Sunday, Brunswick Street, Fitzroy © Rob Walls 2011
Kat Macaulay, bartender at The Gypsy Bar, Fitzroy © Rob Walls 2011
His first protest; Climate Action rally, Melbourne June 5 2011 © Rob Walls 2011
Exuberance personified at the Climate Action rally in Melbourne © Rob Walls 2001
Brunswick Street, Fitzroy © Rob Walls 2011
From time-to-time it is the professional photographer’s lot to have to photograph conferences. Conference photography can be mind-numbingly boring work, but it helps if you can divert yourself with a bit of personal photography during the more tedious sessions.
I’ve just spent three days photographing the Jobs Australia annual conference at the Hilton on the Park in Melbourne. With speakers such as climate scientist, Dr Tim Flannery, futurist Professor Peter Ellyard, the ever thought provoking lecturer and writer, Waleed Aly, and the rapier wit of master of ceremonies, comedian, Rod Quantock, this conference was far from boring.
But to keep sharp and remain alert to picture opportunities, this is how I honed my eye, shooting these behind-the-scenes, personal observations:
Conference accreditation © Rob Walls 2010
Drink waiters at the MCG welcome reception © Rob Walls 2010
Between sessions delegates hammer their mobile phones in seemingly endless communication © Rob Walls 2010
Beneath a conservative exterior a guest speaker expresses his non-conformity through his flamboyant socks © Rob Walls 2010
Federation Square, on the way to the conference dinner © Rob Walls 2010
Thousands of kilometres and a load of pictures later, I’m finally on my way home. As a photo gypsy, five or six weeks is about all I can manage away from family and my own bed. At 7.30pm tonight the Spirit of Tasmania will be heading out in Bass Strait into some fairly heavy weather, but in photographing the first officer this morning for my, This Working Life project, he assured me that with the waves on the starboard quarter, it will be a comfortable ride to Hobart.
In the meantime here are a few quick final sketches with the Canon G11 before I depart Melbourne for home…
Newspaper and magazine vendor, Elizabeth Street, Melbourne, 19th August © Rob Walls 2010
Getting rid of the dust, car wash, 20th August. © Rob Walls 2010
At the lights, Latrobe Street, Melbourne, 20th August © Rob Walls 2010
The Burnley tunnel, Melbourne, 20th August © Rob Walls 2010
This week The Economist voted Melbourne the world’s third most liveable city in the world, narrowly beaten by Vancouver and Vienna. The Melbourne newspapers have run hot with the news, mainly with the emphasis that the city beat Sydney, which had to share ninth place with Zurich. As far as I can tell, the Melbourne/Sydney rivalry is only in the mind of Melbournites. Sydney, blessed with its magnificent harbour, draped with the arch of the Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House, doesn’t even have to try.
The blogs and newspaper commentaries have been running even hotter with commentary, for and against, mostly from Melbourne residents. Those against complain about the transport system; those for, seem to place a rather strange emphasis on the quality of Melbourne coffee. It’s as though they believe urban sophistication can be attributed to the quality of the bean roast and the skill of its baristas. Is this why Vienna beat them on the leader board?
One particular commentator, wrote this:
“I call Melbourne BLACK, BLAND MELBOURNE. Just walk into the city whether winter or summer and all you see is men and particularly women dressed in black. Go into a department store or any restaurant or any shop for that matter and every employee is wearing black. Boring and bland. Go to Paris and women wear all colours, hardly any funeral black. So Melbourne needs to brighten up.”
This prompted me to dive to my picture files. I was in Melbourne two weeks ago and took these picture. I love Melbourne, it’s a bright, colourful city, but that writer is right, there is a pre-occupation amongst its inhabitants to wear black. If only Melburnians would learn to relax…but it must be hard when you are continually being pumped with all that caffiene…
Tasmanian Times