large cantilever bridge. There are streams of rainwater pouring down from drainage pipes set at intervals along the span of the bridge.
Photo looking up at the underside of a large cantilever bridge. There are streams of rainwater pouring down from drainage pipes set at intervals along the span of the bridge.
Photo looking up at the underside of a large cantilever bridge that spans an urban river. Visible against the dark underside of the bridge is the heavy rain that is falling.
Photo looking up at the underside of a large cantilever bridge. A stream of rainwater is pouring out of a drainage pipe set into one side of the bridge.
Photo of two ferries traveling up and down an urban river on a rainy day.
Photo looking up at the underside of a large cantilever bridge that spans an urban river. Visible against the dark underside of the bridge is the heavy rain that is falling.
Photo of two ferries traveling up and down an urban river on a rainy day.
Photo of a party boat lit up with bright lights traveling down an urban river on a rainy day.
This second set of Brisbane photos is from when I walked along the banks of the Brisbane River.
Photo of two trawler boats moored next to each other at a pier on an urban river. The boats have been converted into seafood restaurants.
Photo of a tall, white, single-mast, cable bridge for pedestrians and cyclists that spans an urban river.
Wide-angle photo showing two bridges that span an urban river. The white, single-mast, cable bridge closer to the photographer is a pedestrian and cyclist bridge that will open a week after this photo was taken. A massive, grey, cantilever bridge can be seen in the background, below the deck of the nearer bridge.
Photo of a several jetskis on floating plastic parking pads that are attached to a pier on an urban river. An instructor standing on the pier is talking to his three students who are sitting on two of the jetskis.
Photo of a worker in safety gear (white hard hat and bright orange high-visibility clothing) standing on a scissor lift on top of a white bridge that spans an urban river.
Photo of an outdoor flight of stairs leading up to a cafe. Painted on the riser between the third and fourth step is a painted, bright red sign with white, all-capitals text that reads, “Be amazing today! But first, coffee!”. And painted on the riser below the 12th and 13th step is a painted black sign with white text that reads, “Good ideas start with great coffee!”
Close-up photo of an outdoor flight of stairs. Painted on the riser between the third and fourth step is a painted, bright red sign with white, all-capitals text that reads, “Be amazing today! But first, coffee!”.
Photo of two construction crew members in white hard hats and bright orange high-visibility gear on a small motorboat making their way around a large transport boat from which items are being lifted via a tall, overhead crane.
Photo looking down from a tall building at an urban river on an overcast night. Across the street is the large Queensland Performing Arts Centre building complex, the outside of which is bathed in red and green lights. Two bridges cross the river, one of which has its underside bathed in green and blue lights. There are a few boats making their way along the river.
Photo looking down from a tall building at an urban river on a rainy, overcast early morning. Across the street is the large Queensland Performing Arts Centre building complex. Two bridges span the river and there are some boats parked along the riverbank. An elevated motorway runs along the near side of the river with light traffic on it.
At work this year’s annual department offsite and Christmas party was held in Brisbane. I flew up early on the day so I could walk around and take some photos.
This first set is from the Brisbane central business district (CBD) where our office is.
Photo of an overhead directional road sign in a city centre with several tall buildings and moderate traffic. The sign shows lane markings and directional arrows for Toowong (via Coronation Drive), Gold Coast (via Riverside Expressway), and Roma Street.
Photo of a six-storey, neo-classical, commercial building completed in 1930. The facade is constructed from brown coloured stone. The front has four giant Ionic columns above which is written, in all capital letters, ‘Bank of New South Wales’.
Photo looking downwards at a blue-and-yellow bus exiting a bus-only tunnel that runs below the Brisbane central business district. A digital sign on the front of the bus reads, “Carindale Express via Cannon Hill” and the 215 bus number.
Photo showing multiple layers of roads and pedestrian walkways running along an urban river, including a motorway, elevated expressway, bikeway, and walkway.
Photo looking over a wooden bench facing a large public garden with several massive trees around it. The bench itself has been set under the shade of several large trees.
Close-up photo of a plant irrigation sprinkler mounted on a pole that has several small cobwebs all around it.
Close-up photo showing two bush stone-curlew birds sitting on some brown mulch in a public garden.
Photo of a long, wooden walkway with long wooden benches running along its entire length. On either side of the walkway are very tall weeping fig trees.
