Melbourne Candid Series #1263 Flagstaff Garden

 

Two men beneath matching caps,
T-shirts blazing a Brazilian logo,
stand anchored in the Saturday hum
of Flagstaff Gardens, Melbourne.

One is bent to the grill,
cutting meat with a craftsman’s calm
smoke curling around him
like a quiet anthem
lifted from far-off shores.

The other,
sunglasses dark as river stone,
faces my lens without flinching
a held breath of curiosity,
or challenge,
or just the stillness
between sizzle and song.

Around them the garden thrums:
kids running, parrots chattering,
wind brushing the old trees awake.

And in the middle of it all,
two men in the same hat and shirt
briefly become a scene
a small, vivid stitch
in Flagstaff’s wandering tapestry.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1019

Melbourne Candid Series #1262 Flagstaff Garden

 

Two lady performers,
floral loops crowning their hair
like dawn-warmed garlands,
let the last notes of their music
settle into the soft lawns
of Flagstaff Garden.

They lean toward their support staff,
quiet laughter blooming
between them like late-spring petals,
their words drifting in the air
where melodies once lived.

The garden listens
trees tilting in approval,
pigeons pausing mid-step
as the performers, unmasked from the stage,
become simply two friends
gathering themselves
after giving their hearts to the day.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1018

Melbourne Candid Series #1261 Flagstaff Garden

 

Two lady performers
floral loops crowning their hair
like small, deliberate blossoms
stand before twin microphones
in the green hush of Flagstaff Garden.

The guitarist begins first:
fingers like soft rain on warm timber,
each chord a slow unfurling
of late-afternoon gold.

Beside her, the violinist lifts her bow
as though summoning a dawn,
and from the strings bloom tones
so tremulous, so fine,
they seem spun from the breath
between wind and dreaming.

Their voices rise
two petals carried on the same breeze
braiding through guitar warmth
and violin shimmer,
floating over the lawn
like a blessing that knows no name.

For a moment, time leans in,
listening.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1017 FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1260 Flagstaff Garden

 

An Indian chap in a weathered cap
stands behind his hawker stall
at Flagstaff Garden
a small kingdom of smoke and sizzle
claimed for the evening.

He brushes sauces onto skewers
with the precision of habit,
lacquered reds and browns
catching the flare of the grill.

No ritual of sharing here
just trade,
just hunger meeting craft,
just the quiet exchange
of money for flavour,
the brief transaction
between a vendor and the passing world,
each skewer handed over
like a moment that never lingers.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1016

Melbourne Candid Series #1259 Flagstaff Garden

 

A young woman in dark sunglasses
leans toward a waiting skewer,
the sun catching on the metal,
on her smile half-hidden.

Behind her, the Mexican mural
spills its colour across the food truck
chilies, saints, and swirling blossoms
a feast painted before the feast.

She lifts the skewer,
a small moment in a busy day,
yet framed by all that colour
it becomes its own bright story.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1015

Melbourne Candid Series #1258 Flagstaff Garden

 

Two vendors at the Mexican stall
leaned close in quiet debate,
their words rising like warm spice
into the afternoon air.

Behind them, in the soft green hush
of Flagstaff Garden,
two women—one young, one weathered by years
turned toward my waiting lens.

The younger with curiosity,
the elder with knowing calm—
as if they had long understood
that every moment, once seen,
becomes a story.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1014

Melbourne Candid Series #1257 Flagstaff Garden

 

In Flagstaff Garden’s tempered light,
a man prepares his borrowed face
fine strokes of crimson, coal, and white,
a quiet ritual in the open space.

Brush whispers over skin like breath,
each line a memory, each curve a vow;
the living paying homage to death,
the ancient blooming through him now.

Around him, Melbourne hums its day,
trams singing past in their iron tune,
yet here he stands in calm display,
a blossom painted for the moon.

For Mexico’s bright festival,
he dons the mask of joy and sorrow
a face that says the past is full,
and we must greet it come tomorrow.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 1013

Melbourne Candid Series #1256 Flagstaff Garden

 

Beneath the tent’s soft shadowed hue,
He stands in stillness, eyes of blue,
A vendor framed by noon’s slow heat,
Where smells of food and voices meet.

