Adelaide and the beautiful nature that surrounds it

Where is Adelaide?

For those who have never heard of it, or do not know Australia well, today I will tell you about Adelaide, a small city located north of the Fleurieu Peninsula, between the Gulf St Vincent in the west and the Mount Lofty Ranges in the east. It is the capital of the state of South Australia and is one of the five most populated cities on the entire continent.

Although less known than the more famous Sydney and Melbourne, Adelaide is considered one of the most livable cities on the Australian continent, thanks to the more relaxed rhythms and the lower cost of living for the older sisters.

But what chance do nature photographers have in this city? This is exactly why I am here and I will tell you exactly where to go to find many interesting things to photograph.

I'm in Adelaide, where do I start?

The first thing we notice as soon as we look at the map of this small town is the amount of greenery surrounding the center. As you will notice from the image that I attach below, Adelaide is surrounded by beautiful public parks, all rigorously kept very clean and where you can find interesting animals to photograph.
From parrots and birds of many colors to different species of flowers and insects, always present throughout the year.

These parks are very easy to reach on foot if you pass through the center, or thanks to the large amount of public transport that surrounds the city. In addition, a free tram and bus service is offered that runs daily, which runs through the main points of the city.

It is convenient to go around these parks around the city because, especially for beginners, it can be a good gym before moving to more difficult and less manageable situations. It is also an excellent excuse for those who are a bit lazy but want to get excellent results without going very far. Also to try your new equipment, Adelaide parks are always a great choice.

I will list now the best places to take fantastic pictures!

Adelaide botanic garden

Located in the Adelaide Park Lands. The Adelaide Botanic Garden is a 51-hectare public garden at the north-east corner of the Adelaide city centre, It encompasses a fenced garden on North Terrace and behind it the Botanic Park. Work was begun on the site in 1855, with its official opening to the public on 4 October 1857.

This set of gardens and parks in the northern part of the city is one of the most famous spots for taking a walk in nature, relaxing, but above all taking interesting photos.

Here we can observe and photograph a very large colony of Pteropus poliocephalus, or simply Gray-headed Flying-foxes. These fantastic bats, although they may seem dangerous, are by no means aggressive and you will find hundreds of them taking a nap hanging in the trees. Despite their appearance, they are very shy animals and it would always be advisable to let them rest without disturbing them too much.

It is also highly discouraged to touch them in any way; they bring a lot of diseases with them and the Australian government continually warns visitors about precautions to be taken in case of contact with one of them.

Despite this, thanks to my loyal Tamron 150-600 G2 and my Canon 5d Mark IV, I managed to get an interesting portrait of this beautiful specimen.

As you can see from the following photos, these flying foxes were really many, but there are not only them … keep reading and I will show you all the other photographic possibilities that you will have in Adelaide and its surroundings.

For more information I recommend you to visit their official website

Adelaide Parks and gardens in general

Both in the northern area an in all the parks around Adelaide there are many species of flowers and trees, carefully cared for every day. What does this mean? It means that where there are many trees and many flowers, there are many birds and many insects. It will seem strange, but I have seen more birds than insects, yet everyone told me that in Australia there are very poisonous and gigantic spiders, but in 6 months of permanence in this city I have not seen so scary! Was I lucky? Maybe yes ahaha
Well I don’t want to go too long without showing you what else you can photograph in the parks around Adelaide.

Macro opportunities

You will have infinite photographic possibilities, especially with regard to macro photography. The colors and variety of flowers you will find will be an excellent subject to test your new Macro lens and why not, bring out some nice shots to add to your portfolio. But I have to say that, since the gardens are really very neat and precise, I have not found that variety of insects that I expected. It all seemed too clean, maybe I am used to Italian vegetation, I don’t know, but in Italy I sincerely found more possibilities and more species than the Adelaide gardens. This does not detract from the fact that we can still find interesting subjects.

Parrots and birds in Adelaide Metropolitan Area

Walking in these parks that surround the city is very relaxing, and in addition to various insects and flowers you can also easily photograph different species of parrots and birds. I who am used to seeing only pigeons and seagulls in the green areas of Rome, I was really amazed to be able to easily photograph the white ibis, the Rainbow lorikeet, the Galah or the Sulphur-crested cockatoo.

I would gladly exchange with the pigeons of Venice to have these colorful specimens flying above our heads in Italy, but you can’t have everything from life and for the months that I lived in Adelaide I can be satisfied.

