Patrick Booth, Night Moves (LANDSCAPE 2024)

This portfolio is a series I put together late last year of the two bridges that span the mighty Clarence River at Harwood in far northern NSW. Nikon Australia had loaned me a Z9 for a week and the bridge shots had been something that I had been thinking about ever since the colossal new bridge (a smaller version of both Gateway bridges that span the Brisbane River) was completed in December 2019. So when the weather provided me with a few perfectly still nights I made a plan and stuck to it. All three shots - 1 Night Moves - 2 Industrial Heartland and 3 The Setting Moon are all long exposures of both bridges. I wanted to show the viewer in shot 1 movement through time and space with the stars and the setting moon, as well as in all of the shots, the lifeline of Australia our A1, one of the most impressive national highways on the planet with the lights from the trucks of our forgotten heroes, the tireless truck drivers traversing this great land providing vital essential supplies, produce, mail and a myriad of other things to keep Australia running. Showing the river was also an important factor in all three shots reminding the viewer that you cannot step into the same river twice as it is in constant flux and change and has been essential for the thriving and survival of the Yaegl Aboriginal peoples for millennia, then a vital lifeline for early colonial settlers getting produce down from and supplies up to the northern tablelands of NSW and remains to this day the lifeblood of the Clarence Valley providing livelihoods for many fishermen, crabbers, workers at the Harwood Shipyard as well as the Harwood sugar mill I've included in Shot 2 Industrial Heartland as it like the bridges can be seen from many places in the lower Clarence River and has been one of the biggest employers in the region for many decades as well as tourists flocking to the area for its raw natural beauty. There's a saying in the Clarence Valley and that's " Keep It Country" and I hope it stays that way. Camera - Settings - Technique Shot 1 - Night moves Nikon Z9 + Nikkor 10-20mm DX VR 15mm @ 8minutes 15 seconds f 16 Iso 160. Tripod Shot 2 - Industrial Heartland Nikon Z9 + Nikkor 10-20mm DX VR 10mm @ 2minutes 33 seconds f 13 Iso 160 Tripod in the river mud and me in the dinghy Shot 3 - The Setting Moon Nikon Z9 + Nikkor 10-20mm DX 20mm @ 2.5 seconds f 11 Iso 16000 Tripod in the river mud and me in the dinghy

Images have been resized for web display, which may cause some loss of image quality. Note: Original high-resolution images are used for judging.