f365: Day 151

Rather than go home and darn my socks or kick my heels up in the city, this evening was certainly a different experience. A friend of ours, Francesca, heard about this event going on at QUT (Queensland University of Technology). The event is around doing creative things with government data in terms of building things such as visual data maps (Gov Hack 2013 if you want to Google it).

Anyway, QUT is an amazing building and it has recently been revamped. The campus itself is positioned at the foot of the CBD in a pretty cool surrounding around the botanic gardens.

Today's shot was taken inside one of the auditorium rooms - certainly a step up from my days at the University of Canterbury!

f365: Day 150

While I think it is good to show some glamorous and interesting shots in this one year project, it should also be a reflection of where our time goes during the day.

Dishes. Hate them. Always have. But unfortunately a necessary part of daily life. And it is not made better by our hobbit sized kitchen, bench and sink. Thankfully today's shot will be less of a chore when we have a new dishwasher when the new kitchen comes in!

f365: Day 149

We are looking after Ciel at the moment. Ciel is our friend Francesca's beagle - she is very well behaved (at least compared to Cookie and Bruce).

Bruce's energy levels have sky rocketed and his current favourite pass time is chasing and licking Ciel - she doesn't know whats hit her.

These two shots were taken at feeding time. Cookie won the race with her meal being gone in less than 30 seconds....!

f365: Day 148

Well done Bruce! We recently took Bruce to Puppy Pre School down at our local vet in Red Hill, Brisbane. Across four Thursday nights, Bruce fitted in really well and made some new doggie friends. He was certainly a stand out class member, mostly because of his stand out size.

So...he is the big fella posing next to his certificate.

f365: Day 147

When I went to Melbourne earlier this year, I commented on the grafitti around the laneways areas. While I am not a fan of random scribbling or tagging, good graffiti can be pretty cool.

This new mural popped up behind work over the weekend so it made today's shot. Certainly adds a bit of colour to an otherwise drab wall!

f365: Day 146

After a tough 15km run early this morning, we had breakfast at this terrific place in Mt Coot-ha which offers native bush walks and the opportunity to see some wildlife close up.

Afterwards we spent a couple of hours wandering around the Botanical Gardens. It was 24C and mostly sunny so a lovely day. Today's shot was taken from the gardens looking back towards the city.

f365: Day 145

I've posted two shots today mainly because good lighting and opportunities presented themselves.

Sometimes we catch up with our friends Nik and Casey on Saturday mornings down at our local dog park in Bardon. It is a great way to kick the weekend off and it gives the dogs a chance for a good run around and socialisation. Nik & Casey have two male beagles called Bronson and Wicket (both adorable).

The first shot is of Bruce have a good look around (note the performing Dalmatian in the background).

Afterwards, Jenn and I went for a walk around Southbank in Brisbane - it has markets, restaurants, tourist attractions and a man made beach! The second shot is of the "Brisbane Eye" taken from the Japanese Gardens/walkway.

f365: Day 144

Today's photo is of ANZAC Square here in Brisbane Friday lunch time.

ANZAC Square is (not surprisingly) is the location of the Dawn Service - this is held at the Shrine of Remembrance. The square also contains the Eternal Flame of Remembrance.

f365: Day 143

Another lunchtime walk shot. It was much brighter and sunnier today, but winter is just around the corner. Teneriffe is a relatively new suburb (it split away from Newstead in early 2010) and sits alongside the Brisbane River.

The boardwalk is great for strolling and running so today's shot looks south along the river.

f365: Day 142

From the bright colours of yesterday's painted signal box to the dreariness of a cold, grey and wet day.

I spend a bit of time waiting on the platform here (when collectively measured across the year) so today's shot is a train arriving at Bowen Hills station.

