Portland 2003

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26 February 2003
The motel bed was good and I slept well. Eventually waking before the alarm went off at 7am. I had not been to this centre before so I left my motel early. Arriving at this time gave me a chance to set up my backdrop and studio light. The children were three year olds and I decided not to risk asking to pose the children. I seem to get on the wrong side of too many staff by photographing the children that way. My plan is to take un-posed natural shots; mind you most of my shots look natural when I pose them anyway. But the stress on the staff is often too much to control their charges. Only twenty-one children today and getting shots of them playing worked well. Although each child won’t be getting the same amount of photos in their albums. The morning session finished at 11.30am. Six rolls of film containing many good shots with everybody feeling relaxed. I spent a couple of hours in the afternoon photographing the Portland docks. I intend getting images for my stock library this year. When I left the docks, I went via the main shopping area and finished back at the motel, where I watched in-house movies during the afternoon and into the evening. Turning off the TV and light about 11.30 that night.

27 February 2003
Slept well again. Grey sky’s overhead, but its not cold. Back to the same centre today, and left a little later. A few more children today then yesterday, I still managed to finish the session before mid-day. I returned to the motel where the owner was doing the finishing touches in installing the new air conditioner in my room. I have-not needed it so far. I had a couple of hours to spare before I was due to go on a boat trip to see the seals at Cape Bridgewater. I used the time to trim my exposed films and do my bookwork. About 3.30 that afternoon I was climbing into a large rubber boat and heading out to the home of nearly eight hundred Australian fur seals. On board was the owner of the boat and three students from Asia. The sea was corm with a slight swell, within two minutes we had cut the engine and drifted close to the rocks. Above us stretched a magnificent rock formation and below about two dozen seals playing and fighting on a rock ledge. I switched between my video and still camera, taking as many “shots” as I could. Knowing the trip was only going to be thirty minutes long. The owner steered the boat into a large cave and we saw more seals on a high ledge. While still swapping comers I saw with my own eyes the life of these seals and was surprised the cave did not smell. The trip was over all too soon and the return journey was quick. Its been a good day, both work and pleasure. An hour-long phone call to my girlfriend finished off the evening.

28 February 2003
The weather was all over the place today, raining when I woke up, dry and humid on my way to work. At the centre the staff and I planned for the outside shots. There was a large shelter, which could be used if needed, and the room was big enough to do the group photo inside. As it turned out we managed to squeeze in the group shot and outside activities between rain showers. On a couple of occasions everybody made a dash for shelter. When we saw blue skies again we returned to the open air. I sent the last three days of exposed films back to Melbourne by mail and tried to use the Portland library to send an email to my girlfriend and son. Unfortunately the library’s system was down. They suggested I try a laundry mat around the corner. It felt strange watching people bring in their dirty washing while I tapped away on the computer. Early night and managed to sleep, even with the rain falling on the tin roof.

1 March 2003
No work today but decided to stay another twenty-four hours in Portland. Many towns need to justify a reason why tourists should visit their town. They point out in their tourist booklets they have the biggest, oldest, longest attraction. Portland does the same and I took pictures of the Custom House, the oldest building being used for the purpose it was originally built for in the state. Another shot of the Gordon Hotel, which has the longest continual licence in Victoria. Getting the Shots was a bit of a waiting game. Patches of very wet weather would blow in from the west and drop inches of much needed rain. I would sit in the car for five minutes then as blue sky’s appeared, jump out and capture another grey stone building, then drive off to find another point of interest. My tour ended just east of town where a water tower has been turned into a World War II museum. Again I waited for the weather to clear before making my way to the structure, during the wait it even dropped hail. Inside the water tower there is a stairway that leads to a new landing on which houses pictures and exhibitions of the armed services. At the top a three hundred and sixty degree view of Portland and the surrounding area can be viewed. While I was there a tourist tram was shunting, ready to make the return trip back to the station. It was a must for me to get a ride. I drove back to the Botanical Gardens and waited for the arrival of the tram. Once we left the stop, the journey followed along the foreshore then climbed to the top of the town arriving once again at the water tower. The two carriages give the passenger plenty of opportunity to sit in different spots. On the return trip we were glad for the enclosed carriage because the rain just feel from the sky and I had to take shelter inside where the tour lady was explaining the history of the tram. At the deport we had a chance to look at some old vehicles. The trip was finished within an hour. I had seen enough of Portland and decided to return to my motel. The rest of the afternoon was spent watching TV and reading magazines. Outside the weather continued to blow wet weather over this coastal town in the west of Victoria.

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