His shirt declares with cheerful play,
Baleadas—Everyday!
Yet in his gaze, a quiet depth,
A thought unspoken, softly kept.

The flag behind him folds and sways,
A whisper of far sunlit days,
While in his hands, the moment stays,
Between the pause of work and gaze.

Around, the fair moves loud and wide,
But he remains—calm, dignified,
A poet’s poise in market’s din,
The world reflected deep within.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 

Check out Candid 1012

Melbourne Candid Series #1255 Flagstaff Garden

 

Beneath a tent of bright display,
Where “Spanish Gourmet” banners sway,
They stand behind the glassy frame,
Each stirring pans of saffron flame.

The scent of rice, the sun’s embrace,
A glint of warmth on every face,
She smiles mid-thought, her eyes alight,
He turns, half-shadow, caught in light.

The crowd drifts past in hungry streams,
The air is thick with midday dreams,
And laughter hums, both near and far,
Like tapas shared beneath a star.

In oil and spice their hours blend,
A fleeting moment without end—
Two cooks, two hearts, in heat and song,
Where simple work makes daylight long.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1012

Melbourne Candid Series #1254 Nicholson St Melbourne Museum

 

Along the polished floor they stride,
Tasmanian oak with marble’s pride,
Light bends and dances on the glass,
As moments in their rhythm pass.

Four figures move through space and gleam,
Half in motion, half in dream,
A teacher leads with steady grace,
The students follow, pace by pace.

The air is bright, the ceiling high,
Reflections stretch, and footsteps sigh,
A hush of learning, calm, contained,
Where wonder walks, unstrained, unfeigned.

In Melbourne’s hall of thought and art,
They trace the future’s beating heart
A quiet bond, both firm and free,
Between the young and memory.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1010

Melbourne Candid Series #1253 Melbourne Museum Nicholson St

 

A pair of teachers, calm and bright,
One dusk of skin, one morning light,
They lead their class through open air,
Where learning hums beyond compare.

The floor beneath—Tasmanian oak,
And marble veins where sunlight broke,
Reflected walls in gentle gleam,
A city’s heart, a scholar’s dream.

He walks ahead with measured tone,
She calls the roll, their voices known,
And children trail in ordered streams,
Their chatter soft as woven dreams.

Within those halls of thought and care,
Two guides stand patient, firm, and fair,
The Melbourne day moves calm and wide,
With knowledge walking side by side.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1009

Melbourne Candid Series #1252 Flinders St

 

A bearded man, like Potter grown,
With city dust his cloak and crown,
Walks Flinders Street, the noon aflame,
Yet calm, as though the world were tame.

Beside him moves a lady fair,
In white, with sunlight in her hair,
Both veiled in shades, both cool, composed,
Their steps in quiet rhythm closed.

Trams hum by, the pavements gleam,
The air is thick with city dream,
And for a breath, the crowd makes way—
Two figures passing, bright as day.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1008

Melbourne Candid Series #1251 Flinders St

 

A man in shades on Flinders Street,
Crouched mid-step, in pose discreet,
A fist beneath his sculpted chin,
As if deep thought were caged within.

Beside him walked, with mirrored eyes,
His blonde companion, cool, precise,
Her stride unbent, her silence sleek,
The sunlight glinting on her cheek.

The crowd flowed past — a restless stream,
Yet they moved through, a frozen dream,
Two figures framed in city glare,
Half in fashion, half in air.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check Candid 1007 and FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1250 Exhibition St

 

Two large ladies, side by side,
One in pants, one skirted wide,
No laughter shared, no word, no glance,
Just silence in their steadfast stance.

At Exhibition Street they wait,
The red light hums, the hour late,
Beside them, old man, lean and spare,
Clutches his strap with practiced care.

His cap pulled low, his gaze ahead,
The city murmurs, faintly fed,
He braces, poised for the signal’s gleam,
Green will cut through this heavy dream.

