City Living Photo | TrekEarth

Photographer’s Note

When change comes there are always casualties, Sydney Harbour’s shipping wharves were on that causality list. These once thriving wharves fell dormant with the demise of the merchant ships that took the homegrown wealth of Australia to ports all over the world. In the days when Australia’s wealth was mostly generated from the magnificent fleece that the great flocks of sheep produced, longshoremen and boat crews worked twenty four hours a day loading the giant bales of pure Merino wool into the holds of those beautiful and romantic merchant ships. However, the advent of the container ship put paid to all of that, now these places of intense activity were empty and unused.

Never underestimate the ingenuity of a property developer I say. A group of forward thinking developers saw the wonderful potential these empty wharves had, they employed skilful architects who looked at these ghostly areas filled only with memories of days gone by and saw the chance to create the most sought after commodity a modern city like Sydney has to offer, a harbour front apartment.
That’s exactly what they did, the nine Walsh Bay wharves and warehouses were turned into modern city apartments, five star restaurants and offices.
Wharf Number One Walsh Bay was re-developed into a five star hotel, Number Two and Three into apartments, number Four and Five were taken over by the Sydney Theatre Company and the Sydney Dance Company, numbers Six and Seven, also apartments and restaurants. So too the extensive warehouses that sat behind the wharves, these were turned into offices and apartments.
The starting price for a one bedroom studio apartment along the Walsh Bay precinct is in excess of one and a half million dollars, and there is an unquenchable demand, even in this economic climate.

This image is of Walsh Bay wharves number Eight and Nine, they are the smallest of the nine wharves, are at the end of the row and their exterior looks remain virtually unchanged, but in these two wharves is where the real money is. Some of the most prestigious companies in Sydney have their offices in these wharves. In the background is Observatory Hill, one of the oldest parts of Sydney.

In the workshop I’ve attached a detail shot of Walsh Bay wharves number Two and Three, it will give you a good idea what the development looks like after the developers finished.

Sometimes change is hard to accept, but here along this harbour foreshore strip the integrity of this rich heritage area hasn’t been lost, the exterior of the buildings have maintained their charm and the glory days of the past live permanently in this amazing transformation.
If you ever get to visit Sydney, you must put this area on your to do list.

gunbud, snunney, ribeiroantonio, alftrek, burraburra, Clementi, Kielia, vmf-214, vjmite, jlbrthnn, MLINES has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

pastadog (12821) 2009-06-23 1:15

Excellent sharpness and light, many attractive lines to enjoy, and the ferry in vivid colors is a great eye-catcher

travelm8 (260) 2009-06-23 1:20

A real scene of architectural contrasts, what a great town Sydney is. I like the colour of the tug against the battleship grey of the wharf buildings.

cheers

John

snunney (34732) 2009-06-23 1:32

Hello Peter,
It's good to see places like this being put to good use. The conversion seems to have been very successful. I like the presence of the tugboat which adds a nice splash of colour to the scene and is a reminder of earlier times. Sharpness is excellent. Thanks for the useful and informative note.

ribeiroantonio (21891) 2009-06-23 1:40

I have visited the area and I would not mind to have a little apartment there. It would be nice. A million would not be a problem if I win the lottery!!!
I like both shots. I think they show very well part of the downtown water front. Well done.
Antonio

bracasha75 (22017) 2009-06-23 1:51

Helo Peter
It,s always good for me to have you here and have chance with yor pictures to see part of your beautiful country.This shot is lovely and i know that this is center of center Sydneys and place where many people walk thry in one day.
Thanks for sharing this lovely photo Peter
With kindly regards ,Bratislav

SteveH (3893) 2009-06-23 3:28

Hi Peter, Property development seems to be an Australian obsession, we have a similar development around the old warves in Melbourne. Although not quite as tastful as this - ours are high rise apartments (imagine that - Sydney development being more tasteful than Melbourne, who'd have thought it :-) ). I like the inclusion of the office buildings in the BG, providing an interesting contrast. Did you consider a vertical shot, emphsising them towering over the warves? The red tug provides a nice focal point, with red doing its magic and catching the eye. cheers, Steve

alftrek (2783) 2009-06-23 9:30

Hello Peter,
Enjoy reading your informative notes. The finger wharf always interest me, even when I look at your earlier post which shows them in the BG. But the one that I am most interested is at Woolloomoolloo??!! which was once used as a wool store like you said. (not sure how many 'O' and 'L'). What I do not realise is how extensive redevelopment have taken place on these wonderful architecture. I remember way back in 1985 when we were assigned to do a student design project to refurbish the Woo...lloo finger wharf into commercial and apartment units. Of course, student works almost never get built.

