Sunday 4 August 2013

On the surface

The landscape of central Australia is remarkable on any number of scales and here I've tried to look at the smallest of these - the very surface of things.

The intense heat and often rapidly cooling nights, wind blown sand, occasional heavy rain and above all else an almost unimaginable spread of time have worn down the rocks.  Uluru has a flaky surafce calling to mind a sheet of rusted metal rather than stone.

Even in the winter you could feel the heat bouncing from it surface.  It called out to be touched.




The flakes form the fastest where water can linger, and their removal has caused the foot worn track up the side of Uluru where people have chosen to climb.

You can find more macro shots at Macro Monday 2 and I Love Macro.

Enjoy the close ups.


23 comments:

  1. I really like that dark red ochre colour of the outback

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  2. Love 'em. I often take shots of the ground, especially in the inland.

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  3. Hi Stewart,
    Very special this ground.
    That we do not know so in the Netherlands.

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  4. I like the color, you are right about the rusted metal look. Great shots! Have a happy day!

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  5. Prachtig om dit zo te laten zien.

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  6. really does look like rust corrosion!

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  7. Great shots and I love the color!! Beautiful!

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  8. HI Stewart I watched a programme today about a garden in that area and what they grew. It was very interesting and they also showed the red earth.

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  9. thats a great photo Stewart, i feel as if i could touch it,


    peter

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  10. Hallo Stewart!!
    Great pictures of the ground!
    Nive colour!!!
    Have a lovely new week!!
    Dimi...

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  11. Interesting how diverse the land varies around our fragile earth.

    I like your comparison to a rusty surface.

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  12. Love the rich color!

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  13. Amazing color -- and an interesting and different way to see it.

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  14. I didn't know that Uluru is going thru a fast weathering process. But it is too big that it can still wait for another deluge. Thanks for my first time to see its skin!

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  15. Beautiful color...love the shots!

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  16. Love the subtle tone variations and the colour is simply amazing. This earth seems to have its own inbuilt glare.

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  17. Great shots and lovely colours!

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  18. It doesn't really look like rock. I like the colour.

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  19. This must be one of the reasons they ask people to keep to the footpaths. I know it's a sacred place, too, but surely it is not good to remove the weathered surface.

    I do love your photos, particularly the first - and I did indeed think it was rusted metal before I read the text!

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  20. Neat color and texture.

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  21. It looks like the surface of an alien and hostile planet. Great photos of an amazing place Stewart.

    To those who don't know about it, it actually is rusted metal. High levels of iron oxide in the ground and rocks causes it rust.


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