I live in Melbourne but have spent most of my time overseas for photography. Some of my suggestions may be interesting? Google the suggestions.
Some photos on my website
www.davidcampbellphotography.com.au
Melbourne
- Princess Pier in Port Melbourne. Old Pier that has been half restored and half left with all the boards pulled up. Many pylons sticking out of the water. Good at Dawn
- Brighton Beach Houses. Colourful wooden sheds for people to store beach gear in and use to get changed. It will be busy at that time of year but if you go behind the sheds, stand on the top of the fence, you can get a wide shot with the water in the background with no people. If you dont mind people, just shoot from the front.
- Southern Cross Station Roof. Nice wavy roof line. No Tripods allowed here.
- Under the Bolte Bridge at night.
- Flinders Street Station. Dusk
- Princess Bridge near Flinders street station. Views of the Southbank river complex.
- Shrine of Remembrance on St Kilda Road. Dawn
Out of Melbourne
Dandenong Ranges
Alfred Nichols Gardens – nice in the morning. Small boat shed on a small lake gives nice shots (better during Autumn)
Puffing Billy – Nice old steam train ride through temperate rain forrest.
Monbulk Rd – Along this road, there are spots to get photos of Mountain Ash and Tree Ferns.
Olinda Falls – Not that great, you can skip these.
Pie in the Sky – Great place for lunch to eat some gourmet Aussie meat pies.
Phillip Island
- Do not go to Phillip Island without going to the Pinnacles at Cape Woolamai (google it). 45min walk from the surf lifesaving club to the point. Steep walk down to the rock covered beach. Best at Sunset. Sunrise is also good but the nearby land mass can create shadows. Check the sun position with a smart phone app. If you for Sunset, you will also get to experience thousands of Mutton Birds coming into land. Stick to the paths as the burrows are often hiden and you may twist your ankle. Snakes are also in the area feeding on chicks, so watch where you walk.
-Cat Bay Old pier, old pier ruins. Best at Dawn or Dusk. You wont be able to park really close as they close the road so penguins walking across the road dont get run over. Make sure you park on the right side of the gate.
Wilsons Promontory
Large National Park about 4 hours from Melbourne (further than Phillip Island). Has nice beaches with Lichen Covered Rocks. My favourite beach is Whisky Bay (that is accessible without a day hike), Picni Bay is also nice.
Great Ocean Road there is a free great ocean road tourism app. Download that.
12 Apostles – Sunrise, main look out near the visitor center. Straight after sunrise, drive away from port campbell for about 1km to the Gibson steps. These steps are cut into the cliff face and will allow you to access the beach in front of one of the stacks. Keep an eye on the tide coming in if you walk along the beach past the stack, you could get caught and have wet feet on the return.
12 Apostles – Sunset. The best location is not at the main lookout. It is at the other end of the apostles on a cliff face looking back towards the lookout. There is a yellow kangaroo warning sign about 1km towards Port Campbell from the visitor center. This is where you want to walk out to the cliff. If you have someone that can drop you off and pick you up, this will be more inconspicuous. This view will have the apostles lit up by the sun’s rays and is less photographed than the main lookout. Be aware that this is national park and you will not be sticking to the made paths.
London Bridge – Best at Dawn or Dusk. Not great during the day past say 10am due to shadows.
Island Archway (now collapsed) – Provides a nice foreground for astrophotography. I have seen photos of the milky way casting shadows with the stacks in the small bay. If the Aurora Australis is doing its thing, you might be lucky and see it along this coast. There is an Aurora alert app you can get for your smart phone.
Loch Ard Gorge – Good In the morning before the crowds of people arrive. You will need a wide lens to get the whole beach in.
Apollo Bay Area
Mariners Falls – Closed due to an incident of someone nearly drowning after climbing around on the logs hanging over the falls and then getting pinned under them.
Marengo Rocks. There are rocks that have some tessellated patterns in them and hold water at low tide. If you get a good sunrise, you will get good reflections. These wet rocks are extremely slippery. Be very careful.
Hopetoun Falls – Arguably the best waterfall in Victoria. View from the board walk is the most classic view. You can get shots up close at the base of the falls with larger rocks in the stream but you need to climb the hand rail. You want to be here before the sun gets up too high, 2 hours after sunrise max.
Redwood Grove. On the same road as Hopetoun falls, there is a small plantation of California Sequoia Redwoods. They are only 70-80years old but there are shots to be had in there.
Beauchamp falls – Nearby Hopetoun falls. Quite a nice water fall. Track recently closed due to trees about to fall down after heavy rains. Maybe open, do a google search.
Triplet Falls – Nice walk through the forrest, falls are difficult to get a good shot of due to the foreground undergrowth.
Turtons Rd (Skenes Creek to Hopetoun falls route) has 1 or 2 spots where you can get nice shots of Mountain Ash trees and Tree ferns.
Otway Fly – Canopy tree walk on suspended walkways. Some good photos of mountain ash here. Little bit expensive though.
Maits Rest forrest walk – Nice stroll through the forest. Worth stopping at, even during the day as the canopy is quite thick and filters harsher light
Cape Otway Lighthouse – On the drive down to the light house, you have good chances of seeing wild Koalas in the trees. The lighthouse is set up as a small museum with explanations in each building. Think the lighthouse is better photographed from one of the nearby beaches with the lighthouse in the distance.
Moonlight Head/Wreck Beach – Steep walk down wooden stair case to the beach. At low (or low’ish) tide you can walk out onto the rocks where 2 shipwreck anchors are trapped in the sand stone. Makes for good photos at Sunset if the tide is right.
That is all for now