As mentioned before, it was a wintry day here by our standards and definitely one for curling up on the sofa with take out.

f365: Day 141

I worked from home today but stretched my legs later in the afternoon. One thing we've noticed in Brisbane are these decorated traffic signal boxes whereby people paint a random image/picture on it. Here is one just down the road from us.

f365: Day 140

Here I was lying in the park at lunchtime soaking up the warming rays. I haven't done a self mug shot for awhile so I held my phone up and took this one. I applied a contrast boost to bring out the green in the grass more.

About 15 seconds after the shot was taken, I was attacked by a hoard of ants! They are quite vicious and I managed to get them inside my shirt as well! So today's shot is a snapshot of relaxation just prior to a sharp wake up call.

f365: Day 139

We added a new market to our "done" list - the Boggo Rd Market in the suburb of Dutton Park. While the market was interesting, it sits adjacent to the Boggo Road Gaol, an Australian prison that operated between 1883 to 1992. These days it is a tourist attraction - while we didn't go inside, next time we are in the area we'll check it out.

Although it was a brilliantly sunny day today, I applied a smoke effect which accentuates the red brick.

f365: Day 138

Our dogs are a pampered pair. As well as their usual dog kibble diet, they get plenty of treats and leftovers. Their weight is carefully watched though - beagles in particular can put weight on very quickly due to their never ending appetites.

Today's shot was taken during the calm hour at home. We are all fed, relaxed and now Bruce is enjoying his bone.

f365: Day 137

It was a lovely day so I popped into the city at lunchtime for no other reason than to stretch my legs.

I spotted a few monuments along the way - today's shot is one of them. Thanks to Instagram, the shadowing around the background buildings was lifted resulting in more balance in the shot.

f365: Day 136

Bruce has had a few visits from the tooth fairy lately. Well he actually would if we got hold of his baby teeth before he eats them!

Here is one of his baby canines, alongside a $2 coin to give it some perspective. Most of his baby teeth are gone now which is just as well as they can be fairly sharp!

f365: Day 135

I was reading the other day about the rise of people taking shots of their food. Refer:

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/aussies-share-the-food-love-by-posting-pictures-of-meals-on-social-media/story-fneuz8wn-1226637885462

Today's shot is a lesson in how not to take a food shot. I've done this once already this year (taken a food shot) and I'm doing it again as this shot represents a little indulgence I have all too often for lunch, courtesy of the local (on site) cafe.

Anyway, here is what is wrong with this shot:

- poor plating skills (note the back drop of wrinkled paper)
- harsh lighting, and strong shadows
- shot almost straight down, with lack of composition
- and it looks about as healthy as a greasy slap up English "full breakfast".

But...it was delicious. I'll post a shot later this year in this one-year blog of a more professional effort. Watch this space!

f365: Day 134

It was like a dreary London day this morning and this train shot from Roma St station did remind me of winter morning walks to Clapham Junction Station several years ago.

It did brighten up considerably but winter (Brisbane style) is definitely around the corner.

f365: Day 133

Today's shot symbolises something I just seem to have less and less of at the moment (and I am not talking about Fossil watches).

A lot of things to sort out (most good, if not exciting) but, as they say, organisation is the key to success.

But I'll always find time for my daily shot + upload. Getting a bit of creativity back into my day does restore some sanity I've found!

f365: Day 132

Jenn and I went down to Durack, just south of Brisbane to see a dog show today. Bruce's original (human) parents Christine and Ashley were there so we were keen to catch up with them as well. They showed Bruce's Mum (Cherry), his brother (Boon) his sister (Scarlet) and one of their older males Hurley.

I decided to break my rule again and take more than one shot as I haven't exercised my Canon 5d Mkii for awhile. I did some processing back at home this afternoon and applied some effects to them (I have used these in family/wedding photoshoots before).

Check out the shots - we had an enjoyable morning!

(Below): Bruce checking out the scene

(Below): Christine showing Boon, Bruce's brother

(Below): Bruce saying "hi" to Cherry, his Mum

(Below): Cherry striking a pose

(Below): Ashley & Cherry (Ashley checking out whether it will rain...)

