Photography by ewen bell

What's on the Blog

1922

Everybody else is talking about. Here's the man himself playing 1922 Blues......

Kashgar Cow

A traveller who will be joining us in China next month to explore the Silk Road has been reading some work by Colin Thubron. She highlights the paragraph, 'In two years there'll be nothing left of the Old City, just a sample town for tourists. Ten thousand people have already been moved out, and paid rubbish for their homes.' My colleague goes on to ask, "In the chapter on Xian, the author...

Landscape in Motion

Photographer Chip Forelli is a very talented landscape photographer. If you can't learn something from looking at his work then you shouldn't bother owning a camera. He has a lovely little book on blurb, but it's worth visiting his website just to see a little inspiration for how landscape imagery can be more than just trees and lakes. He uses movement in his landscapes too, employing super...

Uncovered

Travel insurance is great so long as you don't have much valuable to insure. Professional camera equipment is bad enough, but even a modestly capable laptop can quickly exceed the fine print. I did a little asking around and found that most professionals simply don't have it. Too expensive. When they can get cover it's priced at a rate that makes it more practical to carry the loss of equipment...

Norwegian Good

When asked "What is this?" I had to pause to think. The answer came out "Norwegian pop band echoing 90's indie tunes with a hint of Lush and Sonic Youth." I could have added Darling Buds and The Primitives blending Medicine and Go Betweens, but then no one would know what I was talking about. Je Suis Animal are young, funky and freshly released into the Australian market. Lost & Lonesome are...

Gold and Silk

I was surprised to find a touch of the Silk Road right here in Melbourne this week, in a fine gallery on the edges of Bridge St. Distinctive paintings by Chinese artist Huixuan Zhao are on display at Dickersons, and it's worth taking a closer look. Miss Huixuan casts a youthful eye on ancient stories. The technique on display is called Gongbi, literally meaning "fine brush". The style...

Panda Man

My life as a travel writer is much like that of the Giant Panda - sitting in a field of bamboo, surrounded by his preferred diet even though it yields next to no nutritional value. Over time the Panda Man grows fat, mostly from inertia than from a lavish diet. In the absence of true predators it's hard to stay lean, the only real competition for the bland diet of bamboo is other Panda Men....

Moce Nukubati

How to visit Fiji and avoid most of Fiji. Lovely... Day 1 Landed in Nadi. Smiley old man drove us to hotel. Will be a nice hotel when finished. Day 2 Smiley old man drove us to airport. Caught little plane to Labassa. Airport is the size of a postage stamp. Picked up by 4WD and drove for an hour. Sugar cane everywhere. Arrived at jetty in the mangroves. Boat to Nukubati Island takes under...