Australia boasts such a wide variety of Native Flowers and so many are only found in Western Australia. There are flowers in bloom all year round if you know what to look for and where to look. They are food to so many creatures.
One of the great things about Wireless Hill Park is they have plaques with pictures and details of some of the species that flower in the park.
In the warm and dry surroundings of our club house at Loton Park, Shutterpups staged a Still Life workshop. With ample studio lights and backdrops, the light-boxes, and flat-lay zone were glowing with anticipation.
A variety of objects and props were on hand for participants to compose an emotion-evoking scene. For most of us this was the first attempt at still life photography and, I’m sure you’ll agree, the results are very impressive.
A few people attempted the “mystery box” challenge – can you pick which photos involve those objects?
We really look forward to doing something along these lines again – perhaps stop motion or product photography.
A big thank you to the committee who set everything up and to all those who attended with their cameras and creativity.
On a rather chilly morning Shutterpups gathered for a safari at the Perth Zoo. The weather gods smiled on us, with heavy rains arriving as we departed the zoo.
For some of us it had been a very long while since we last visited the zoo, and we were impressed with all the changes. As you can see from gallery images, most of the animals were willing and able to pose (even if it was their back end facing the camera).
As an extra challenge, the participants were tasked to take a photo of an animal that starts with or resembles the first letter of their surname.
Lights at Elizabeth Quey, in motion. To aid the motion a pixel stick was used at the end of the shoot bringing a new level of challenge, set “B” on your camera and get ready for some fun. As an added challenge the participant could partake in 36 shoots only, a throwback to the film era. The results are stunning, fun was had aplenty.
Our inaugural Annual General Meeting was held at the beautiful Loton Park Tennis club, and included an excellent talk by renowned underwater photographer Ross Gudgeon www.bluefishphoto.com.au
Bubbles aren’t just for the bath tub!
On January 30th 2022, the Shutterpups headed to Sir James Mitchell Park, South Perth. The air was awash with bubbles, big and small. Members darted about trying to get sharp focus. There were cries of glee when a shot worked, and groans of annoyance when a bubble popped against a lens.
We all agreed that bubble juice is a challenging substance.
Towards sunset a platter of cheese and fruit was assembled and staged with sparkling wine. The luminous backdrop of the city skyline provided some delicious images. Speaking of delicious, the platter was consumed too!
Thanks to the National Trust WA, Shutterpups were granted private access to the East Perth Cemeteries. Early on December 11 2021, a sizeable group of members were able to spend a couple of hours exploring the cemeteries and St Bartholomew’s chapel. To round off the morning, we strolled over Matagarup Bridge to Stadium Park. Some of us went on to enjoy the parkland surrounding the stadium, joining the rest of the group for some well-deserved refreshment at The Camfield hotel.
A Brief History of East Perth Cemeteries
The first burial ground on what was called “Cemetery Hill” (Martellup) was a general cemetery and was one of the first public sites surveyed in the Swan River Colony. The graves of the East Perth Cemeteries are a record of the first 70 years of European migration to Whadjuk Noongar boodja – now known as Perth, Western Australia.
An excellent story of this historic site can be found at
https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/places/east-perth-cemeteries/
The culmination of the Bears Perth events for every year is the presentation of Mr Bear Perth.
Presented at Connections Nightclub and attended by a wide variety of people from the Perth LBGTQIA+ community and Chris Lau as a wandering photographer, Peter King capturing the on-stage goings on and Gregory Helleren capturing video evidence of a night of good fun and the presentation of the nominees.
The crowd revelled in the performance by Barbie-Q, the Bears Perth committee and the eventual crowning of Tim Campbell as Mr Bear Perth 2021.
As part of the Western Roundup 2021, Bears Perth held a Black Tie event at Doubletree in Northbridge. A night for the Bears Perth to dress to the nines, nibble, drink and socialise, and present the nominations for Mr Bear Perth.
Shutterpups were asked if we would provide the photographic proof of the evening and Cyrill Illi, Chris Lau, Duncan Surin and Peter King were happy to. With a banner setup near the entrance to provide a Staged setting and then moving into the function area, we mingled and snapped, producing the images you see here.
Star light, star bright, an infinite number of stars I see tonight.
Weather watching for a few days beforehand, the forecast was for a cold, clear night – perfect conditions for a night sky. The meeting point was Herron Point Campground and we started the evening with a BBQ while getting more astrophotography tips from Shutterpup Luke.
We rugged up for the chilly evening as the sun went down and the stars came out in their multitudes. Looking for an additional point of interest, it was time for a little fire.The results were spectacular.