(Below): Bruce pondering his ambitions in the ring

(Below): Christine showing Scarlet, his sister

(Below): Bruce chilling out

(Below): Christine showing Cherry (Bruce's Mum)

(Below): Christine showing Scarlet, his sister

(Below): Christine showing Hurley, their older male dog

(Below): Bruce and Mum together. Appropriately together for Mother's Day!

(Below): Cherry looking on

(Below): Two of Andrew & Melissa Smith's puppies - very cute and they were on show today as well

(Below): Bruce thinking this is just all a bit too much!

f365: Day 131

Jenn and I are both feeling under the weather at the moment (in fact even the weather is under the weather - it is cool, grey and showery today). We had a good lie in bed and did stir until after 10am.

Bruce made himself very comfortable so I couldn't resist taking these two shots of our 30kg five month old lad!

f365: Day 130

Today's photo is a place that I fund, but seldom get use out of. It is the local YMCA, close to work. For just $10/week I get full use of the gym facilities and classes.

In almost one year's membership I could probably count the number of visits on 2 1/2 hands (i.e. not very many!). While it should be value for money, my absence has made me their ideal customer.

Seriously, a sort of mid year's resolution is to go more. The facilities are in fact new and excellent.

f365: Day 129

It was meet Sir Richard Branson day at Virgin HQ today! The place was abuzz and a band were organised for his visit. He normally visits our building every 12-18 months and he is currently touring Australia.

It was amazing to meet him although not personally (however I did get a very brief hand shake). Some excellent food was put on and it was an enjoyable way to spend a part of the afternoon. He is treated like a rock star here (although imagine he gets a similar reception most place he visits)!

A couple of shots of the event.

f365: Day 128

We've found a good way to store our spices - IKEA have these great little magnetic spice containers that snap onto the fridge.

I got busy with the label maker a couple of weeks ago and labelled all 30 or so of our different spices. Here is a shot showing just a couple of rows.

f365: Day 127

Once again I found myself taking photos around Newstead Park near work. Why? It is a lovely park plus has good vantage points for shots along the Brisbane River as well as Breakfast Creek.

It also is a good spot just to chill out and stretch the legs after a busy morning or afternoon at work.

Today's shot is looking east out along the Brisbane River.

f365: Day 126

Excellent things about owning a Queenslander #2: High ceilings = extra storage space.

I love cereal. Always have, always will. I'll snack on cereal at night and sometimes if we are lazy, have it for dinner. I have a fair amount stashed away in storage containers so I always have a good variety to choose from.

This shot shows just some of my cereal collection - safely ensconced on top of one of the cupboards!

f365: Day 125

We were down at Shorncliffe this morning, a seaside suburb. We caught up with our friends Rob, Andrea and their two young children Lawrence and Gemma. Plus Bruce came along for the ride and met their Labrador pup called Ruff.

I took this shot just before Rob and I headed out on my paddle board and surf kayak. Excellent stuff!

f365: Day 124

We finally got around to checking out the Rocklea Market in South Brisbane today. It is Brisbane's largest produce market and it was well worth the trip down there. The breakfast stalls looked great as well so next time we'll have breakfast out there.

We did most of our week's shopping plus picked up some delicious German sausages for our bbq catch up with our friends Nik and Casey later this evening.

f365: Day 123

Excellent things about owning a Queenslander #1: Acres of laundry space under the house!

While it is not so much of a problem now (given we are moving into the drier season), having the ability to hang half a tonne of wet laundry to dry under the house when it is raining is a huge boon. Underneath our Queenslander it is pretty messy with stuff strewn about the place, but we are certainly not short on storage.

Anyway, my shot for today is a quick snapshot underneath our house.

f365: Day 122

We have a lot of Water Dragons given our proximity to the river. Here is one I snapped at lunchtime - they can be fairly bold sometimes!