15 Australian travel Instagrammers you have to follow

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In the world of travel Instagram, good pictures are worth not only a thousand words but probably a thousand followers too.

Australian ‘Grammers are telling moderns tales in modern Australian style, each feed with its own idiosyncrasies, techniques and focus. But when everyone is jumping on board the travel Instagram bandwagon, from professional photographers to ‘paid influencers’, who to follow?

 

Here are 15 Australian Instagram accounts (capturing Australia) who are making a real impression on us @austtraveller  (in no particular order)

1. Paul Fleming – @lovethywalrus (42,000 followers)

Highly active professional photographer, started Instagramming his home, Tasmania.

 

Why: Spectacular shots, incredible visuals, enhanced colours.

 

Website: lovethywalrus.com

2. Gary Norris – @Garry_Norris (129,000 followers)

Gary is a travelling chef based in Surfers Paradise.

 

Why: Mix of landscape and city, not ‘over styled’, allowing for the raw and natural Australian picture to come out.

3. Lauren Bath – @laurenepbath (383,000 followers)

Considered Australia’s first professional Instagrammer. Describes herself as a ‘social media influencer’ and is expanding her ‘brand’ into seminars and the like.

 

Why: Bold photographs, stunning locations, highly stylised photographs. Huge following!

4. Tim Denoodle – @denoodle (14,000 followers)

Writer/photographer with a recent debut exhibition called ‘We are Bondi’.

 

Why: A definite sense of Bondi ‘hipster’ in Denoodle’s Instagram feed, using matte-style filters to capture cool people as much as the scenery.

 

Website: denoodle.com

5. Jewels Zee – @jewelszee (76,000 followers)

Based in Queensland, Jewelszee is an example of someone who migrated from using an iPhone to a D-SLR after she won a photo competition.

 

Why: From the dessert, to ocean shots, to Noosa sunrises, this feed almost feels like Tourism Australia’s.

6. Pauly Vella – @paulyvella (318,000 followers)

Fixing air-conditioning units by day/by night and weekends Pauly is out Instagramming.

 

Why: Idyllic seascapes on NSW’s Central Coast and the odd quirky Australian found on a beach somewhere.

7. William Patino – @william_patino (82,000 followers)

Wollongong-based William specialises in landscape photography and dramatic ocean vistas.

 

Why: Incredible landscape and scenic visuals often shot in interesting and artistic ways.

 

Website: williampatino.com/about

8. Mark Clinton – @markclinton (66,000 followers)

Mark shoots surfing and Australian landscapes including Kakadu and tropical Queensland.

 

Why: Stunning underwater shots. Portrays Australia’s landscape in a romantic way.

 

Website: www.markclintonphoto.com

9. The Love Assembly – @theloveassembly (12,197 followers)

Australian-born blogger Aubrey Daquinag says her shots are a meeting of travel and style. Plenty of international snaps too.

 

Why: Aesthetic appeals to women. Lots of pastels and beach-inspired Instagrams. Very Sydney.

 

Website: theloveassembly.com

10. Graham Michael Freeman – @insta_graham23 (16,971 followers)

Partnered with Canon, Graham has been photographing America extensively but is now walking five states of Australia and capturing the experience.

 

Why: Some amazing outback and coastal Australian shots.

11. Liss Lane – @lifeintheslowlane (16,006 followers)

Liss’s chic, hippie travels around Australia in her 1959 caravan. Some sweet shots from the Kimberley.

 

Why: Retro beach chic with a grand feminine touch.

 

Website: lisslane.com

12. Matt Glastonbury – @mattglastonbury (84,000 followers)

An established photographer in Tasmania, Matt produces commercial content for major brands such as Nokia, Google and Tourism Tasmania.

 

Why: Great ‘big outdoors landscapes’, including some brilliant Southern Lights shots.

 

Website: mattglastonbury.me

13. Matt Donovan – @itsworthashot (17,000 followers)

Matt’s website showcases his travels through the Australian landscape. He also offers online camera tutorials.

 

Why: Moody landscape shots and some great wildlife images too.

