2008 Cobar Show - Displays and people

2008 Cobar Show - Events

2008 Cobar Show - The Showgirls

NSW Mines Rescue Challenge, Cobar.

Images taken at the 2008 NSW mines rescue challenge held in Cobar 28th-30th March.

Cobar flash flood

During the early hours of Thursday 31st January 2008, Cobar was hit by a severe storm. Around 2.30am thunder and lightening woke up the town. Over 100 millimetres of water fell from the sky as the heavens opened up. Rain, hail and wind pelted the town causing some flash flooding.

Buildings were flooded and several businesses suffered internal flood damage. Water caused roofing to callapse due to hail blocking the drainage systems.

The Grand Hotel leaked through from the upstairs hotel rooms, through to the main bar area, causing the ceiling to cave in. The Great Western's cellar was flooded, water had to be pumped out. Both hotels were able to operate as normal.

Other major stores had to close their doors while the clean up continued throughout the day. The local chemst cleared damaged stock and wet carpet was cleaned and dried. Harvey Norman had six inches of water throughout the store, all stock was damaged. The Cobar Paint Centre, also a carpet supplier, had rolls of expensive carpets ruined.

There were also reports of industrial and residential properties being flooded. Large sheds full of industrial equipment were washed out as flash flooding ran through the structures. Homes

also suffered the same fate causing disbelief to residents.

Water gushed down through the town overflowing street gutters onto footpaths. The Kidman Way, Barrier Highway and the Airport Road were cut off as low lying areas flooded. As the water receded the streets were left with a coat of red dirt, leaving an indication of the height the flooding reached.

The golf course and the "Newey" water recreational reserve were completely flooded. Only two months prior the Newey was almost empty, that empty you could see fish struggling to find water deep enough to swim in, it has now overflowed. The sand greens at the golf course represented little islands with red flags sticking out of them.

Residents had not seen so much water before. The Newey is the talk of the town, a continual stream of traffic flowed through the flooded entrance in their cars, risking the chance of being washed away. Everyone says the same thing "I've never seen it so full...", everywhere you go you hear discussions and gossip. I heard one person say that someone recorded eight inches.

The town is now soaked and we have plenty of water. Its been a pretty wet summer breaking a few records. The water is needed out here and now hopefully the big drought has been broke.

Enviromental Photographic Work

I was recently contracted to photograph projects that were funded by the Dept of Environment and Water, and the Western Catchment Protection Authority. The projects were funded to enhance the natural resources and my job was to photograph the most successful projects. Images will be published on the internet as part of the departments mosaic map project here

Getting out to the outback stations has been an eye opener. People living and working on drought effected properties have suffered and its great to see some assistance going there way.

I have also noticed a transformation as a result from rain reaching areas that are now turned from a dust bowl into flourishing meadows in some areas. I completed the photoshoots travelling over 4500 kms visiting landholders at their stations. I met some great Australians and heard fantastic stories of their trials and tribulations.

One of the station owners with his daughter stand in front of a solar powered capped bore

Images were submitted, sent on CD to the Dept. of Natural Resources. There are a few government departments I had to deal with, the Australian government is too bureauracratic. I now wait, my job is complete and it will be interesting to see which images are published.

Old fencing runs through the Paroo River now replaced by new fence line erected back from the river bank

Quite alot of planning went into this assignment. I initially had to submit a proposal for my work which included the timeframe, my rate, estimated travel expenses, admin costs and a statement about achieving the expected outcomes. Once my propsal was approved I was sent a bundle of documents including briefs, the contract, copyright agreement, consent forms and a photographers guide.

Trees were planted to protect trees at Tibooburra to encourage birds back to the area

I encountered a couple of barriers from which I had to alter my plans for some of the shoots. One problem with outback stations is the fact that landholders are very busy, some work off station to supplement their income, then come home and work on the station. Some dates were changed, and even then some people refused to be photographed. Therefore, the other problem was getting people photographed.

A grave site circa 1875 from the days of the Cobb & Co. coach service is located at one of the project sites

This assiignment kept me busy for two months and there was more work involved than expected, effective communication and planning were very important. The photography seem to be a secondary concern, maybe it seemed that way because its what I like doing and comes natural.

