Smile time

After the appalling barbarity of this week I thought that a couple of amusing photos would not go amiss.
Firstly a couple of lorikeets at a table at the Surf Cafe at Terrigal early this morning.They have learnt that sugar comes on the black packets left on the tables and they certainly like some sugar.Diabetics in the making.As you can see they take the packet out of the holder with their beaks then put it on the table and then hold the packet with one claw and tear it open with their beaks.This is a big crop from a Leica X1 photo as I could not risk frightening them off if I got any closer.Whilst it is an amusing scene they are actually a real nuisance at local cafes as they are really brazen and not easily deterred.

Secondly garden gnomes for the risque garden.His and her flasher gnomes.Certainly not your common or garden garden gnomes.Seen on a roadside stall in the Czech Republic.Canon G7 photo.

A Vincent and a Velocette

Pie in the Sky (PITS) Roadhouse-Cowan-Old Pacific Highway,NSW.Wednesday 7th January.You can always count on seeing some interesting machinery at PITS almost anyday of the week and this day did not disappoint.Leica X1 photos.

"Winter in America is cold..."

Sitting at the computer on a very hot and humid day it's difficult to envisage bitter cold but having travelled to Chicago,Montreal and Milwaukee in the depths of winter over the years I have great sympathy for people who have to live there and put up with the winters.One such person is Aussie Scott Ferrier who is a Rolling Road reader and a designer in Ford's Product Design Centre in Dearborn.Michigan and he likes his Porsches.I just recently received an email from him as follows-

"Porsche driving is a bit different over here now ,as most of the cars are now hibernating due to the lower temperatures and salt on the roads.

Because my car is not a garage queen and has led a hard life – I am still using it until the real snow comes !  I had to rotate my company car last week and now have the new Mustang to keep the 944 company in the garage.

It’s amazing how much smaller the 944 is than the Mustang as you can see in the image.Sorry about the nose on my 944, it had a bad case of track rash which I hated so I filled all the stone chips but ran out of time before the temperature fell below the level for painting in the garage.

I resisted the temptation to get the full on 5.0 Mustang and instead went with my head and ordered the 4 cylinder turbo which is very similar to the 944 turbo I am told by someone who has driven both vehicles, I swapped my turbo for the 5.0 yesterday and was surprised at the difference – the 5.0 is an all American muscle car whereas the 4 cylinder is much more European in feel.

Next year I will be more active in the Porsche community and will post some more images of some of the members collections……. Some of which have 15 Porsches in their various garages.

I will take my trusty Olympus SLR to Cars’ Coffee and get some detailed shots of the mega money cars that turn up when the sun is shining rather than the smartphone snaps that are so convenient."

The first photo shows the 944 with the 2.3 V4 Turbo Mustang.
The second photo was taken at Scott's local cars and coffee meet.There are no details of this longnose but it really does look very well done.
In the final photo the car is wearing an unusual paint job.It's not a colour many would choose for a Porsche and the front end of the car in that colour does remind me of a Triumph TR7-not a compliment.The TR7 and the Triumph Spitfire were both offered in that brown.
I once had a company Triumph Stag in a darker shade of brown.It was actually a very fun and reliable car and I just overlooked the colour.You do that with company cars.

Cordonnier

It's time for a Paris fix.I recently found this gem taken back in 2006.Pity that I did not frame it better and include all the scooter.
A cordonnier is a cobbler( a shoemaker).Most have disappeared like this one.But what an interesting scene.The two women examining some papers in the daylight outside the dressmaker who also sells "mode recup"-recycled fashion.And what is the pink duster doing in the bucket in the road? I'm assuming that it is a duster.And the solitary pot plant on the ledge above the door.Pure Paris.Sadly it is disappearing Paris.By now the dressmaker may well have gone,like the cobbler the victim of cheap Asian manufacturing and the throwaway society.I do hope not.These little speciality shops are part of the appeal of Paris for me.I wish that I had photographed more of them when I had the opportunity.

