Midnight fireworks over Sydney Harbour as viewed from Garden Island.

I was lucky enough to be invited out to the Royal Australian Navy’s Garden Island base to enjoy the view over Sydney Harbour as a large amount of explosives were detonated over the harbour to farewell 2008 and welcome 2009. I was with friends from uni and I would have to rate it as one of the better New Years I’ve enjoyed – apart from the lugging of a full esky, camera pack, tripod and chair between the Queen Victoria Building and the end of Garden Island and back (my shoulders took a week to recover).

As I got home I decided I had to get the shots up before heading to bed. I was chatting with a friend who was in South America at the time and looked at the time. Realising dawn was only an hour away I decided that I might as well go and welcome 2009 in the proper spirit – by shooting the first rays as they appeared over the harbour.