Goats are a major source of income, they survive on anything so goat proof fences are built to keep these pedigree goats away from the Darling River

It was great to see the real outback. People living on stations and working the land is something they do with a passion. They care for the animals and the land, its one big maintenence program. One station owner told me he has 400kms of fencing on his property, it costs $3000 per km for materials and contractors to replace the fencing, a total of $1.2 million to replace the lot.. He also told me the price they get for wool hasn't changed for 25 years.

Boxing Glove Cactus have been poisoned they grow wild and are a menace to kangaroos and cattle

People don't run vast outback stations for the money, its more a passion for them. Funding they recieve from the government does not go into their pockets, its intended for the protection of the natural resources on the land, and as far as i could see they have done a great job.

Drought, Images of the Darling River

I visited the Darling River at Louth in February 2007 to see how the drought had effected the water level. To my amazement it was almost bone dry, some puddles exist but the river is not running.

(Below) Both images taken at Louth looking up river, taken 11 months apart

I stood underneath the bridge crossing at Louth. Less than twelve months ago the water would have been flowing where I stood and probably over my head. I looked up river and there was not a drop of water to be seen. Downstream lay a few ponds of motionless water.

(Below) Some of the hidden treasures exposed by the drought

The bottom of the river water covered in outback dust. Cracks covered spongy areas where the pools of water had evaporated, still moist underneath. You could see objects that were once hidden under the brown water of the Darling River stained by the mud, old tyres, bottles, large branches and dead clams. An abandoned houseboat sits high on the bank with the words "for hire" written on the side. The river had been drained due to the severe drought.

(Below) Images show the houseboat in March 2006 and February 2007

I drove downriver to the small village of Tilpa. I pulled over along the way along a stretch of the Darling, it had water in it, you could see the high banks on each with massive roots from the gum trees sticking out trying to find moisture. The land around the river was barren and lifeless, only the hardy plants survive.


The river at Tilpa was empty too, I could see small pools of water up the river. I stopped on the bridge crossing and looked down. There was a dingy sitting on the dry riverbed with a rope attached to an anchorage point. Just up from the dingy lay a pipe that spouted out from the bank, I was a extraction pipe once used the suck water out of the river for the small livelihood of the small village.

(Below) A stranded dingy and a water extraction pipe at Tilpa

The Darling River is certainly empty and a sad sight to see. For this river to run we need a flood of water from up north.

Kinchega National Park, Menindee Australia

On my return trip from the Flinders Ranges to Cobar I decided to stop over at Kinchega National Park. The park is located along the Darling River next to Menindee, 110km south east of Broken Hill NSW. There are several camp sites around the park as well as shearers quarters style accommodation available. I decided to camp the night along side one of the lakes.

I arrived at the park at 5pm on the 16th October 2006 as I wanted to catch the sunset. I was anxious to get there and set up camp before the sky changed colour. As I drove along a long straight strech of road between Broken Hill and Menindee I could see beautiful cloud formations, the land was flat and barren and vast. I had never been there before so I was enjoying the adventure of discovery, I didn't know what to expect. I had heard that the lakes were drying up, I was hoping they weren't.

I arrived at the park it was very well sign posted and brochure maps were available to assist in deciding where to stay. Three camping areas were avaiable for choosing where to pitch the tent, the darling River, Emu Lake and Lake Cawndilla. I wanted a to camp in a position to give me the best vantage point for capturing the sunset. The lake Cawndill camping ground had a east/west aspect so thats where I camped. I had to drive several kilometres along a sandy track that snaked throughout the park, there was an abundance of kangaroos bouncing around the landscape. I wanted to stop and take photos of the roos but I was running out of time as the sun was receding towards the horizon.

I arrived at the campsite and picked a spot right next to the lake. I was disappointed to find the lake completely dry, not a drop in sight. The lake was a bed of sand and lifeless trees with contorted trunks. The camping area had fireplaces, picnic tables and compost toilets, I was the only person there. I set up the tent while battling with the swarming flies, they were so frustrating and persistent in annoying the hell out of me. Once the tent was up I set up the tripod and sat the camera on it ready for sundown.

I was hoping to capture wildlife and reflections but both were absent from the scene. The leafless trees were the best feature available, and then the sky changed colour and produced a beautiful sunset. The sunlight was hitting the clouds and relecting some amazing colours and tones. In some shots I turned the camera to self timed shutter release and positioned myself in the frame, they turned out great. I was happy with the images of the sunset, but still disappointed with the drought effected lake, a victim of global warming I guess.