I imagine you were shooting from your private boat, wonderfully composed with the red/orange tug boat on the right and the characteristic 'wool store' on the left. This view also conveys a strong contrast between the modern city highrise and the historical foreshore buildings seemingly buffered by a green zone. Nice work.

Cheers
Alfred

rodgerg (23849) 2009-06-23 12:35

Hello Peter,

The framing of this shot is excellent and very well collected. Good balance in the composition with differents plans well delimited. The sea give a great depht to the image. Good photowork.
Best regards,
Roger

Nicou (44641) 2009-06-24 1:06

Hello,

mangigique iamge très moderne, avec le graphisme de bâtiments en fond, la belle mer et ces ba^teaux, superbe ensemble.

Bravo et maitié

Nicou

burraburra (843) 2009-06-24 4:03

Hello Pete,
Beautiful colours. Very sharp shot.
I love the bright coloured 'tug'.
Your note is excellent - for a northside boy.
Thanks for sharing.
Cheers,
Graham.

foozi (4701) 2009-06-24 7:19

Hi Peter,
I like the graphical shapes of the building that contributes to the beauty of this shot.
Such a majestic view of the harbour, and you position the orange sip so beautifully.
well planned and well presented in a neat and sharp scene.

Regards,
Foozi

hay_kes (28562) 2009-06-24 11:41

Hi Peter,
What a superb cityscape vith great POV, light colours and perspective.TFS.
Cheers,

hAyAti

Clementi (43843) 2009-06-24 13:29

Ciao Peter,
a beautiful rich scene of color and contrasts of architectural forms, clean image and good definition.
good job
Giorgio

gunbud (27789) 2009-06-24 18:30

Hi Pete,
That newly painted orange and yellow tanker give this harbor scene some real pasazz.
Love the unique backdrop of warehouses and high rises broken nicely by the line of the trees.
Now what I must ask you is why are you in the rear with all the gear and not in Alice Springs with Crocodile Dundee?
Regards, Tom

aadilj (17950) 2009-06-24 22:45

Hi peter, that boat takes it away! I mean the attention... its so fiery and so well placed that I had to look at it first and look at the rest of the shot

Kielia (8401) 2009-06-25 11:17

Hi Peter,
you have composed a very spectacular impression indeed and the accompanying note is also very interesting. But - as already mentioned - it is this attractive boat that steals the attention from the modern facades. It is a great photo, Peter, with so many fascinating details, I like these small houses on the hill behind the wharves a lot. TFS!
Warm regards
Harriet

vmf-214 (1622) 2009-06-29 0:15

Hi Peter,

Great note and interesting way to reuse these old warehouses turning the into apartments and offices, Wonderful POV and nice rich colors along with splendid details in this image. Great job Peter.

Best regards
Jason.

skippy007 (6971) 2009-07-02 17:28

Hello Peter, I guess it's progress again, this time these old disused sheds are put to some good use with their redevelopment, it's also good to hear that their original charm has been maintained. It sounds to me like a little playground for the not so filthy rich. I enjoyed reading your well written note not only very informative but also entertaining.
Thanks
Santo

vjmite (1531) 2009-07-05 0:26

Hi Peter,

The splash of colour on the tug boat against the grey of the wharves really makes this photo work. The photo presents the three different worlds of waterfront, park and high rise, which are so emblematic of Sydney.

Vince

jlbrthnn (37749) 2009-07-09 9:10

Hello Peter,
The red boat makes the photograph by attracting the glance irresistibly. It extremely well is seen and carried out. Cheer.
Have a nice day
Cordially
Joël

MLINES (10870) 2009-09-15 17:36

Hi Peter, A highly original POV which shows many details. The image is clear and not oversharpened which can happen with the windows etc in the background. The bightly coloured tug stands out and is well placed for maximum effect. TFS. Murray.