Benz World Blog » Southport

Sayonara Southport

Jason Benz — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 07:54:20 +0000

These buildings are part of Southport Central in Queensland. I have been living and working in Southport on the Gold Coast since 2013. The 5-year project which brought me here was the Global Reef Record which my former employer Panedia has been a big part of. Although it was the longest and most interesting Photography job I have done, I am excited about what comes next. Since moving here my weekends have been spent upgrading my van (which I consider part of my photographic equipment) to tackle Australias remote areas. I have installed a solar panel and a 250ah battery which allows me to shoot, process and upload images in areas without mains electricity. I have also built extra storage for water, fuel and gas. Once I am back on the road (2nd March) I expect to increase my photographic output so the amount of Stock Photography will go up.

Warm Winter

Jason Benz — Mon, 02 Oct 2017 11:09:20 +0000

These kites were photographed earlier this year on the Broadwater Parklands in Southport. In 2017 Queensland, Australia had its warmest winter on record. It has also been very dry here on the Gold Coast. The rain finally arrived this weekend and was preceded by an early spring heat wave. The temperature quickly dropped by 10C when the weather changed.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Latest Mayhem

Jason Benz — Sat, 02 Sep 2017 07:44:26 +0000

Earlier this year I saw someone filming someone else trying to drown themselves in the most creative way possible. At this spot, near the bridge between Southport and Surfers-Paradise in Queensland, I saw a Hydro Jetpack performing a similar task in 2015. Evidently, handlebars are no longer required.

This week the Gold Coast pulled off a coup to host the annual TV awards. It has been traditionally been held in Melbourne and occasionally Sydney. The local Major had a classic retort, When facing criticism that the Gold Coast was too tacky for Australia’s prestigious night. He said it was the perfect fit for a tacky industry in a tacky city.

Mango Biscuit

Jason Benz — Fri, 21 Jul 2017 10:36:24 +0000

One morning in 2015 I woke to the sound of my neighbours’ mango tree being cut down. I asked the team cutting up the tree where the wood would go? When they said landfill, I asked for some. This is part of what they called a biscuit. It has been drying for 2 years and is ready to be shaped into a table for the van. Last weekend I used a wood router to make the outline of Australia so you can run your finger around and feel the coastline. In keeping with the egalitarian nation, I positioned the centre between three states, Queensland, South Australia and New South Wales.

Grey Butcherbird

Jason Benz — Sat, 11 Feb 2017 22:36:36 +0000

This grey butcherbird visited our garden in Southport, Queensland, Australia. They prey on insects, lizards and birds. They have an extraordinary vocal range and this one was especially talkative. It sounded like it was telling a frantic story interspersed with imitations of other bird calls.

A similar image of this bird has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Leaf Rain

Jason Benz — Mon, 19 Sep 2016 11:52:10 +0000

The colours in this leaf on the grass in my garden caught my eye. It is the dry season here in Queensland, Australia but no one told the rain. The Gold Coast has a subtropical climate. This time of year is the build up to the hot wet summer but sometimes it arrives early.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Bomb Squad

Jason Benz — Sun, 06 Mar 2016 09:20:20 +0000

This monster truck, called Bomb Squad, was offering rides this weekend at the Southport Broadwater Parklands, Queensland, Australia. Due to recent rain it did not take long for it to tear up the grass. Although the council restricted the hours on both days, organizers did well to keeep everyone informed via the facebook event.

The Broadwater

Jason Benz — Sat, 12 Dec 2015 10:50:18 +0000

This is the Southport Broadwater on the Gold Coast. It is a shallow estuary of water fed by several rivers including the Nerang and Pimpama. The area is one of the fastest growing regions in the developed world and contains 90% of Australia’s canal estates. After local protests, plans for a cruise ship terminal were rejected by the Queensland Government in 2015. However this issue keeps returning around each election. Sand banks which have built up due to lack of dredging are now being used by endangered migratory birds. Plans to name them, effectively turning them into islands should give them greater protection from developers.

Flowering Frangipani

Jason Benz — Sun, 06 Dec 2015 08:49:54 +0000

This is one of two Frangipani trees in front of our house on the Gold Coast in Queensland. They have been covering the lawn with yellow and pink flowers since the beginning of the Australian summer.

This weekend we have been working on our van in preparation for a Christmas trip to Keppel Island. Last year we took a day trip to the island. This year we will be camping there for four days so we will have much more time to explore the Great Barrier Reef.

This image has been accepted by Shutterstock for Stock Photography and is available for download here.

Climate Change

Jason Benz — Sat, 21 Nov 2015 09:35:49 +0000

We saw this grass fire on The Spit this morning on the way back from cycling to the post office. Apologies for the quality as I only had my 8 year old N95 phone to take this picture. Queensland is currently experiencing +10C above average temperatures. Despite seeing plumes of smoke drifting over our house in Southport, this has not been the most alarming effect of climate change I have seen this week. For the last few years I have been working for a 360 degree photography specialists called Panedia. My main project has been producing content for the Global Reef Record. I have processed over 1 million images in Photoshop to create a control base line for coral reefs around the world. A handful of reefs have been re-visited. In preparation for COP21, I processed 2 sets of images from Kahaului Point in Hawaii taken 10 weeks apart. If I had not checked the GPS myself I would not have believed it was the same reef. The extent of coral bleaching was frightening. I saw a lush oceanic forest transformed into a dying sea bed.

360 Before / After Coral Bleaching hyper-lapse video