The photo was taken on a Leica Digilux 1.A very clunky and weird digital camera even when it was launched in 2001.If you read photography gear sites on the internet you could be forgiven for thinking that unless you have the latest 24mp or more all singing and all dancing digital camera there is no way that you could take a half decent photo.Indeed most of the photographic gearheads would not even think of using a Digilux 1 as a paperweight.And yet it turned out very nice files.And thanks to Lightroom 5 you can now find detail in even the jpeg files which was not accessible previously like the interior of the shop.

It ain't half hot mum.

Down here in Terrigal we are having the most superb weather.Christmas Day and Boxing Day were stunning as was New Years Day and this weekend and most of the days in between.With most of the population on holiday there will be a lot of happy and tanned people around.Ice cream sellers must be very happy.The above photo was taken at 11.33 this morning and shows Terrigal Beach.I have never seen it so crowded.
In South Australia and Victoria thay are having heatwave (40ºC plus) conditions and catastrophic bushfires.Inland NSW is very hot- here on the coast it is a (just) bearable 30ºC in the shade at home but it would be a lot hotter than that on the beach.Leica X Vario photo.

Reflection of a 911

My 2.7 911 reflected in a window of a building at Sydney Motorsport Park a few months ago.I had almost given up on ever getting a different angle on a 911.Leica X Vario photo.

What Santa did not bring me

Santa did not bring me this Porsche 911 GT3 RS with gorgeous red wheels. I am not really disappointed because if he had I would not really know what to do with it - apart from selling it that is- because well my race track days are behind me and it's not comfortable for the road and I could not leave it anywhere unattended and I'd soon lose my licence.And the insurance and maintenance costs don't bear thinking about.So no hard feelings santa.
This example I photographed at Coffee and Cars in Sydney a few months ago is pure Porsche porn.I can at least look and salivate.
Leica X Vario photos

Happy New Year

Terrigal,NSW,Australia.January 1st 2015.
 A happy new year to all readers of the blog.Time to start planning that travel for 2015.So many places to visit -so little time.
No new year resolutions or predictions here.
I steer clear of politics and other divisive topics on the blog so no rants however tempting.No Facebook,no Twitter.Life's way too short for wasting time with either.I'll try and keep up an eclectic mix of posts on the blog in 2015.

The Pick of 2014

Over 250 photos have appeared on the blog during 2014 so selecting a year end "pick of" selection is not easy.I have selected photos taken by me which for me best evoke the atmosphere of a place or event.
The selection includes photos of the Le Mans Classic,China,Hong Kong,France and in particular Paris,Germany,Austria and Australia.
I really like photographing people and 65% of the photos I have selected contain people.Any selection I make has to include photos of Porsches and of course cats although in this case it is not one of my cats which makes the cut.Most of the photos were taken with the Leica X1.

Two tracks

Two tracks.Just a few kilometres apart. First up-a walking track in the local Wyrrabalong National Park through thick gum trees (eucalypts) photographed a few weeks ago after a long period without rain.The dry gum tree leaves are thick on the ground and the trees themselves look very dry.The ground is dusty and the grass and scrub are parched.Ideal conditions for a fierce bushfire.
The photo was taken on the Hasselblad 500 film camera using a 80mm Zeiss Planar lens on Kodak Tri-X film l.I scanned the negative on an Epson flat bed scanner and made absolutely no correction to it apart from a small adjustment to the exposure and the warm toning.It is as close to an analogue or film photo as I can make it.Although it is not a colour photo it may as well be because that is what this scene looked like-brown and dry.

Second track through the dunes to Avoca Beach last week.Pure Australian summer.Saturated colours and the smell and sound of the sea.Leica X1.

It's the silly season.

Seen in Terrigal this morning.It must be a girl's car-surely?
Hot pink wheels and a rather clever badge embellishment.Leica X1.