Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Today's ABC Open photos

Kangaroos like sunrise too By Dan Battley ·

I've been visiting the Cape Hillsborough National Park, just north of Mackay since I was a kid so I knew that the local wild kangaroos venture down to the beach of a morning. I wanted my own kids to witness the daily roo routine so one day we got up and headed down to the sand as the sun was rising.

This shot just happened in front of me. I didn't think about it or plan it.

A moment before, a fisherman motored past in his tinnie and the tourist and kangaroo looked towards the noise breaking the silence of the morning.

I noticed the two of them standing there so stoically. So I snapped it. But to be honest, I didn't think the shot was particularly special because this is just what happens at Cape Hillsborough.

It wasn't until later that I realised I had captured a little bit of magic.

I published the image on my Instagram feed and added the obvious hashtags, as well as mentioning a couple of local Instagrammers that I thought might appreciate the shot too.

BOOM.

People just loved this shot. The image was shared and re-shared. Nearly 50,000 likes on Instagram. Tourism Mackay featured it, then Tourism Australia shared it to more than 700,000 followers. So far it’s had 120,000 likes, 22,000 shares and 1,700 comments! And when Adam Gilchrist tweeted it, the comments kept flowing in.

Who would have thought a sleepy morning out with the kids could produce an image that would be enjoyed by people all over the world?

I guess people just love to see the interaction between a human being and a kangaroo. Published 24 Jun 2014. Cape Hillsborough QLD 4740

Rounding up the naughty ones

By michael samson · · From Pic of the Week

Having a break from the muster in Parkes. Published 06 Oct 2016. Parkes NSW 2870

One of Cradle Mountain's many beautiful Forrest walks

By FlossR · · From Pic of the Week

One of Cradle Mountain's many beautiful Forrest walks .

Published 27 Jan 2017. Cradle Mountain TAS 7306

Can't escape the heat when there is lava in the sky

By RebeccaSanson-VanDyk · · From Pic of the Week

We woke up to the alarm at 5am on Monday morning (23/01/2017), we were headed for an appointment in the big smoke (Sydney) from our little country town in central NSW, Lake Cargelligo. I was relieved to turn out the air conditioners on the way out the door, they had been running around the clock for more than a week. It had been sweltering hot with temperatures reaching over 40 degrees on some days, the air had felt thick and burning on the hottest days.

So bright and early we set off, to beat the hottest part of the day in the car. As we left our little town we headed toward the most breathtaking skies I had ever seen. Was that lava in our sky? Published 30 Jan 2017. Lake Cargelligo NSW 2672