2020 - 2021: Pandemic, Lockdowns and More

Lockdown in Melbourne was relaxed from late April 2020, and one of my first trips away from home was to the Mornington Peninsula. Famous for its beaches, the Peninsula is classified as regional Victoria, being about 1.5 hours drive from metropolitan Melbourne. To people in Melbourne, this kind of drive time is considered long but not uncommon. This image was taken at Gunnamatta Beach, where people surf and fish alongside each other. We were standing on a wooden platform that lead to a staircase that descended to the beach. The feeling of being able to just drive, and then shoot out in the wild, was magnificent.

G9 - The Second Wave by Archiver, on Flickr

Panasonic G9 | Panasonic X Vario 12-35mm f2.8 | Gunnamatta Beach, Mornington Peninsula

G9 - Awash by Archiver, on Flickr

Panasonic G9 | Panasonic X Vario 12-35mm f2.8 | Gunnamatta Beach, Mornington Peninsula

The G9 + 12-35mm was perfect for this kind of shooting, being fairly compact but capable of great images and video capture.
 
Speaking of driving, the southbound side of this highway is usually jam-packed with cars in the afternoon. Eerily deserted during the early part of the pandemic.

Leica M5, Leica Summicron 50mm f/2 v3, Ultrafine eXtreme 400, developed in LegacyPro L110 at 1:31 for 5.5 minutes.


2020.04.27 Roll #243-04693-positive.jpg by dourbalistar, on Flickr
 
2020 came and went (more photos from 2020 to come), but restrictions were still in place for people in Melbourne. February 2021 and we were still wearing masks. Melbourne was one of the most locked down cities in the world by the time the pandemic was over.

M9 - Masked Man by Archiver, on Flickr

Leica M9 | Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 ZM

This image was taken a restaurant called Cervo, situated in the Crown Casino complex in Melbourne. Note the patron and bar attendant wearing masks.
 
The Atrium at Federation Square is a large public space that serves as an entrance to a number of restaurants and cafes, the Ian Potter Centre for Australian Art, the Edge performing arts space, and the National Gallery of Victoria shop. Back in Feb 2021, everyone passing through was asked to sign in via QR code, as was the case for every other space open to the public.

M9 - Conditions of Entry by Archiver, on Flickr

Leica M9 | Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 ZM
 
Stuck at home, so I ordered some filters from B&H and experimented with trichromy, a process for creating color images using black and white film. Here is my first attempt at the technique.

Nikon FM2n, AI Nikkor 50mm f/1.8S, Kentmere Pan 400, developed in LegacyPro L110 at 1:31 for 5.5 minutes. Three individual black and white frames shot through Tiffen #25 Red, #58 Green, and #47 Blue filters, respectively, then combined using GIMP to create a trichrome color image.


2020.05.09 Roll #244-04711-positive-trichrome.jpg by dourbalistar, on Flickr
 
dourbalistar said:
Stuck at home, so I ordered some filters from B&H and experimented with trichromy, a process for creating color images using black and white film. Here is my first attempt at the technique.

Nikon FM2n, AI Nikkor 50mm f/1.8S, Kentmere Pan 400, developed in LegacyPro L110 at 1:31 for 5.5 minutes. Three individual black and white frames shot through Tiffen #25 Red, #58 Green, and #47 Blue filters, respectively, then combined using GIMP to create a trichrome color image.
Click to expand...

dourbalistar said:
2020.05.09 Roll #244-04711-positive-trichrome.jpg by dourbalistar, on Flickr
Click to expand...
Fantastico!!!
 
Sign on a handrail at Manly beach, Sydney during lockdown. April 2020.
Instax SQ6

50634848453_ece73ae817_o.jpg
COVID lockdown, Manly beach, Sydney, April 2020 #107 by lynnb's snaps, on Flickr
 
Both our kids learned to ride bikes during the pandemic. All the schoolyards were empty, so we took advantage of the open space to practice. Power to the pedal!

Leica M5, Leica Summicron 50mm f/2 v3, Ultrafine eXtreme 400, developed in LegacyPro L110 at 1:31 for 5.5 minutes.


2020.05.16 Roll #246-04840-positive.jpg by dourbalistar, on Flickr
 
More photos from my aborted Docklands morning adventure from 2020. It's a beautiful area that was distinctly empty and quiet that morning. The bridge is usually crawling with cars, but that morning there weren't too many. As I walked, I wondered about all the people in the apartments, what were they thinking, were they as hesitant to leave as I was to visit?

M9 - Docklands by Archiver, on Flickr

Leica M9 | Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 | Docklands in Melbourne

Along the way, there was a disassembled bike next to a bike repair stop. Not stolen, just taken to pieces as if attacked by a kid with OCD. What the heck was going on? Was this a portent of the madness that would come to Melbourne?

M9 - Dude, where's my bike by Archiver, on Flickr

Leica M9 | Zeiss Distagon 35mm f1.4 | Docklands in Melbourne

M9 - P10 by Archiver, on Flickr

Here you can see the lack of cars in the parking lot. In the background is the infamous Southern Star Wheel. This was originally intended to be the largest observation wheel in the Southern Hemisphere. I rode on it once in late 2008, shortly after it opened, but it closed 40 days after opening due to structural defects. The wheel itself was dismantled but the A-frame remained, reopening in 2013 as the Melbourne Star. A year after I took this image, the wheel was permanently closed due to the pandemic's effect on customers.
 
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