Three still figures in the rain of sound,
Each earthbound, yet unbound,
Melbourne holds its breath a beat,
Before the lights release their feet.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1006

Melbourne Candid Series #1249 Elizabeth St

 

Among the crowd on Elizabeth Street,
two ladies — one wide, one thin 
walked side by side in easy rhythm,
their laughter woven with the din.

My camera caught their fleeting glance,
a moment framed between our gaze 
they pointed, smiling, half in jest,
half curious at my quiet craze.

The traffic hummed, the sunlight slid,
past tramlines tangled, silver, near 
and in that instant, brief yet bold,
the city’s heart drew gently near.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1005

Melbourne Candid Series #1248 Bourke St Mall

 

A chap in shorts, legs crossed with ease,
sits on the iron bench, sunlit, at Bourke Street Mall 
the noon warmth paints his knees with gold,
the city hums, a tram bell calls.

Shadows drift like passing moods,
a breeze tugs softly at his sleeve;
around him, shoppers flow like tides,
but he — he stays, content to breathe.

Melbourne glows in tempered glass,
and time, for him, forgets to move 
a chap in shorts beneath the sun,
at peace with nothing left to prove.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1004

Melbourne Candid Series #1247 Bourke St Mall

 

He stands beneath the wide city sky,
cap pulled low, T-shirt loose,
hands alive upon the electric keys
a melody rising above the noon.

Shoppers drift like quiet waves,
trams sigh past in steel refrain,
yet his voice threads through it all
a bright pulse woven into motion.

Coins fall softly in his open case,
but he does not count—he sings,
eyes half-closed, body swaying
as if the music were wind inside him.

The city becomes his stage and choir:
awnings flutter, heels keep time,
pigeons turn slow circles overhead.
And for a moment, Bourke Street glows
each note a spark against the hum,
the man and the mall breathing as one.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1003

Melbourne Candid Series #1246 Swanston St

 

A row of men in caps sit still
along the stone bench, shoulder to shoulder
a quiet congregation of screens.
Each head bowed,
not in prayer but in signal,
their thumbs murmuring in perfect rhythm.

The city swirls around them
trams clang, pigeons scatter,
light flickers across their faces
like water over stone.
They do not look up.
The world passes in reflections
on glass and metal and moving lips.

Time, too, seems to pause here
a row of lives humming softly
in their separate orbits,
united by invisible threads of light.
And in that stillness,
the stone bench holds them gently,
as if the street itself were listening.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1002

Melbourne Candid Series #1245 Flindes St

 

An Indian chap leans toward the light,
camera poised, eyes half-narrowed,
his fingers steady as if tuning a string.
He glances at the small blue glow
of the LCD—his private universe
where a fragment of Melbourne
is trapped in digital silence.

Behind him, tables hum with midday talk:
cutlery glints, coffee curls in steam,
laughter drifts like music caught
between brick and awning.
The city moves, yet he is still
framing the world’s brief shimmer,
a moment folding into another.

Somewhere, a tram bell rings,
and the wind carries the scent of roast and rain.
He lowers the camera, half-smiling,
as though what he sought
wasn’t in the image,
but in the act of seeing itself.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 

Check out Candid 1001 and FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1244 Flinders St

 

The crowd flows both ways
a tide of shoes, glances, breath.
Flinders Street hums in gold and grit,
trams sighing, wind tugging at sleeves.

Through my lens, the city unfolds:
a tall young man ahead, scratching his hair,
lost somewhere between thought and motion,
his gesture framed by afternoon light.

Behind him—a chap and his girl pause,
their gaze caught in the circle of my glass.
For a heartbeat we share a secret:
the stillness that lives inside movement.

Pedestrians split and merge like water,
faces flicker, dissolve, reform
and I, unseen except for the camera’s eye,
stand in the river of human time,
catching one instant before it drifts away.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 1000

Melbourne Candid Series #1243 Albert Park

 

Beneath the shimmer of a Melbourne noon,
they walk—two souls in gentle rhyme.
His beard catches light like autumn wheat,
her dark glasses hold the mirrored sky.

The path curls softly through the garden’s breath,
where magnolias dream and shadows turn.
Two dogs bound forward, eager spirits
tugging laughter from their hands.