Selfie of a man standing a long, wooden walkway with long wooden benches running along its entire length. On either side of the walkway are very tall weeping fig trees. The man is bald and has a short, mostly-white beard. He is wearing glasses, a black t-shirt, and a backpack.
Selfie of a man looking down at his phone. Above him is the canopy of several tall weeping fig trees. The man is bald and has a short, mostly-white beard. He is wearing glasses, a black Pac-Man t-shirt, and a backpack.
Photo of a skyscraper with gold-tinted, floor-to-ceiling windows along the outside.
Photo of three three vehicle on and off ramps in an urban city center. One of the elevated ramps curves so that it emerges from and disappears into the right side of the photo.
Photo of several motorcyles parked underneath an on-ramp in a city centre.
Photo of a man wearing business casual clothes waiting in line at a cafe in a shopping centre. The photo is through a large cut-out of a higher floor.
Photo of a large, golden Christmas bauble hung from the ceiling in the foyer of an office building. The photographer is standing on the street outside the building and you can see his dull reflection in the bauble.
I took these photos on a quick walk along Flinders Lane and Flinders Street.
Photo of a glass-fronted store that’s named Sneaker Laundry. A neon sign on the window reads, in all capital letters, “clean your damn shoes”. A bright yellow sandwich board on the pavement outside the store reads, also in all capital letters, “slow down” and “clean your sneakers here”. A shop attendant on a laptop is visible through the storefront windows.
Photo of flat-bottom cargo skiff (a type of boat) named ‘Jiff’ being piloted along an urban river by a man with a neat beard and ponytail who is wearing a white t-shirt and sunglasses.
Photo of a pedestrian bridge across an urban river. A walkway with a metal railing runs along the river and underneath this bridge. Directly underneath the bridge you can see the silhouette of a man leaning on the railing as he holds a phone up to his ear.
Photo of a white sticker affixed to the top a dark green stairway banister. The reads, in large, all-caps text, “BSDM”. Below this is regular-sized text that reads, “Boycott, Divest & Sanction, mate” and the hashtag “free Palestine”.
Since May this year, pretty much all the photos I’ve taken have been with the TTArtisan AF 27mm F2.8 (40mm full-frame equivalent) lens. And while this isn’t the a super high-quality lens, I’ve really enjoyed using it.
So when the TTArtisan AF 56mm F1.8 (85mm full-frame equivalent) lens went on sale a couple of weeks ago, I went ahead and bought it :)
Photo of a black camera lens. (Source)
Here are some of the photos I took during the only photo walk I’ve managed to take since buying this lens.
A bunch of these are repeats from earlier photo walks, but that’s fine because the main point of this walk was to practice using the new lens and composing all my shots at a fixed, 85mm focal length.
Black-and-white photo of a multi-storey office building with a sharp corner at one end. On the very top floor there is a small drinks table/trolley placed in the very corner of the building.
A photo showing the gap between two tall-ish buildings. Behind the building on the left are four other building, each one getting successively taller.
Photo of a section of a colourful office building that’s jutting out from the main building. This multi-storey section, which itself is two storeys above ground level, has floor-to-ceiling windows on all three sides. Through the windows you can make out office tables and chairs arranged inside the rooms.
Photo looking up at a large bronze sculpture of a black-and-white square-ish cow with a tiny head that is stuck, upside-down, on top of a bare tree.
Photo of a large, convex, traffic safety mirror installed on a pole next to a construction site along a wide esplanade. The photographer has captured his own distorted reflection in this mirror.
Close-up photo of a large, convex, traffic safety mirror installed on a pole next to a construction site along a wide esplanade. The photographer has captured his own distorted reflection in this mirror.
Photo looking up at the top of a tall, light-brown and slate-grey building. A small balcony is jutting out from the top floor. The building is otherwise completely flat on this side.
40mm is my favourite focal length, so switching suddenly to 85mm was quite the challenge!
This difference in focal lengths is large enough that you can’t just “take a few steps backwards” to successfully capture the 40mm-friendly composition that initially popped into your head.
