Sydney´s Winter Festival of Light
My camera and I are wild about the Vivid Sydney festival.
From May to June, Sydney in the midst of chilly winter shakes up to life and is ablaze with festivities, lights, art and music.
I love the rich creativity of the artists and professionals who transform the city into a night time fairyland with their dazzling display of laser lightshows, projections and massive illuminations. It is as if for a second, you do not recognize the once familiar cityscape. You are Alice in Wonderland.
It is a mesmerizing experience looking at the dazzling display of lights. I have my favourite spot at the Sydney Overseas Terminal which I return to year after year. That is my base where I wait to capture the Lighting of the Sydney Opera House Sails. It is a grand moment as it marks the beginning of the visual spectacle that everyone has been waiting for.
I feel like a kid in a candy store during this festival. Photographers are spoilt for choice with all the activities bustling around them. There is so much to capture and only one pair of hands and one camera at a time! I love how one gets to meet photographers, artists, musicians and just a beautiful variety of people who have all gathered here to soak up all the amazing energy.
My camera has seen how the Museum of Contemporary Art was awash with strong blues and elegant turquoises, or the glow of fuchsia at the Sydney Circular Quay and I know the kids absolutely loved the jungle-foresty greens and blues at the entrance of the Taronga Zoo!
It is moments like these that keep the flames of my passion for photography kindling. It is so exciting capturing the brilliant lights flashing, zigzagging and bursting all over iconic landmarks. What never fails to surprise me is how each year, the Sydney Opera House gets a complete makeover in the night with the light performances – geometric light designs, electric plasma designs, snake-like swirls and even aboriginal turtles have graced the surface of the domes.
I am already gearing up for this year´s Vivid Sydney festival which runs from 25 May to 16 June in 2018. I do not know what to expect this year but I know my camera is ready for some lights and action!
Put on your shades and dazzle your guests with the lights of Vivid Sydney.