I spent the night alone in the silence of the darkness. The only noises I could hear was my breathing and a few bugs attacking my lantern. I didn't light a fire as there had been a total fire ban. I didn't cook any food as I was too tired from driving, I just had a tin of baked beans and some fruit. I sat and had a couple of beers and sat back, I looked up at the stars that exploded across the skyline, what an amazing sight. I turned in for the night in anticipation for a beautiful sunrise, which didn't really put on much of a show.

I checked the map to see what else there was to explore. I had the option of the aboriginal sites and european structures, so I decided on having a look at the european structures. I was back on the sandy track towards the old shearering shed. The Shearers quarters were at the same site right next to the historic shearing shed, the shed was a big museum full of memorabilia from days gone by. It would have been a hard life, this place is so isolated, I walked around and took a heap of shots, there was so much to photograph, unfortunately I was running out of space in my memory cards. I had to go through and delete quite a few images that I had taken while at the Flinders Ranges.

I was getting keen to get home after the shearers shed historical shoot. I continued aling the track for a short distance which brought me to the Darling River, the track then follow the river bank. I stopped several times to investigate the condition of the river. I was pretty low and the water was running slowly. I reached a weir that stretched accross the river, there were a mass of pelicans there, they seemed to be feeding off small fish as they flowed over the weir. It was a beautiful spot, which was also a camping site. I think I will camp there when i return to this place.

I really enjoyed camping at this national park, its so peaceful and is a unique place. I'll be back there soon.

A trip to the Flinders Ranges DDO Weekend

I recently made the trip to the Flinders Ranges, South Australia. I met up with a group of keen photographers, majority were members of "POTD" Photo of the Day, Australia. We all spent a full weekend at Willow Spring Station which began on the 13 September 2006.


The weekend was a photography experience shared with 12 other wonderful people. The Thompson family organised the accommodation at the Willow Springs shearers quarters, members of the family were Paul, Kathy (mum and Dad), Meaghan (daughter), Joshua (son) and Theresa (Kathy's sister). Another family group and entertainers were the Atherton siblings Bill, Colin and Doreen. Also attending were Bill Robinson, Andy Smylie, Leanne Osmond and Toni Thomson.
It was the first time I had met this group of fanatical photographers, except for Bill Atherton who I met at Dubbo Zoo during the National DDO weekend.


The weekend was full of fun, adventure and amazing scenery. There was a total fire ban so sitting around a camp fire was out of the question.
The Atherton brothers and Andy provided the Saturday nights entertainment of drumming demonstrations and joke telling. Leanne was the crowd motivator trying to get everyone up and dancing to the rhythms of the drum beats varying tempo. There was no TV or radio to help us fall to sleep, so the entertainment was enjoyed by all.


There were two days of expedition and photography. Saturday was a drive around the Flinders National Park, we all followed each other in convoy the navigator was Bill Robinson. We travelled along the ridges and down into the ravines. The sky was covered in cloud and threatened us with rain, the distant mountains were covered in a haze therefore the light was not perfect.
The natural features were unique and vast. Beautiful coloured rocky ridges pertruded out of the harshness of the terrain and featured interesting lines of texture and earthly colours. The expedition broke up into two groups, and went off into separte directions to continue exploring the sheer magnitude of the national park


The Flinders Ranges is a very dry environment, the landscape is full of rolling hills and mountainous ridges covered in red soil and rock. There was an abundance of fauna, kangaroos were everywhere and emus with chicks were seen everywhere. The vegetation shows the dramatic effects of the drought, grass was sparse and only the hardy trees and shrubs survive in the harsh environment.

The Sunday was spent exploring the skytrek trail, for those of us who could fit into the available 4WD vehicles. We followed the map (not to scale of course) as we went on our adventurous journey, the trip started out with driving on reasonably flat and accessible terrain, until we hit the mountains. Low range had to be engaged, we followed a trail the was very steep, rocky and rough.
The trail took us to some of the most beautful scenery I had ever seen. We finally arrived at the summit of a mountain, which is the highest point of the Flinders Ranges accessible by 4WD, such breath taking views. It was a 7 hour journey of magnificent adventure, but, I was glad to finally reach some smooth tracks after bouncimg around in the ute.

The flinders Ranges is a magnificent place to visit. I enjoyed the experience and want to get back there. It was interesting to meet such a keen group of excellent photographers.

A special thanks to Paul Thompson and Bill Atherton for the use of their excellent photographs.