Be careful of Noisy Miners

I have noticed, however, that many cyclists are afraid of being attacked by birds while riding happily in the parks here in Adelaide. I have read that some species are quite aggressive and territorial, such as the Noisy Miner (Manorina melanocephala).
As always, after reading something about it, I personally witnessed an attack by one of these birds. At the beginning, when I was photographing him I thought “ah but! He is really available to be photographed, he flies me closer and closer. Then on the third glide towards me, I realized that he was attacking me! Ok, the situation sounds ridiculous, but I didn’t know whether to laugh or start worrying. I only know that he had become quite persistent and until I moved at least thirty meters away, he continued to make thumps towards me in a threatening way. a field test. haha

Morialta Conservation Park

Morialta Conservation Park is a protected area located about 10 km north east of Adelaide. Within this beautiful natural area we will also find the Morialta Fall Reserve, characterized by waterfalls and a great variety of fauna and birdlife. The park is the ideal place if you want to take a walk during the weekend with the family for its easy travel or to organize a barbecue with friends thanks to the equipped areas in the first part of the reserve.

Usually it is during the weekend that this beautiful park is more crowded, but I must admit that although I went there on Saturday, I did not find crowds of people, probably because the area, being very large, makes them disperse visitors along the various routes that characterize it.

There are various paths that lead to the two main waterfalls, unfortunately for my bad luck, I happened during a little rainy season and I found the waterfalls almost without water.
It is however a very pleasant experience to do and it is very easy to see the beautiful koalas that doze on the very high eucalyptus trees that you will cross along the track.

Which lenses to bring?

The photographic opportunities are there if you bring the right equipment. As for my experience, that day I had not brought all my goals and I had to settle for the 24-70 that I use very often when I want to have a handyman lens.
I highly recommend a macro lens to capture the variety of plants you will find and absolutely a tele if you meet Koalas in the branches of the trees.
A wide angle is recommended if you want to take pictures of the falls. There is no rule of course and any goal is fine, but if you really have to choose only one goal do like me; bring a standard zoom like a 24-70mm, a 24-105mm or an 18-105mm, it will be more than enough to capture all the fantastic nuances that this beautiful park has to offer.

Be creative, don't give up

I open this paragraph to share with you a common moment that all of us photographers often face: well, we go out delighted with our beautiful camera, 100% charged batteries, memories, filters, flash, tripods and more has more ‘put; we arrive at our spot and suddenly we realize that what we expected does not affect us visually, we do not find an interesting subject to photograph, the light is harsh or the weather conditions do not reflect our expectations. I tell you and I repeat to you: do not be discouraged! You can always bring something valid out of our camera and thanks to a little creativity, try not to observe only subjects or animals or flowers; try to think differently, try for a moment to look at the contrasts, patterns, textures, lines that you can form in your frame. Not everything must necessarily be something already seen, use your imagination, experiment, try long exposures, or different focal lengths. There are many ways to make up for a poor day of opportunity. And this next is an example. I didn’t have the right lenses, the light was very ugly and shadows were harsh, there was a mix of things that didn’t make any subject I wanted to photograph something interesting. So I looked, evaluated and pulled this picture out. I don’t think it’s the most beautiful photo in the world, I don’t think it can win competitions with this photo, but I am sure of one thing after so many years of experience. If I had not looked beyond the photographic canons of many, I would probably have gone home without even a photo.

“Not everything must necessarily be something already seen, use your imagination, experiment, try long exposures, or different focal lengths.”

Cleland Wildlife Park

Cleland Conservation Park is a protected area located in the Adelaide hills, about 20 minutes drive from the city center. The park is named after the renowned South Australian naturalist Burton Cleland, who, after a career in medicine, decides to devote himself to Wildlife conservation. Inside the park you can find and observe the multitude of species that live in Australia, in addition to the well-known kangaroos, the main symbol of this immense continent. This reserve can also be reached by public transport which leaves directly from the center of Adelaide; to get an idea you can read the section on Mount Lofty Summit because the bus to take is the same or visit the official website of the park where you will find all the information necessary to see it at its best.

Feed Kangaroo and watch wildlife with freedom

The Park of Cleland is characterized by a huge green area where it is possible to observe and photograph native animals.
For those who are new to Australia, here it is possible to feed the hundreds of kangaroos present. Some are really very sociable and not dangerous, others instead, of completely different size, it would be appropriate to leave them at a safe distance. You will see how many animals in this park are free and where visitors have the privilege of approaching them.

For those who love Koalas, there is a section of the park dedicated entirely to these beautiful mammals, and daily guides offer guided tours where it is possible to interact with them.

