Barrow Creek, Australia

Barrow Creek
Nothern Territory
Australia
Population 11



Barrow Creek is located on the Stuart Highway 284 km north of Alice Springs and 1198 km south of Darwin, the town was named after John Henry Barrow, a preacher, journalist and politician who had migrated to South Australia in 1853. The town came into existence with the arrival of the Overland Telegraph in 1872. The Telegraph Station has been preserved (keys are held at the Pub) and is now a monument to the troubles which beset the early days of the Territory and stands as a reminder of one of the more shameful moments in Australian history.

In the 1920s Mounted Constable William George Murray was in charge of the local Police Station and also the 'Chief Protector of Aborigines' in the area. When an old dingo trapper, Fred Brooks, was killed by Aborigines on Coniston Station, Murray led a 'posse' which killed an estimated 70 Aborigines in a series of bloody reprisals. This massacre occurred as recently as 1928. When Murray was called to Darwin to explain his actions he was greeted like some conquering hero. When asked why he had taken no prisoners he expressed the racist attitudes which prevailed in the territory at the time by telling the Darwin court 'What use is a wounded black feller a hundred miles from civilization?' He was totally exonerated of all charges.



My interest however was in the textures Barrow Creek could offer a would be photographer.

Barrow Creek textures 18th Sep 2007

Pootnoura, Australia

Pootnoura is not strictly a correct description of the location of these textures.

Barely a dot on the map, Pootnoura is about half way between Coober Pedy and Marla (South Australia) on the eastern edge of the 'Great Victorian Desert'.

44 percent or roughly 2.3 million square kilometers of the Australian landmass is classified as desert making Australia the second driest continent on the planet.


The sparse vegetation forms swirling patterns in the landscape







Often described as barren and therefore biologically dead, the Australian arid lands are in fact home to some of the most highly adapted life systems on earth. For my purpose though, the desert environment is ideal for sandy and rocky textures.

Pootnoura textures 16th Sep 2007















Even the shoulder of the road yields richly coloured gravel textures.







And then there is the road surface its self.





And a few more based on and inspired by the textures of the day.











And one of the rocky textures, heavily filtered.

Kata Tjuta panorama

Orroroo Australia

Orroroo
South Australia
Australia
population 498

Surely there could be no more Australian town name than Orroroo.

Located 262 km north of Adelaide, Orroroo, formely the home of the Ngadjuri Aboriginal people, the town was officially named by G. W. Goyder in September 1875. There is some confusion about the meaning and pronunciation of the town's name. It seems the local Aborigines called the area 'Oorooroo' - this may have meant 'rendezvous of the magpie' or some sort of rapid motion or the name of a local Aboriginal girl or 'place of departure'.

When asked to establish a Post Office in the town the premier, Sir Charles Todd, is supposed to have observed: 'Dear me! There are only two letters in Orroroo. What do you want a post office for?'

A few kms outside of Orroroo (on the road to Port Augusta) is Goyder's Line. In 1865 Goyder marked on the map of South Australia a line delineating drought affected country. North of the line, stretching across the entire Australian continent lies the Arid Zone with annual rainfall of around 250mm. The line through this area became an important factor in settlement of South Australia indicating the limits of lands considered safe for agricultural development.



A short drive into the countryside, the harshness of the land is evident in this ruin of a failed sheep station.


The old farmhouse offered this b&w temptation.

One of the local pubs offered a nice variety of textures to add to my collection.



Orrorroo textures 14th Sep 2007

I can't resist by try to see what the textures would look like with some filtering.

Sign near Coober Pedy Australia

Coober Pedy
South Australia
Australia
population 3060




Coober Pedy




Driving toward Coober Pedy, many signs warn visitors to stay away from the opal fields.

Weathered by exposure to the searing heat conditions of the Outback, the cracked sign appealed as a source of some textures.

Weathered sign textures 16th Sep 2007















Off the topic of Textures, this is a long train making its way to Coober Pedy.

Lake Dutton Australia

Lake Dutton
South Australia
Australia


Lake Dutton


Lake Dutton

With settlement names such as Tennant Creek, Renner Springs and Wyclife Well dotting the road north of Port Augusta, one would imagine a landscape of rivers, lakes and creeks. Instead, the land is harsh and barren, composed of rock and sand. The riverbeds and creeks are dry and the lakes parched.


Lake Dutton

Well within the Australian Arid Zone, Lake Dutton is a typical example of the Australian Outback waterways. Infrequent rain means the little water that occasionally fills the lakes soon evaporates, leaving a surface crust of salt crystals.


The Australian arid zone (defined by an average annual rainfall of less than 250mm) extends over most of the continent.

Lake Dutton salt lake textures 23rd Sep 2007



















And some Purely Osca interpretations of Lake Dutton textures.

Glendambo Australia

Glendambo
South Australia
Australia
Population 30 humans


One of the most photographed signs in the Australian Outback.



Glendambo is the last major roadside stop between Port Augusta and Coober Pedy. With an annual rainfall of 185mm, the sparsely vegetated desert landscape is ideal for sandy textures.

Sand textures 23rd Sep 2007