A fact that my creative brain completely forgot when I saw a woman walking two adorable dogs on my photo walk and, without thinking, I asked if I could take their photo. The woman said “yes” the instant the rational part of my brain remembered that I was too close to get an even halfway-decent shot with the lens I had on. *sigh*
I took the photo anyway, of course, but I barely even managed to get one of the two dogs in frame :) Oh well. At least that’s not a lesson I’ll forget anytime soon!
Photo of two small dogs on a split-leash, with one dog out of focus and the dog that is in focus facing the dog walker so you can only see the back of its head.
It’ll take a few more photo walks before I get the hang of this focal length. Especially when it comes to taking photos of people and animals.
The 85mm focal length is particularly good for shooting portraits because you can (a) isolate your subject in the frame and (b) get a nice blurry background behind them if you use an open enough aperture. This lens is capable of taking great portrait shots, it’s just me that needs the practice :)
So here’s to more photo walks and many more opportunities to use this focal length in the coming weeks and months.
It’s been almost ten months since I last walked down Collins Street to take some photos!
Photo looking up along a tall office tower with reflective, blue-tinted windows that are reflecting a clear, light blue sky. The photo is taken from under some trees, so the green canopy of these trees frame this scene.
Photo taken through the stainless steel bars of a 14 metre tall piece of artwork at the front of an office building. The photo shows a woman in a long dress sitting in a public bench while looking at the phone in her hands.
Photo taken through the spokes of a rear motorcycle tyre that has a sporty, bright orange rim. Through these spokes you can see another rear motorcycle tyre behind this one, through which you can see yet another tyre behind that.
Photo of several shiny sports bikes parked at an angle along a street that runs through the central business district of a metropolitan Australian city.
Photo taken from a low angle of several shiny motorbikes parked at an angle along a street that runs through the central business district of a metropolitan Australian city. There are cars driving down one side the street and two trams running down tracks in the centre of the street.
Photo of a footpath flower shop with several bouquets of flowers arranged along the front of the shop.
I think I’m finally back in the rhythm of walking through the city on Friday afternoons after work to take photos.
Photo of several blue push bikes parked outside a yellow, single-storey building with a sign that reads, “blue tongue bikes”.
Photo of a large, blue neon sign in the shape of two stylised fish. The sign is mounted on two tall, white poles next to a large building.
Photo taken through a railing of four people in a small motorboat approaching a dock alongside an urban river. In the background a low, flat, tour boat passes under a bridge that spans an urban river.
Photo taken through a railing of a figure wearing shorts, a hoodie, and thick puffer jacket sitting along in a motorboat that is crossing under a bridge that spans an urban river.
Photo of a tall office and residential tower seen through the steel girders of a pedestrian bridge.
Photo of two windows set into a covered outdoor bar area. Visible through one window are several beer taps, while through the other window you can see wine bottles and other bar paraphernalia. In the background, looking through the windows, you can see a few tradies in orange and yellow high-visibility clothing sitting on outdoor furniture arrange around this bar.
Photo of two windows set into a covered outdoor bar area. Visible through one window are several beer taps, while through the other window you can see spirit bottles and several rows of drink glasses. In the background, looking through the windows, you can see several patrons sitting on outdoor furniture arrange around this bar.
Photo of a river running through the middle of a metropolitan city. In the background are several tall buildings and a pedestrian bridge that spans the river. On the river are a few boats moored along the banks, while one tour boat is making a U-turn in the middle of the river.
Photo four sweep rowers (in which each person holds only one oar with both hands) and their coxswain (who steers the boat) training on an urban river. They team has just passed under a stone bridge that spans the river. Their trainer is travelling behind them in a rowboat and is giving them instructions via megaphone.
Photo of two sets of sweep rowers (in which each person holds only one oar with both hands) and their coxswain (who steers the boat) training on an urban river. Their training is following behind them in a small motorboat. In the background, and on the opposite side of the river from the photographer, are several large buildings. A few boats, include two tour boats, are moored alongside the far bank of the river.
I had some time before an all-day work offsite along South Wharf, so I took some photos around Seafarers Bridge.
It was a clear, bright, winter morning and the sky was so blue that some of the photos almost look fake!
Photo of several tall buildings with an urban river in the foreground. There is also a Ferris wheel on the other side of the river.
Photo of a historic, iron-hulled, three-masted ship (called a barque) permanently berthed on an urban river.
Photo looking up at the white-painted steel arches and support cables that are holding up a bridge. The arches are streaked with dirt from the rain and wind. The photo almost looks fake because of the bright blue sky in the background.
