Lismore photographer Andrew Sooby and his wife Lynne have clocked up over 100,000 kilometres driving from one side of Australia to the other. He offers us a smorgasboard of his photography on the run…
My wife Lynne and I recently completed our nineteenth trans-continental road crossing between Lismore and Perth, each one via the 1675k Eyre Highway which links Port Augusta (South Australia) and Norseman (Western Australia).
The return journeys, depending on which of countless route options we choose either end of the Eyre Highway, usually end up around 12,000ks over six or seven weeks.
Unfortunately, because these are family-focussed trip, photography can’t have priority. Budget and time restrictions (and often school holidays) compel pre-booking and sticking to a schedule. No exploring curious side-tracks, or waiting around to get the right subject in the right light. They’re for dedicated photo trips.
Instead, I always revert to one of the basics – and fundamental pleasures – of photography: however restricted the time and location, you still continually look for THE shot that will change the world.
I haven’t found it yet. But the effort greatly enriches the journey; aka, it’s not the destination itself but the getting there that’s important.
The photos which follow are the result of that approach. They aren’t linked thematically, I’ve selected them from several dozen possibles from this year’s seven-week journey, using just one measure: they please me!
Captions:
1. EYRE HIGHWAY, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 2. SERIOUS OUTBACKER KIT SEEN IN FREMANTLE, W.A. 3. THE NULLARBOR PLAIN. 4. HEED THE ESCORT VANS AND GET OFF THE ROAD! 5. SAND DUNE REFLECTION NEAR POINT SINCLAIR AND PORT LE HUNT, SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 6. FRESHWATER BAY, MOSMAN PARK. 7. JOURNEYS START WITH FAREWELLS AND END WITH GREETINGS. THIS SIGNIFIES BOTH FOR OUR 2018 ROAD TRIP. 8. CONTRAST. FREMANTLE HIGH STREET. 9. AT THE BALLARAT ART GALLERY, VICTORIA. IF THIS WAS AN EXHIBIT, THERE WAS NO ARTIST CREDIT. BIZARRE PLACE FOR A TAP. 10. AT THE NEW YORK CITY’S MUSEUM OF MODERN ART EXHIBITION, NATIONAL GALLERY OF VICTORIA, MELBOURNE. 11. A VISUAL JOKE, SEEN IN MONA VALE, NORTHERN BEACHES, SYDNEY. 12. ON THE WAY HOME – BETWEEN TAMWORTH AND TENTERFIELD. A REMINDER OF THE SAVAGE 2018 DROUGHT.
You can see more of Andrew Sooby’s work at: ANDREW SOOBY PHOTOGRAPHY luminousmudbrick.net <https://luminousmudbrick.net>
