Order your 2020 Photography Calendar

Share visual stories of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve with family and friends and support our ongoing restoration work and wildlife research.

The theme of this year’s annual Photographic Workshop was Aspects and Viewpoints: look for a viewpoint that emphasises the story and the aspect frames the subject. Participants learned to tell a story using lighting and depth of field to capture their experience of being in the bush.

Order early for posting overseas. 

 

 

 

Calendar:    $15ea plus $4.00 post & packing.

Purchase calendars:

Use email order form

• Word version to complete online
• PDF version – print, complete and scan

Visit B4C Sustainability Centre

 

 

 

2019 Photo Workshop: Aspect & Viewpoint

 

Sunday 19 May

Learn to use Aspect and Viewpoint to tell your story.

 

Aspect at its basic is landscape vs portrait.

Viewpoint is the creative use of position to frame your photos, for example, emphasise the majesty of a tree by getting low and shooting up, or use a found object to frame your view to draw attention to a particular feature.

We will start by running through some camera basics (controls, modes, settings) before exploring how to use camera settings to isolate close-up subjects and get the most from lighting and angles.

Then we put it into practice exploring Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve to find your story to share with the group.

Registration form

 

Koalas live here, dogs visit

By: Michael Fox

Koala Mt Gravatt Outlook Drive

Koala breeding season is here again: August to February. So it is very important that dogs visiting Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve are kept on a leash at all times. Dog owners regularly tell us that “their dogs wouldn’t attack koalas because they’re well trained and don’t cause problems.” However, the RSPCA rescue volunteer releasing a young male Koala at Gertrude Petty Place yesterday told Sue Jones different story “dogs are more often than not implicated in Koala rescues.”

Koala Family (l-r) father, joey (male), mother

Koala – Firefly Gully

Alan Moore photographed this family group last Saturday in Fox Gully Bushcare behind houses in O’Grady Street.

 

Toni McDonald photographed another Koala last Wednesday in Firefly Gully off Mt Gravatt Road.

We now have a healthy Koala population in the Reserve and people often ask how many Koalas there are. Until now, other than telling them that we have two or three joeys each year I don’t have any detailed numbers to share. The joint Queensland University of Technology-Brisbane City Council research using heat-seeking drones should provide valuable population information.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fungi Forest in Mt Gravatt

By: Michael Fox

Thanks to our Photography Workshop leader Alan Moore we have an extraordinary fungi tour of colour and shape.

Like what you see?

Register for the 2018 Photography Workshop.

Learn make your own photographic story.

Register for the 2018 Photography Workshop.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2018 Photography Workshop – Look Closely

Sunday 27 May

Discover tools to see nature up close to tell your story.

Macro photography is about concentrating on small details. You, the photographer, control subject selection, isolation, lighting, perspective and camera controls to create a spectacular visual narrative.

We will start by running through some camera basics (controls, modes, settings) before exploring how to use camera settings to isolate close-up subjects and get the most from lighting and angles.

Then we put it into practice exploring Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve to find your story to share with the group.

Registration form

 

2017 Southside Queensland Day Awards

(l-r) Michael and Alan

By: Michael Fox

 

Alan Moore and I have been honoured with the Southside Environment Award at the Southside Queensland Day Awards last Saturday. The Awards were hosted by Ian Walker MP and Cr Steven Huang with bursary and catering support from the Southside Sport & Community Club.

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Alan sharing his passion

 

The award is in recognition of our work with Mt Gravatt Environment Group and in particular Alan’s leadership of our annual Photography Workshop. The award came with a cheque for $100 to support our work in restoration of the special habitat of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve.

The Photography Workshops started with the 2011 Environment and Photography Workshop. The event was sponsored by a BCC Environmental Grant. In the morning Field Botanist – Ann Moran introduced participants to the diversity of our local flora. Then after lunch Alan took over to teach participants to capture the elusive feeling of “being in the bush” as a photograph to put on their wall at home.

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.The Photography Workshops have an important educational role in helping participants value the environment more as they see the bush through new eyes and share their experience with others.

A selection of participants’ photographs are used for the popular annual Photo Calendar. The calendar is sold out every year and provides valuable funds for the purchase of equipment like the infrared wildlife camera used to monitor the Squirrel Glider Petaurus norfolcensis families living in the Fox Gully Bushcare nest-boxes.

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See Alan’s work at:

www.freelargephotos.com

Click on The Photographers then scroll down

find Alan Moore and Click

Contact Alan: editoramcj@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

2017 Photographic Workshop

By: Michael Fox

On Assignment

The theme of this year’s annual Photographic Workshop was Line and Form. Participants learned to pre-visualise the most simple things in the bush as art … to capture as an image the feeling of being in the bush.

Alan Moore, Workshop Leader introduced participants to the Elements they could use to help them see the bush with new eyes.

As with past Workshops, Alan’s presentation covered the basics of camera operation and image composition before introducing the Elements of photographic art and how to put it together. The magic of Alan’s approach is summed up in comments like:

• “I am a beginner and interested in learning the “technical stuff” in language I can understand.”
• “Alan is very encouraging and this brings out the best in people.”

The effectiveness of his approach is best demonstrated by the extraordinary photos participants shared when they returned from “On Assignment in the Bush.” Alan’s comments (following) help us understand the concepts of Line and Form.

Photo by Fiona

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Lovely image, well planned, well executed. Ticks so many boxes, has line and 3D form, texture and great use of space.

I did rotate and crop the image a little after a slight contrast and saturation emphasis on the berry.

