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Shot Tower


Shot Tower
Photo Information
Copyright: Janice Dunn (Janice) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1103 W: 66 N: 1327] (4251)
Genre: Places
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-07-30
Categories: Daily Life, Architecture
Camera: sony cybershot dsc p8
Exposure: f/5.6, 1/60 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version, Workshop
Travelogue: Melboure, Australia
Date Submitted: 2006-08-05 0:21
Viewed: 838
Points: 26
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
The Shot Tower in the Melbourne Central Complex

This is one of the buildings that my daughter and I visited when we were on holiday in Melbourne, Australia.

Melbourne Central is a large shopping, office, and public transport hub in the city of Melbourne, Australia. The complex includes the Melbourne Central Shopping Centre; the Melbourne Central railway station (a part of the City Loop underground railway and formerly called Museum); and the 211m-high office tower known to locals as the 'Batman building' due to its distinctive black colour and bat-like communications masts.

Contained underneath the shopping centre's massive glass cone sits the old Shot Tower which originally operated on the site. The tower was retained to become a focal-point of the centre.

What is a Shot tower?
With help from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

A shot tower is a tower designed for the production of shot balls, which were used for projectiles in firearms. It replaced the earlier techniques of casting shot in molds (expensive) and dripping lead into water barrels (out of round).

In a shot tower lead is heated until molten, then dropped through a copper sieve high inside the tower. The liquid lead solidifies as it falls and by surface tension forms tiny balls. The partially cooled balls are caught at the floor of the tower in a water-filled basin. The now fully cooled balls are checked for roundness and sorted by size; those that are out of round are remelted.

You can see more of the Shot Tower in the Workshop.
Joffre, linask, Buin, bakes888, Matthew-Watt, macondo, thor68 has marked this note useful
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ThreadThread Starter Messages Updated
To Buin: GreetingsJanice 1 08-06 04:40
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Critiques [Translate]

Hiya Janice, nice clean and clear shot, colours, interesting POV and composition, the new cladding the old, if only we could do this for all munitions factories, interesting capture!

  • Great 
  • daddo Gold Star Critiquer/Silver Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1673 W: 29 N: 1722] (7840)
  • [2006-08-05 5:35]

Hi Janice. Fascinating shot( no pun intended) and equally fascinating information. Excellent PoV and sharpness in detail. The red of the building is a great contrast to the blue. Well conceived. Regards. Klaudio.

I well understand hwat is this tower is for, we had one in the town I have been for my studies (long time ago:-))
That is a very good idea to show and explain and a good photo including the special structure. Well done for this shot
Jean Michel

  • Great 
  • Buin Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 3458 W: 0 N: 6897] (24097)
  • [2006-08-05 11:38]
  • [+]

Hallo Janice!
You show us something very interesting. I've heard about this towers to produce bullets. I am glad that such building are preserved in Australia. You show it in an impressing way and the contrast between the different architectures works very well!
Greetings from warm and sunny Germany!
Frank

This is a very dramatic composition and the modern roof makes an interesting contrast with the old tower.
I also think the lighting is quite interesting, with the shadow on one side of the tower and the red colour on the other.
Good work.
Ben

Quite an interesting building and your shot is very clear.
I loved your composition.
Well done!

Hi Janice. Wonderful perspective on this focal point. Very eye catching, well captured. Thanks for sharing.
Cheers, Paul.

great shot, very nice circles and pov, well done, I like this shot very much, well done

Hello Janice,
A most impressive and angular shot, a place I have seen many photos of, but never visited. I like the clear sky and the angle the light is cast onto the top right hand side. Well done also to the point of view and depth of field. I like this very much.
Matt

I know this place really well too. Very well composed to give a strong sense of height through the perspective lines. The central point of the tower is cleverly positioned well off the centre, allowing a great deal of old brick one to be shown. Shadows are marvellous. The contrast between old and new is really well rendered.
Regards,
Andrew

Hi Janice.
This composition is very graphic and appreciable.
I like the lights that filters from the windows.
Good work
Renzo

  • Great 
  • abdur Silver Star Critiquer [C: 25 W: 0 N: 2] (81)
  • [2006-09-10 18:02]

One of my friends in AU has also shot this. I will send it to you if I can still find it. This is a nice location for photographers. Thanks. -Abdur

wow, terrific shot and interesting note, janice! :-)
i never heard of such a kind of tower, but on the other hand i
was not really very interested in the production of bullets.
excellent pov and composition showing old and new -
the structure and patterns of the glass-roof are amazing.
superb job & take care, thorsten.

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