Three yachts in Akaroa Harbour

Akaroa Harbour is a sheltered and popular sailing spot. There were dozens of yachts like these to be seen from Beach Road. In the centre is Dixie but I can’t make out the names of the other two yachts. On the other side of the harbour is Wainui village and the hills of the Peraki Saddle Reserve. I choose to photograph three boats on purpose as things often look better as an odd number. It was also a little tricky to frame this without getting half of another boat on the edge of the picture.

Interislander ferry in the Marlborough Sounds

Kaiarahi is one of Interislander’s ferry. Seen here sailing into Queen Charlotte Sound. We had to wait about half an hour our ferry for the Kaiarahi to leave Picton Harbour. Taken from another Interislander ferry looking north, back towards the island we had come from. Going between New Zealand’s North Island and South Island there are a couple of options. Flying is the quickest and most convenient. If you want to take a vehicle with you, the ferry is the way to go. There are two companies, Blue Bridge and Interislander. I’ve done the crossing half a dozen times now, it takes around 3 to 4 hours. A lot of this depends on the weather. The Cook Strait can have high winds and waves. We got lucky with the weather on the morning we sailed south. Even seeing some dolphins as we entered the Malborough Sounds.

Circular Quay at night

Circular Quay at night

To me Circular Quay is heart of Sydney. It connects tourists and locals going about their days. As you can see dozens of ferries take people all around the region from Manly to Parramatta. To capture this I’m stood on a pedestrian walkway along side the Cahill Express highway. Below this is the Circular Quay railway station. A few floors below that is the harbour side with five wharfs out into the quay.

International Boat Show, Darling Harbour

International Boat Show, Darling Harbour

During my first week in Sydney I was at a conference in Darling Harbour. The Sydney International Boat Show was the same week. My nearby hotel meant it was easier to get here before dawn for some photographs of the amazing boats. In the evenings there was more movement in the water and many more people around. With hundreds of boats in close formation it is difficult to know which to focus on and which to exclude. Here I focused on the two dark blue boats in the foreground. In the background you can see the ICC Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre on the left. The Sofitel Hotel in the middle and Harbourside Shopping Centre on the right.