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Photo by Frank

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A bold statement here of shape with the leaf, form and texture with the fungus and nice colour emphasis of the multicoloured leaf.

I have saturated the leaf and cropped the whole.

Photo by Rob

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Great use of colour emphasis in this image.  Background well blurred and focus firmly on the leaves.

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I did drop the saturation of the background and upped the saturation and contrast on the leaves somewhat and did a minor crop.

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Photo by Madonna

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Here Madonna has captured the texture of the rock well.

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I have cooled the image a little to bring out the whites and greys in the rock and cropped slightly.

Photo by Ange

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Nice and tight capture encapsulating line and shape with texture.

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In processing I’ve desaturated the background and cropped a little to emphasise the subject.

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Photo by

Right on theme, a piece of art in itself.  Kept simple with background totally out of focus and tight focus on the subject, shows pattern with the repeated shape, proportion and rhythm with the small leaves descending in size.

I did rotate slightly and desaturated the background to concentrate on the visual element.

Photo by Tricia

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Lovely use spot on focus to capture this pattern and rhythm.

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I have given the saturation and contrast a small upwards nudge and rotated the frond to the diagonal.

Photo by Fiona

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Very nice artwork, right on topic.  Spiral lines and texture in the fine hairs, you want to reach out and touch them.. Well isolated from the background by great depth of field control.

I rotated and increased saturation and contrast slightly.

Photo by Sue

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This image is almost totally monochromatic green and works well to show the form of the fern fronds, nicely seeing the water droplets.

I cropped a fair bit off to emphasise the central in focus frond and did a slight contrast increase to highlight the water droplets.

Photo by Mee Wun

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This shot has caught line so well and I have presented the image in black and white to complement the simplicity of the capture.

The background is a bit intrusive and I have dodged the dark shapes just a little.

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Thank you and congratulations to all participants. Participants’ photos are used in production of our Photographic Calendar.

Funds raised from our Annual Photography Workshop and Calendar go towards equipment like infrared wildlife cameras that support our research.

See Alan’s work at:

www.freelargephotos.com

Click on The Photographers then scroll down

find Alan Moore and Click

Contact Alan: editoramcj@gmail.com

 

2017 Photography Workshop

See the forest in a new way.

Discover art in the bush.

Sunday 7 May

 

Line and Form

The 2017 Photography Workshop will examine line and form art through photography.  Photographer Alan Moore will discuss the artistic concepts of shape, texture and colour and how to capture nature’s art as photographic images.

Learn to use pre-visualisation to imagine the outcome and plan your shots when you go bush on assignment.  Return from assignment to share, compare and discuss a sample of participants’ photos.

An advanced skill workshop. However, the focus is on learning to plan your photos, so camera basics will be covered and even simple point and shoot cameras are welcome.

Time: 8am to 1pm

Cost: $20 per person ($15 for B4C members)

Limited places book early 

 

 

 

 

Order your 2017 Photography Calendar

Share a unique view of Mt Gravatt Conservation Reserve with family and friends and support our ongoing restoration work and wildlife research.

The 2016 Photography Workshop was called Mount Gravatt lights up, so  workshop leader, Alan Moore, has selected participants photos that show contre-jour techniques. Contre-jour techniques break the rules by shooting into the light. The photos chosen breathe new life into how we see the world around us in a new way.

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Calendar:    $15ea plus $3.00 post & packing.

Seasons Greetings cards:    $5 

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Purchase calendars or cards:

• Use email order form
• Visit B4C Sustainability Centre

Maginon Wildlife Camera

Funds raised in past years have allowed for purchase of research equipment like the infrared wildlife camera used to monitor the Squirrel Glider Petaurus norfolcensis families living the nest boxes at Fox Gully Bushcare.

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Griffith Mates as Citizen Scientists

Citizen Scientists using iPads to check nest box

By: Michael Fox

On Saturday morning our Griffith Mates partners joined us at the National Tree Day planting site for some Citizen Science: doing an initial check on the nest boxes installed in July, to see if any boxes were occupied and meeting some of the local wildlife.

Carl checking BooBook Owl box

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I led the team on an off track adventure to reach the nest boxes. While Carl operated the GoPro camera on the extendable pole the ground crew monitored on iPads using WiFi connection.

Carl became a real professional keeping the tall wobbly pole under control while he lifted the lid on each box and inserted the camera.

Lantana Busters at work

Not surprisingly none of the boxes had been occupied in the short time since installation. However, it is valuable to get a information on how long it takes before boxes are adopted.

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Then is was back through the bush to the Lantana Busting site.

Scolopendrid centipede – tail to left

1,600 square metres of Creeping Lantana Lantana montevidensis were cleared and raked into swales on National Tree Day. Now we are doing the detail work of clearing the remaining roots to eradicate this invasive garden escapee.

There is an amazing about of wildlife among the leaf litter as well as in the trees. We disturbed a Scolopendrid centipede which I think Baoyi wanted to keep as a pet. Be careful handling centipedes as they may bite if disturbed or handled. The bite may cause severe pain and associated swelling.

Home made cakes a reward for hard work. (l-r) Sophie, Jocelyn, Harry, Baoyi, Carl, Amanda and Dana in front

Centipedes are predatory and will kill and consume a variety of other invertebrates such as spiders, molluscs, many insects, slaters and other centipedes. Prey is usually immobilised by venom injected through the fangs and then torn into pieces by the mandibles and the soft parts are eaten.

All that hard work deserves a reward. Thanks to Mt Gravatt Environment Group member Dana for the home made cakes.