Each leash is a line of love, invisible,
woven between pulse and motion, step and sigh.
The air smells of cut grass and quiet hours,
the lake winks silver through the trees.

He speaks little; she smiles behind her sunlit veil
the kind of smile that ripples the day.
And so they drift, hand by leash by heart,
two figures gliding through green time,
their dogs like bright commas in the sentence of the world.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 999

Melbourne Candid Series #1242 Albert Park

 

Two rowers glide on Albert Park Lake,
their paddles slice the calm awake;
side by side, in perfect line,
their rhythm steady, near divine.

The morning hums, the water gleams,
a mirror stirred by drifting dreams;
each stroke a whisper, soft and clear,
their motion speaks what none can hear.

No race, no rush, just quiet grace
two souls in sync, one mirrored space;
beneath the sky’s unhurried blue,
the lake holds both
the world, and you.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 998

Melbourne Candid Series #1241 Lakeside Drive Albert Park

 

In Albert Park Lake where the soft winds play,
three rowers drift at the break of day;
their canoes glide under willow lace,
where branches brush each tranquil face.

The central island, hushed and green,
cradles the stillness, pure, serene;
reflections shimmer, trees lean low,
their mirrored limbs in ripples glow.

Each paddle stroke, a gentle tune,
the water hums beneath the noon;
three hearts in rhythm, smooth and wide,
slip through the dream the willows hide.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 997

Melbourne Candid Series #1240 Albert Park Lakeside Drive

 

In Albert Park Lake, the morning gleams,
soft light drifts through the silver seams;
a rower glides, his oar-blades bite,
petals of water bloom in flight.

His vest clings close, his rhythm sure,
each stroke both effort and allure;
the ripples spread, then fade away,
like whispered thoughts that cannot stay.

Behind him stand the patient trees,
their leaves stirred gently by the breeze;
the lake holds calm, the air holds grace
one man, one craft, one quiet place.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 996

Melbourne Candid Series #1239 Kisume Little Flinders Lane

 

At the chef’s table, silence glowed,
steam rose soft where the ladle flowed
a Japanese chef, calm, precise,
poured hot soup like melted ice.

Porcelain gleamed beneath his hand,
a ritual few could understand;
each motion slow, each gesture clear,
the art of warmth made near.

Behind him, laughter gently spilled
a young yuppie pair, bright-eyed, fulfilled;
their words flew quick, their smiles alive,
as flavours and dreams began to thrive.

Between the steam and chatter’s song,
the moment lingered, brief yet strong
a world of taste, of talk, of flame,
each heart stirred much the same.

Sony A7RV

FE 24mm f1.4 GM

Check out Candid 995

Melbourne Candid Series #1238 Albert Park Lakeside Drive

 

By Albert Park Lake beneath the noon’s bright gleam,
two warriors clashed in a painted dream
their swords met air, not flesh or bone,
each strike rehearsed, yet fierce in tone.

Cosplay armour, plastic pride,
clanked softly where the swans reside;
helmets glinted, cloaks took flight,
echoing tales of myth and might.

Behind them gathered, a laughing band,
more heroes born of comic lands
caped crusaders, elves, and knights,
posing boldly in borrowed fights.

By the kiosk’s shade they cheered and played,
their colours bright, their worries stayed;
the world spun gentle, time stood still
pretend became the truest thrill.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 994 and FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1237 Albert Lake

 

By Albert Park Lake in Melbourne’s chill,
a young chap stood, poised and still
man bun tight, a Viking’s air,
the morning light caught in his hair.

In his hands, a slender staff—
at either end, twin circles laughed,
spinning, flashing, slicing air,
a dance of metal, bold and rare.

He moved with rhythm, fierce and free,
each turn a whispered melody,
the lake reflected sky and flame,
and he—untamed—without a name.

Joggers slowed, the breeze grew keen,
the water shimmered, silver-green;
the blades kept turning, wild delight
a Norse ghost playing in the light.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 993

Melbourne Candid Series #1236 Albert Park Lakeside Drive

 

Cold, chilly morning
mist curls over Albert Park Lake,
the water a silver hush,
breath rising like fragile smoke.

