harbour

Jewel in the Harbour

/ Robert / 10 Comments

These days I usually take pictures with an iPhone 6. The results are good enough for the finger swipe world we live in. The evening I took the above was a special occasion. We had just finished celebrating our friend’s 50th birthday over dinner in the Dining Room, Park Hyatt Sydney. Nestled near the south pylon of the Harbour Bridge, this hotel has one of the best views of the Sydney Opera House. 

Thankfully I took the trouble of fishing out my Sony Nex-5N digital SLR camera, ensuring the battery was charged. The clear Winter’s evening and water on top of a wall yielded the jewel of Sydney Harbour and it’s reflection. I used Snapseed app for iPad to sharpen and enhance the structure of the image. 

Park Hyatt, Sydney

/ Robert / Leave a comment

Approaching the Park Hyatt Hotel from the Overseas Passenger Terminal in Circular Quay, Sydney. 

The hotel follows the line of the foreshore in a graceful curve. I especially like the way it appears to nestle in front of the Harbour Bridge. 

Casino 2

/ Robert / 4 Comments


The above is a view of Barangaroo from Ballaarat Park, this view of the Harbour Bridge will disappear once Sydney’s second casino rises up from behind the white hoarding. 

Crown Sydney is a six-star casino and hotel resort that has been approved for construction in Barangaroo, Sydney, Australia. When it opens in 2020, it will be the second legal casino in Sydney (the other being The Star). However, unlike The Star, Crown Sydney’s casino will only operate with VIP membership restrictions. With 75 floors (including mezzanines) and a height of 271.3 m (890 ft), it will become the city’s tallest habitable building, surpassing Chifley Tower.

NYE Sydney Harbour 2013

/ Robert / 7 Comments

20131231-104657.jpg
As the years sail by the New Year’s Eve celebrations and more importantly the fireworks over Sydney Harbour evolve, adapt and change. We have been fortunate to experience the show from a yacht in the Harbour in 1998 and from the roof of the old casino on one of the Welsh Bay wharves in 1999. Since then we have seen them up close next to the Opera House and in the distance from apartments in Kings Cross.

20131231-104833.jpg
Over the last few years we have opted for an inner west dinner followed by viewing from about 5km away, a deliberate choice to avoid the crowds. We usually record the televised coverage of the event to watch on New Year’s Day.

20131231-104949.jpg
This year we popped over to the Opera House after lunch on Monday 30 December. The pictures capture a glimpse of the pre-Eve excitement and some of the crowd control measures being used.

The fireworks shows have increased from two to three this year, the following information is from the official website City of Sydney information
9 pm Family Fireworks Display
10:30 pm Telstra Design-A-Firework Show
12 Midnight Fireworks Display

Happy New Year!