[smug_photo link=https://photo.nopixels.net/18-04-02-fortress-ridge/i-tfSQrsX] [smug_photo link=https://photo.nopixels.net/18-04-02-fortress-ridge/i-hptBkwt] [smug_photo link=https://photo.nopixels.net/18-04-02-fortress-ridge/i-hptBkwt] [smug_photo link=https://photo.nopixels.net/18-04-02-fortress-ridge/i-GcJR6kX]
Read More
Some places have enough of magic to attract us like a magnet. Glenbrook gorge is one of them. Every time we visit it we discover something new, something unexpected, something that makes us come again and again, year after year. A few years ago we got fascinated with a few massive boulders just casually sitting in the creek. This time I took a different, less wide, lens with me – 35mm instead of 24mm. I think I like this narrower framing better. The place looks more mysterious. The compositions are simpler. full gallery here:
Read More
a few photos from the trip: if you like the photos and would like to browse more here is the entire gallery with way more
Read More
This magical place in Wollemi NP was on my todo list for a decade. Every year something happened that forced me to postpone the trip. Finally all the stars aligned the right way and the trip happened. One cold and drizzly morning we all dressed in thick steamers and floated down the river. The place is as glorious as I imagined. We spent a very long day scrambling and swimming and exploring the endless canyons of wollangambe river. The water level was pretty high and the current quite swift allowing us to ride the rappids and speed our progress. A very joyful day.  I was surprised how well a cheap water proof camera bag worked in that environment. A lot of the time the camera was just floating, tethered, next to me. I gave up trying to hold it out of the water after an hour or so :-). I wish I had a proper water housing as the bag got into a bunch of shots and made them completely useless but overall, when used with care, did the job. 
Read More
In the middle of one of the most popular tourist attraction of Blue Mountains, there are still some hidden, less trodden tracks. It is amazing that it is possible to escape the civilisation and have it all to yourself…
Read More
This unique, solitary mountain can easily be described as a playground. The entire top of it is riveted with deep canyons, slots, chimneys, caves and any other natural attraction imaginable. I have been grinning like a maniac for the entire two days we spent there :-) 
Read More
First part of our exploration of central Australia. A lot of amazing locations dripping with colours. I had a few goes at grading this video, each time lowering saturation even more. Well, it is a colourful location so the video appears to be over saturated too :-) This video features some locations around Alice Springs: Trephina Gorge Emily and Jessie Gaps Simpsons Gap Standley Chasm Ellery Creek Serpentine Gorge Orminston Gorge We didn’t have enough time to visit them all and we wanted to leave some for the next time! Some photos from the same trip were posted a few weeks ago here.
Read More
Kangaroo Valley is often described as “The most beautiful valley in Australia” so we had to see it. What a better way then kayaking through it? We spent two lovely days paddling, enjoying every minute of it. Two days away from any civilisation, mobile coverage and people. If you are on a mobile and the video is blocked (thank you youtube) here is another version with different sound track: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdtdG5sG5Qo
Read More
200 meters in 5 hours? really? Well yes. 200 vertical meters :-) This trip was a classic scenario. We knew there were two ways to get to the wollemi creek from that point and that one of them was to be avoided. Somehow we ended on it. We had tons of fun and it took us a lot of time to navigate this almost vertical descent to the valley. The highlight was loosing one of the packs and watching it tumbling down and off a cliff…
Read More
New Zealand is a bit of a tricky place for a holiday, especially if you are a photographer. We all know how beautiful it’s supposed to be, we have seen thousands of amazing photos from there and we start with very high expectations. The problem is that usually, during a short holiday, we only have one chance to see a particular spot and we can’t control the weather. To some extent, we also have constraints on the time of the day and honestly it’s easy to be disappointed. Some places that I expected to be amazing were just ‘ok’, while simple stops on our way somewhere blew my mind :-). There are definitely astonishing places in New Zealand, packed with enough colour to make you question reality. There are also touristy, totally overrated spots that are not worth going to. It is possible that I’m spoiled by the pristine and wild Australian nature. Most likely the fact that most of the New Zealand that we saw was ‘tourist ready’ ruined it for me a bit. Even the famous Routeburn track (that we only did part of) was a big disappointment – lots of people on a “highway” through the mountains. […]
Read More
a bit better quality on vimeo: http://vimeo.com/80718433
Read More

dark places

by Pawel Olas· March 27, 2013· in photography, video· 0 comments tags: GH1, video
Here is a rough cut from our recent canyoning trip. GH1 had a hard time coping with extreme contrasts and general darkness but at the end did a reasonable job. 95% of shots were done with SLR Magic HyperPrime Cine 12mm T/1.6. As you can see I love its flare :-).
Read More

glorious beach living

by Pawel Olas· January 22, 2013· in video· 0 comments tags: coast, GH1, underwater, video
music by Club des Belugas http://www.chinchin-records.com/index.php?id=22
Read More
the colours in Blue Mountains are insane this time of the year. Video is even more colourful! Majority of it was filmed on SLR Magic Hyperprime 12mm f/1.6. Amazing Chinese lens.
Read More