A young man walks the path,
scarf looped close,
hands deep in woollen pockets,
shoulders braced against the bite.

Leaves whisper underfoot,
each step a soft echo
in the quiet city’s wake.

The swans drift, serene and slow
he pauses,
watching the ripples widen,
thinking how even the cold
has its calm beauty.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 992

Gold Coast Candid Series #1235 Burleigh Heads

 

On the right, the surfer treads the sand,
Board held easy in his hand.
The sea hums low, a rhythmic tune,
Beneath the soft breath of afternoon.

To the left, the skyline shimmers far,
Each tower catching the day’s last star.
Gold Coast gleams in a hazy glow,
Dream and distance, ebb and flow.

Between the two, the tide’s long sigh,
Carries the hush of sea and sky.
One man, one coast, one fading light
The world divided, yet calm, and right.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 991

Gold Coast Candid Series #1234 Burleigh Heads

 

A lone silhouette on Burleigh sand,
Board in hand, footsteps soft and planned.
The city rises, glass and light,
Against the fading edge of night.

He walks where waves whisper and break,
Where ocean dreams and skylines wake.
Sunset drapes the scene in gold,
A fleeting story silently told.

Salt wind tangles, horizon glows,
Between the land the skyline shows.
A surfer paused, the world in frame,
Shadow and sea, one quiet flame.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 990

Gold Coast Candid Series #1233 Burleigh Heads (Photo bombed me)

 

Bare-chested, he lingers where the sun bleeds gold,
Burleigh unfurls, a cityscape bold.
Sky and water melt in molten flame,
Each rooftop and wave whispering his name.

He lifts his lens, capturing the fire,
The horizon hums with quiet desire.
Sunset drapes the skyline in honeyed light,
And the ocean hums its lullaby of night.

A heartbeat, a glance, the moment spun,
Youth and dusk entwined as one.
In amber haze, the world holds still,
A fleeting magic he seeks to fill.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 989

Gold Coast Candid Series #1232 Gold coast Queensland

 

She treads the rope where sky meets sand,
A careful step, a steady hand.
Away from waves that hiss and gleam,
She walks toward the city’s dream.

Gold Coast towers in distant light,
Catching the blush of morning bright.
Each step a whisper, each breath a thread,
Between the sea and where paths led.

The rope sways soft, yet holds her true,
Between the tides of gray and blue.
A journey poised on air and gleam,
A woman walks toward her dream.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 988

Brisbane Candid Series #1231 Noosa Esplanade

 

A mangrove stands where sand meets sea,
Its roots like fingers in a briny plea.
Alone it rises, steadfast, still,
Bathed in sun, kissed by wind’s will.

Along the shore, a lone soul treads,
Where water shimmers and daylight spreads.
Footprints vanish in the tide’s embrace,
Yet the mangrove holds its quiet grace.

Salt and sky in a gentle dance,
Time slows here, caught in a trance.
One tree, one walker, the ocean’s hymn,
A fleeting world both vast and dim.

Sony A7RV

FE 20-70mm f4 G

Check out Candid 987

Sunshine Coast Candid Series #1230 Noosa Esplanade

 

Along Noosa’s shore, where sunlight spills,
A young man lingers by the sea’s soft thrills.
Bathers clinging to his sunlit skin,
He lifts his lens, the world pulled in.

Waves like silver sighs beneath the sky,
Clouds drift lazily, the gulls wheel high.
Each shimmer, each ripple, each glinting crest,
He captures the ocean within his chest.

The wind hums secrets through salt-sweet hair,
A fleeting moment, a quiet prayer.
One gentle click, and time holds its breath,
The sea, the sun, the boy—forever left.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 986 and FACE OFF

Brisbane Candid Series #1229 Glass House Mountain Queensland

 

Morning mist drapes the ancient spires,
stone sentinels born of fire’s desires.
A young hiker stands where the ridges gleam,
map in hand, eyes lost in dream.