Photo looking up at the white-painted steel arches and support cables that are holding up a bridge. The arches are streaked with dirt from the rain and wind. The photo almost looks fake because of the bright blue sky in the background.
Photo of a large, convex, traffic safety mirror installed on a pole in a blind curve along a cycling and walking path next to an urban river. The photographer has captured his own distorted reflection in this mirror.
Close-up photo of a large, convex, traffic safety mirror installed on a pole in a blind curve along a cycling and walking path next to an urban river. The photographer has captured his own distorted reflection in this mirror.
Photo taken on a bright, sunny morning of a concrete, steel, and glass pedestrian and cycling bridge spanning an urban river. This suspension bridge is held up by asymmetrical arches supported by steel cables - all of which are painted white. The bridge deck is made of steel and concrete, and has clear glass balustrades running along its length. A few people are crossing the bridge. There are several tall buildings on the other side of the river from the photographer.
This is the third of three photo sets from my walk between South Melbourne and Docklands.
Photo of a man in blue leather boots, light khaki pants, navy blue jacket, and black helmet riding a stand-up electric scooter. The scooter has a carrier in which there is a small dog that is also wearing a navy blue jacket. The man is about to ride the scooter up the incline of a pedestrian and cycle bridge that crosses and urban river.
Photo of the corner of a building with floor-to-ceiling windows. This floor of the building is a restaurant with several tables and chairs, all of which are currently unoccupied.
Close-up photo of a Bandalong litter trap installed on the banks of an urban river. This trap has collected a large amount of litter floating down this river. A sign affixed to this trap reads, “A little litter goes a long way. Keep the Yarra River clean. Bin your litter.”
Photo of two people, a man and a woman, standing on the cemented banks of an urban river. The man is a camera operator and is manipulating a DSLR camera attached to a sturdy tripod. The woman, who is about to be filmed, is looking down as she composes herself for the recording take. The two are standing near the intersection of two cycle paths. In the foreground of the photo is a series of small directional signs mounted on a pole. These point to the three directions that cyclists can go in.
Photo of several people and cyclists crossing a bridge that spans an urban river. The bridge looks like a grey metal pipe that has been cut in half lengthwise.
Close-up photo of a Bandalong litter trap installed on the banks of an urban river. This trap has collected a large amount of litter floating down this river. A sign affixed to this trap reads, “Cleaning our rivers”
Photo taken along the length of a pedestrian and cycle bridge that spans an urban river. The bridge has several rings going around it at regularly spaced intervals.
Photograph of three people fishing along the banks of an urban river. On the other side of the river there are several large and small boats tied to their berths.
Photo of people walking along a curved bridge that spans a river in the middle of a metropolitan city. This bridge, the Webb Bridge, is modelled after a Koorie fishing trap used to catch eels. It is curved on one end, and this curved portion is covered (like a tube) by an organic, irregular net design made out of metal beams.
Photo of a cyclist heading down a curved bridge that spans a river in the middle of a metropolitan city. This bridge, the Webb Bridge, is modelled after a Koorie fishing trap used to catch eels. It is curved on one end, and this curved portion is covered (like a tube) by an organic, irregular net design made out of metal beams.
This is the second of three photo sets from my walk between South Melbourne and Docklands.
Black-and-white photo of two tall, residential buildings as seen through a gap in the bare concrete underneath of a series of elevated roadways and off-ramps.
Photo taken from between two elevated roadways of a large, overhead LED sign that shows icons of cars queueing. There is text on the sign that is cut-off by one of the elevated roadways, however you can make out the words ‘queueing’ and ‘power’.
Photo taken from between two elevated roadways of a large, overhead LED sign that reads, in all capital letters, “Caution: Queueing traffic at Power St exit”.
Photo of a bright white graffiti spray painted onto perforated, black coloured metal sheets that line the underside of a road. The graffiti is a of a classic smiley face.
Zoomed-in photo of the very top of a 31 storey building with the green Linkt logo affixed to one side.
Black and white photo taken from ground level of several elevated roadways. A large concrete archway structure has been constructed around one of these elevated roadways. This otherwise-rectangular structure (called a portal) has been built with a slight rotation, so it looks like it is twisting clockwise.