 

Website: itsworthashot.com/blog

14. Mick Tsikas – @mickpix (4,784 followers)

Sydney freelance photo journo who previously worked at Sydney Morning Herald, AAP, Reuters and has won a Walkley award for his images of the Bali 9.

 

Why: Hard, edgy style, using black and white filters. Bold silhouettes and

 

dark images show Sydney’s other side.

15. Annette Widitz – @dawa_lhamo (35,119 followers)

Sydney based, I-phone-only Instagrammer currently situated in Iran.

 

Why: Scroll past the stunning shots of Iran and Annette has captured Sydney’s idyllic monuments, street photography in places such as Redfern and images of the vastness of Lake Jindabyne.

 

Follow: @AustTraveller on Instagram and hashtag #austtravellermag to share images with us

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How a $1 deal saved Bendigo’s historic tramways

    Megan ArkinstallBy Megan Arkinstall
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    The passionate community that saved Bendigo Tramways has kept the story of this city alive for generations.

    It was an absolute steal: a fleet of 23 trams for just $1. But such a fortunate purchase didn’t happen easily. It was 1972 when the Bendigo Trust handed over a single buck for the city’s historic collection of battery, steam and electric trams, which had transported locals since 1890.

    inside the historic Bendigo Tram
    Bendigo Tramways is a historic transport line turned tourist service. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)

    The city’s tram network had been declared defunct since 1970 due to post-war shortages in materials to upkeep the trams and declining passenger numbers as motor vehicles were increasing. However, determined locals would not hear of their beloved trams being sold off around the world.

    The Bendigo Trust was enlisted to preserve this heritage, by converting the trams into a tourist service. The Victorian government approved a trial, however news spread that the Australian Electric Tramways Museum in Adelaide had acquired one of the streetcars for its collection.

    a tram heading to Quarry Hill in 1957
    A tram on its way to Quarry Hill in 1957. (Image: Bendigo Heritage)

    An impassioned group rallied together to make this physically impossible. Breaking into the tram sheds, they welded iron pipes to the rails, removed carbon brushes from the motors, and formed a blockade at the depot. The community response was extraordinary, and a $1 deal was sealed.

    A new chapter for the city’s fleet

    the old Tramways Depot and Workshop
    The old Tramways Depot and Workshop is one of the stops on the hop-on, hop-off service. (Image: Tourism Australia)

    Today, Bendigo Tramways welcomes some 40,000 passengers annually, operating as a hop-on, hop-off touring service aboard the restored trams. Fifteen of the now 45-strong fleet are dubbed ‘Talking Trams’ because of the taped commentary that is played along the route. The trams loop between Central Deborah Gold Mine and the Bendigo Joss House Temple, which has been a place of Chinese worship since 1871, via other sites including the old Tramways Depot and Workshop.

    a Gold Mine Bendigo Tram
    The fleet comprises 45 trams that have been restored. (Image: Visit Victoria/Robert Blackburn)

    Keeping things interesting, throughout the year visitors can step aboard different themed trams. Tram No. 302 becomes the Yarn Bomb Tram, decorated both inside and out with colourful crochet by an anonymous group of locals.

    During the festive season, Tram No. 15 operates as a tinsel-festooned Santa Tram, and the big man himself hides out somewhere along the route for excited children to find. And on selected dates, the adults-only Groove Tram runs nighttime tours of the city, accompanied by local musicians playing live tunes and a pop-up bar.

    the historic post office turned visitor centre in Bendigo
    Visitors can hop on and off to see the city’s sites such as the historic post office turned visitor centre. (Image: Tourism Australia)

    As well as preserving the city’s history, however, the continuation of the tram service has kept the skills of tram building and craftsmanship alive in a practical sense. Bendigo’s Heritage Rail Workshop is world-renowned for restoring heritage trams and repurposing vehicles in creative ways.

    Locally, for example, Tram No. 918 was transformed into the Dja Dja Wurrung Tram with original Aboriginal artworks by emerging artist Natasha Carter, with special commentary and music that shares the stories and traditions of Bendigo’s first people. You can’t put a price on preserving history. Nonetheless, it was a dollar very well spent.