I highly recommend a full day at Cleland Park, because not only is it a magnificent place for animal watching, but it is also a place suitable for children, photographers, and for those who simply want to take a walk different from the classic city garden .

For those interested in photography, Cleland park is a great place to get familiar with telephoto lenses above all; here you will find many species of birds and parrots with which you can experiment and try to work on the shots.
For those wishing to learn more about bird photography there is also a paid guided tour that will allow you to enter the park before the normal opening hours to the public.
I’ll leave you the link to the tour I’m talking about here

Big advice if you will reach the park by bus

However, I advise you to organize yourself in time for the return if you come by public transport. In my experience, at the closing of the park, around 5pm if I remember correctly, I waited for the bus at the stop for an hour, only to find out that they were gone until the next day! After trying in vain to call an Uber (there was absolutely no Uber available to pick us up), and having been completely alone with my girlfriend, in the middle of nowhere, in the dark and worried about how to get home, I stopped a car that had come to get another person and we managed to get back to the city.

Aside from this little problem of the return, which sincerely disappointed me a bit (I don’t understand why if the park closes around 5pm they never thought of extending the bus service until that hour or a little later),

Mount Lofty Summit

Mount Lofty Summit is one of the highest points where you can see all the beauty of Adelaide and beyond. On fine days you can also see the ocean and the beaches of Glenelg and Henley.
Mount Lofty is located about 15 km from Adelaide and is easily accessible by car or public transport; the bus, which departs from the center of Adelaide is the n: 864, the one that goes to Mount Baker and after half an hour of road you will have to get off at stop 24a and get on the bus n: 823 which is the bus that reaches also The Cleland Wildlife Park. The latter, makes a short stop at Mount Lofty Summit and then continues to the park, so if you want to stop for about ten minutes at Mount Lofty Summit, take a photo on the fly and get back on the bus to go to Cleland Park, you can . Remember though that Australian drivers are very precise and attentive and after the minute break they allow, they will leave without waiting for you.

I am attaching an image below with the route of public transport to be taken to get to Mount Lofty Summit.

You will also find a lot of useful information on the dedicated website set up by the Australian government

Opening times of Mount Lofty Summit

The Lookout and parking are open at the following times:

Sunday to Thursday – 6:00 am – 11:00 pm
Friday and Saturday – 6:00 am – 1:00 am

The Visitor Centre and the gift shop instead follows the following times:

Open 9:00 am – 5:00 pm daily (closed Christmas Day)

You will also find a cafeteria where the staff are always very kind and the coffee is relatively good.

You can visit their website for opening hours and get an idea of the place.

I came here twice and both times it was really nice to watch the sunset over the ocean with the view of Adelaide and its beautiful green hills.
I advise you to come there around 5, have a good coffee and a dessert and relax in the surrounding benches enjoying the sunset.
There are also small kangaroos in the small wood around Summit, so if you have the eye and patience you will find them grazing in the trees.

Mount lofty botanic garden

Located east of Mount Lofty, you will find Mount Lofty Botanic Garden. This wonderful park, opened in 1977, extends over 97 hectares of land along the Adelaide Hills and thanks to a colder and wetter microclimate it is home to many plant species otherwise impossible to find in other parts of the region.

The Garden is administered by the Botanic Gardens of South Australia and it is possible to consult their website for further information.

With totally free access and full of paths to explore, it gives wonderful colors especially during autumn when the leaves of the trees begin to change color and become red and yellow. On a photographic level there are many subjects to photograph, including insects, birds and plants of all types, so I highly recommend a macro lens and a standard zoom to capture the colors of the trees you will find.

Glenelg and Henley Beach

I conclude this article with two of the places that I frequented most not only for their tranquility, but also for their beauty and above all for their proximity to Adelaide. I’m talking to you about Glenelg and Henley, two small suburbs just under half an hour from the center of Adelaide.
Easily accessible by tram or bus, these two small seaside resorts can offer you moments of relaxation and inspiration for photography.

I have often reached Glenelg by bicycle from Adelaide and the cycle paths are always perfect and smooth; with thirty minutes you will happily reach the beach and if you walk along the main pier, you will also have the opportunity to meet some seals and observe occasional fishermen.

We all know that the sea is a great subject for our photos and the colors of the sunsets over the ocean that both Glenelg and Henley will offer you will never be the same.
I found both locations very distinctive but I want to break a spear in Glenelg’s favolre for the very pretty main square and the variety of food and activities it offers.

Bring a windbreaker

A personal advice regarding clothing: although there are beautiful days, you will almost always find moderate winds in these beaches, so I recommend you bring a windbreaker with you.

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