Photo taken along the back of several Mazda cars parked in a line at an outdoor car sales lot.
I repeated my earlier ‘South Melbourne and Docklands’ photo walk a week later because my car needed some additional repair. This time, however, I took my long lens with me and got a bunch of interesting photos along the way.
These are the photos I took of the Bolte Bridge, and there are two more photo sets to come.
Photo taken along the length of an urban river that shows two bridges crossing this river. In the foreground is the Webb Bridge, a curved cyclist and pedestrian bridge. In the background is the Bolte Bridge, a large road bridge. The Bolte (as it is known) is a large, twin cantilever road bridge with two 140m tall towers that hold up the roadway that spans the width of the Yarra River and Victoria Harbour.
Photo taken along the length of an urban river of a large road bridge and the shipping dock in the background. There is bumper-to-bumper road traffic on the bridge and behind the bridge a large container ship is docked at one of the berths. The bridge is a large, twin cantilever road bridge with two 140m tall towers that hold up the roadway that spans the width of the Yarra River and Victoria Harbour.
Photo taken just before sunset along the length of an urban river that opens up into a sea port. There are tall buildings on both banks of the river and crossing the river is a large road bridge with two tall towers at the centre. There are several shipping berths along the length of the river.
Photo taken at sunset along the length of an urban river that opens up into a sea port. There are tall buildings on both banks of the river and crossing the river is a large road bridge with two tall towers at the centre. There are several shipping berths along the length of the river.
Photo taken at sunset along the length of an urban river that opens up into a sea port. Crossing this river is a large road bridge with two tall towers at the centre.
I haven’t focused much on black-and-white photography.
The only times I think in black-and-white (especially when taking photos) are when:
I want to capture a texture that lends itself to a monochromatic look,
I find myself in a scene in which the colours are a distraction, or
I’m at a location where there’s strong light-and-dark contrast.
Three of my recent photos fit the bill, so I converted them to black-and-white to see how they would look.
Black-and-white photo taken from underneath an elevated roadway out of which two wide draining pipes are emerging.
Black-and-white photo of two tall, residential buildings as seen through a gap in the bare concrete underneath of a series of elevated roadways and off-ramps.
Black-and-white photo of the back of a large overhead road sign affixed to an elevated motorway. The sign is seen through a gap in the bare concrete underneath of a series of elevated roadways and off-ramps.
I think they turned out pretty well :)
Here’s a side-by-side comparison. I actually think I prefer the black-and-white versions of all three! Though maybe the middle one (the buildings through the gap in the concrete) works both ways.
I get my car serviced at a dealership in South Melbourne that’s a short walk across the Yarra River from where my office is in Docklands.
Naturally, I take a bunch of photos every time I take this walk – usually super early in the morning and then just returning before sunset (in winter).
Here are the most recent photos I took.
Photo of a woman stepping out from around the corner of a building with floor-to-ceiling windows. The second storey of the building is bathed in warm sunlight from the rising sun, while the lower section is in cool blue shadow. The woman is wearing a long, grey overcoat and is carrying a disposable coffee cup in her hand.
Photo of an intersection with a line of cars going through and several cars waiting. In the foreground of the photo is a green-and-yellow tram running on a set of tracks parallel to one of the roads. The photo is slightly washed out because of the bright glare of the early morning sun coming off a reflective office building.
Photo of a green-and-yellow tram driving through an area with several trees and bushes that is otherwise surrounded by tall office buildings. The tram driver is waving his hand at the photographer.
Photo of a Bandalong litter trap installed to one side of an urban river. This trap has collected a large amount of litter floating down this river. A sign affixed to this trap reads “It it’s on the street, it ends up in the river. Keep the Yarra River clean. Bin your litter.” In the middleground of the photo a wide footbridge (the Webb Bridge) spans this river (the Yarra River). In the background of the photo, on the other side of the river, are several tall residential buildings.
Photo of outdoor cafe tables and chairs arranged next to a grid of very tall trees that are set into raised beds in an otherwise paved area. The tables are unoccupied and the whole place is lit with warm sunlight coming from the setting sun.
Photo taken from underneath an elevated roadway out of which two wide draining pipes are emerging.
