Personal Journey and Adventures of Nina

Chatswood The best thing about November in Sydney is the colour.  Gorgeous purple flowers against deep blue skies. It is the end of spring. The days are getting warmer and there is a definite lift in mood as summer approaches. Mostly the colour comes from the Jacaranda Tree's which line the streets of Sydney's North Shore and other suburbs. I have taken these photos around Chatswood and Lane Cove. Also, flowering at this time are Agapanthus which border many front garden and fence  here in our Northern suburbs. Agapanthus, McLean Ave, Chatswood Kareela Road, Chatswood Karilla Street, Lane Cove Chatswood buildings surrounded by colour One minor drawback is that it can get messy! Although for all of this beauty, I don't mind a bit of mess. Besides, there is usually a massive southerly at some point which blows it all away. That's Sydney for you! Nina Beilby is a professional photographer based in Chatswood, Sydney,...

Short course season changes the game for me quite a bit. With only 25 metres to catch a front on Fly shot, I'm lucky if I get one attempt. The older kids (and I mean over 12yrs) get most of the way down the first 25 without a breath. Breaststroke is still ok so long as the swimmer does the slow glide and not the quick bob up and down. Some swimmers do not come out of the water much at all, then they are just a head on top of the water but at these State Champs, we had some pretty stylish swimmers.  The great thing about short course is that we can get pretty close up shots at some points where is would have been almost impossible in long course. If I had to be at the end of the pool ready for the fly, there is no way I would have time to get the dive shot first before running 50m to the end of the pool. Also, even with the 300mm lens, the 50m pool is too long for the backstroke start shot. Poolside shots are one of my favourite to shoot so I was glad that I h...