I quite enjoy trekking around Dandenong Ranges National Park frequently. Little falls, sun-lit gullies, fern trees, cool air, winding paths--and above all, being around the mountains--all reaffirm my sense of connection with the motherly nature. In all my crisscrossing of these hills, the one place I kept missing, until recently, to stop by was William Ricketts Sanctuary--a quiet refuge of sculptures perpetually attesting one man's love of the Nature.
The one man, William Ricketts, lived to spread the message that "life is love". In whichever words could be better than his own: Each one of us is a transformer of Divine Power and when love finds form in sculpture and music we are richly blessed because through such we can reach God. The only way to retain love for oneself is to give it abundantly to others, so your brother William Ricketts hopes you will share and enjoy all these things with me.
There is a feel of mysticism & spirituality in Ricketts' creations. Not incongruous with the surrounding mountains if I may add. Among many, the Earthly Mother, sits in a raised cloister. By design or nature, the lighting from the sky falls on the Mother like a spotlight, with the surrounding dimly shrouded in boughs and branches. The ongoing precipitation during my visit added a touch of another source of life--water. Water embracing the Earthly Mother!
The atmosphere was catching, so much so that I ended up forgetting to mind the precarious situation of using the camera under the drizzle. (It still works.) I was mindful of selecting an apporpriate height. I wanted the ferns behind the Mother to stand out (they look ornamental to me), without dominating the scene. The place itself has added a vignetting to the scene which goes well with the mood I think. As I felt the urge to preserve the mystic atmosphere, I chose to underexpose slightly.
Location: William Ricketts Sanctuary, Melbourne, Australia
Camera: Nikon D300
Lens: Nikkor 12-24mm f/4
ISO: 400
Exposure: 1/40s
Aperture: f/4
Focal Length: 12mm
Filter: N/A
Flash: No
Tripod: No
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