Photo taken from ground level of a large concrete archway structure constructed around an elevated roadway. This otherwise-rectangular archway structure has been built with a slight rotation, so it looks like it is twisting anticlockwise. Behind the portal is the tall, thin building of the Novotel Melbourne South Wharf hotel. There is traffic stopped at a red light below the elevated roadway.
Photo of an intersection above which there are two elevated roadways of different heights. A sight at ground level reads, “West Gate Br / Geelong”. A bright yellow DHL delivery truck is crossing the intersection at ground level while a refrigerated truck drives along the middle roadway.
Photo of two tall, residential buildings as seen through a gap in the bare concrete underneath of a series of elevated roadways and off-ramps.
Photo of the back of a large overhead road sign affixed to an elevated motorway. The sign is seen through a gap in the bare concrete underneath of a series of elevated roadways and off-ramps.
This year I had only my 27mm TTArtisan prime lens with me (42mm full-frame equivalent) and the photos turned out really well. Though, to be fair, the gorgeous golden-hour light – both ways! – had a lot to do with that.
Last year I took photos with my 18-55mm Fujifilm zoom lens and it was a dreary, overcast day. Those photos look little different :)
First I was unwell and then I was super busy at work, so it’s been over three months since my last photo walk. It’s good to be back.
Today’s walk was a quick one down Lygon Street in Carlton. It was lovely, sunny Saturday afternoon and it’s nice to be heading towards the end of winter in Melbourne.
All these photos were taken with my (relatively) new TTArtisan 27mm pancake lens (42mm full-frame equivalent).
Black-and-white photo taken from behind and to the side of a large, high-ceiling, covered outdoor stage in a large public park.
Photo of two tall buildings framed by bushes and trees in the foreground. The two luxury towers are connected by a large, multi-storey skybridge. https://sapphirebythegardens.com.au/
Photo of two tall buildings framed by bushes and trees in the foreground. The two luxury towers are connected by a large, multi-storey sky bridge. https://sapphirebythegardens.com.au/
Photo of two brightly-coloured beaded friendship bracelets (or maybe necklaces?) hanging behind the rearview mirror of a parked car.
Black-and-white photo taken from ground level looking up at several metal bicycle-parking loops installed on a sidewalk. One bicycle has been locked to the loop farthest from the photographer.
Photo of the covered outdoor seating areas of several restaurants along a road. All the tables in the photo are currently unoccupied.
Photo of a sandwich board on a sidewalk with text written in blue and pink chalk on a black background. The list on items on the chalkboard reads lamb shanks, tomahawk steaks, Atlantic salmon, arancini balls, barramundi, and gluten free pasta + pizza.
Photo of a closed glass door set in a bluestone alcove. The glass is very reflective on this sunny day. In the reflection you can see a commercial street with cars parked on it. The main subject of the reflection is a man wearing white sneakers, black jeans, a bright orange jacket, and a dark driver's cap. The man is holding up a camera at chin height and is taking a photo of his own reflection in the glass door.
Photo of the entrance of The Acai Company. Text in a speech bubble below the company logo reads “pronounced ah-sigh-eeh, not ay-chay!!!”.
Photo of a large, currently-empty, wood fired pizza over through the window of a pizzeria.
I left work a little after lunchtime and took a quick walk around Southern Cross railway station to take a few photos.
I’m starting to get the hang of my new, budget TTArtisan 27mm pancake lens (42mm full-frame equivalent) and I’m enjoying seeing its colour rendering in various lighting scenarios. Some of its colours are halfway to Classic Chrome, for example.
I’m also enjoying taking photos with a prime lens instead of my usual Fujifilm 18-55mm zoom lens.
Photo looking down the street in the central business district of a metropolitan city on a clear afternoon. There are tall buildings on both sides of the street and two pairs of tram tracks runs down the middle. There are no trams on these tracks right now and so a man is jaywalking across them.
Photo of a man wearing jeans and a hoodie leaning against a wide pole next to the curb of a city street on a sunny afternoon. Behind the man is his luggage, which is a large carpet bag / roller suitcase hybrid, with its handle extended.
Photo of one of the main entrances to a large, urban train station. There are three escalators and a very wide set of stairs taking travellers to the upper levels. The sides of each step is painted with a slice of the main Furiosa movie poster, so that when you look at it head-on, you can see the whole poster. Hanging down from the station’s high ceiling are several, extremely long Furiosa banners, each featuring either the main protagonist or the main antagonist.
Photo looking up from the ground of a very tall, blue-glass covered building. The building has rounded edges and two large curves along its length, making it look somewhat like a fancy water bottle.
Photo of an extremely wide staircase at the entrance of an urban train station. The staircase has several banisters running along the steps so people can ascend or descend safely. On the left side of the photo is a large way finding sign with headings for Metropolitan Trains, Regional Trains, and Coach Terminal.
Photo of an extremely wide staircase at the entrance of an urban train station. The staircase has several banisters running along the steps so people can ascend or descend safely. A woman wearing black pants and a dark mango coloured jacket is walking up the stairs.
Photo of four train tracks and three train platforms in an urban, outdoor train station. The photo has been taken through a clear plexiglass safety barrier that used to have an opaque covering, parts of which have since been peeled off. The photo is desaturated and moody.
Photo of four train tracks and three train platforms in an urban, outdoor train station. The photo has been taken through a clear plexiglass safety barrier that used to have an opaque covering, parts of which have since been peeled off. The photo is high-contrast, with the bright, beige, half-removed covering in the foreground standing out sharply against the tracks and platform, which are darker shaded.
Photo of a tall plexiglass safety barrier that has been erected along the side of a bridge that spans a dozen train tracks. Some panels of plexiglass have advertising on them. The one in focus has a plain, beige covering that provides shade from sun. About a third of this opaque covering has been scratched off so people are able to look through the plexiglass at the trains running underneath.
Photo taken from a bridge, looking down at the front of a modern, blue, silver, and yellow train running along its track. A digital sign above front windscreen reads ‘Cranbourne’.
Photo taken from a bridge, looking down at the front of a blue, silver, and yellow train running along its track. The photo has been taken through the holes of a perforated metal sound-and-safety barrier erected along the side of the bridge that the photographer is standing on.
Photo taken from a bridge, looking down at the front of a blue, silver, and yellow train running along its track. The lead carriage is numbered 107M. The photo has been taken through the holes of a perforated metal sound-and-safety barrier erected along the side of the bridge that the photographer is standing on.
I bought a new camera lens!
It’s a TTArtisan AF 27mm F2.8 – which means it has autofocus, a 27mm focal length (40mm full-frame equivalent), and its lowest f-stop is 2.8. ‘TTArtisan’ stands for ‘The Thinking Artisan’, by the way.
I bought this lens for three reasons:
Size: I wanted a pancake lens that would make it easier for me to carry my mirrorless camera around everywhere.
Focal length: I wanted a 40mm full-frame equivalent prime lens because 27mm and 40mm are the two focal lengths I am most comfortable shooting at (which are 18mm and 27mm on my mirrorless, APS-C camera, by the way). I even did a whole ‘one focal length at a time’ exercise last year to figure this out.
Availability: The Fujifilm XF27mm F2.8 R WR lens that I actually wanted has been out of stock since the end of last year.
This TTArtisan lens is one-third the price of its Fujifilm counterpart, so it’s not as good. But I didn’t want to wait any longer and I was willing to deal with whatever shortcomings it had.
The plan with my most recent photo walk, then, was to try out the new lens to see how it performs. And you know what? It does pretty well.
Yes, it has issues dealing with strong light sources: bright lights get overly glow-ey and, if you face the sun, your whole photo gets washed out. But these are things you can work around.
And yes, it has vignetting that gets worse the wider-open you shoot it. But (a) I rarely shoot wide open and (b) that vignetting is ridiculously easy to fix in post.
Finally yes, it has some interesting colour and contrast characteristics: its colours a little muted and its contrast is slightly soft. But that is what you would call the character of the lens.
I didn’t have time to do a long photo walk yesterday, so these are the only decent photos I managed to take. I think they came out quite well :)
My initial thoughts about this lens are that I quite like it. It’s less pancake-sized and more scone-sized, but it’s still much smaller than all my other lenses.
The photos I took with it weren’t brilliant right out of the box, but it took only a little tweaking to get them to where I wanted. And frankly that’s to be expected with a lens that costs a little as this one did!
So I’m very happy I bought this and I’m looking forward to talking lots more photos with it.
This is personal website of Nadia Niaz and Ameel Zia Khan. Here we document our lives in Melbourne, Australia.
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