High on the tower, the timber hums,
as wind through the railing softly drums.
He faces the mountains, vast and far,
each peak a memory, each scar a star.

The paper flutters — a compass, a guide,
his heart beats steady with the morning tide.
Below, the forest breathes in green,
above, the sky burns bright and clean.

He folds his map, the silence calls,
the world below, the range enthralls.
The Glass House waits, both stern and kind,
a mountain path, a state of mind.

Sony A7RV

FE 20-70mm f4 G

Check out Candid 985

Brisbane Candid Series #1228 Donna Chang Restaurant

 

Velvet seats and lanterned glow,
soft jade light where whispers flow.
Three men seated, calm, apart,
each with a meal, a private art.

Porcelain gleams beneath warm steam,
ginger and wine in a fragrant dream.
No words exchanged, yet all are near,
bound by the comfort of taste and cheer.

Outside, the river hums through glass,
time drifts slow, like clouds that pass.
Chopsticks pause — a fleeting grace,
three stories shared in a silent space.

Sony A7RV

Laowa 9mm f5.6

Check out Candid 984 and FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1227 St Kilda Esplanade

 

By the beach, where the pale waves sigh,
morning drapes gold across the sky.
A café hums with gentle grace,
steam curls upward, soft as lace.

Patrons linger with toast and talk,
sunlight spilling where shadows walk.
Cups clink lightly, the baybird calls,
salt and coffee perfume the walls.

The breeze tastes sweet with sea and day,
the city still yawns a mile away.
Here, at the edge where the tides begin,
life feels slower — soft, within.

Sony A7RV

FE 50mm f1.2 GM

Check out Candid 983 and FACE OFF

Melbourne Candid Series #1226 St Kilda Esplanade

 

A chap in a faded tee, long hair untamed,
leans on a bench where the sea is framed.
Phone to his ear, his laughter drifts,
between gull cries and the tramline’s shifts.

Opposite, the ice cream shop hums and gleams,
a melody of cones and seaside dreams.
Vanilla winds and ocean air entwine,
sweet and salt in the afternoon shine.

Behind him, the bay holds a silver hue,
and time, for a moment, forgets to move.
Only his voice, soft and far away,
threads through the heart of a Melbourne day.

Sony A7RV

FE 35mm f1.4 GM

Check out Candid 982

Sea Lake Candid Series #1225 Lake Tyrrell

 

At dusk, the salt lake breathes a hush,
its skin a mirror to the fading blush.
A lone silhouette stands between worlds 
earth below, heaven unfurled.

No ripple breaks the boundless glass,
where sky and soul in stillness pass.
The wind forgets its ancient song,
time itself lingers, lingering long.

One step — and stars bloom at the feet,
two realms of silence gently meet.
Lake Tyrrell holds the dream entire,
a mortal shadow, the sky’s desire.

Sony A7RV

FE 20-70mm f4 G

Check out Candid 979

Melbourne Candid Series #1224 Kisume Restaurant Chef's table

Inside Kisumé’s hush of glass and gleam,
The counter hums—a river’s dream.
The chef, back turned, composes grace,
Steel and sea in quiet embrace.

Behind him, bent in focused line,
The sous-chef hunts the missing knife
A slender blade, a slip of light,
That cuts through ritual, art, and life.

Steam rises soft, the lamps are low,
Time folds beneath the sushi’s glow.
Two figures move, as breath to flame
In wordless craft, they share one name.

Sony A7RV

FE 14mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 978

Melbourne Candid Series #1223 Collins Arcade

 

In the hush of Collins Arcade,
where marble echoes cradle each footfall,
an Asian woman bends slightly forward,
black-rimmed glasses glinting
like a poet’s pause between lines.

She listens — not merely with the ear
but with the whole gravity of her being,
as if the customer’s halting words
were a fragile bird she dared not startle.

Light pools on her sleeve,
the scent of roasted beans and rain-damp stone
folds into the moment 
and the city, briefly, forgets its noise.

In her attentive stillness
there is something luminous,
the quiet art of presence 
a listening so complete
it becomes its own kind of grace.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 977

Melbourne Candid Series #1222 Elizabeth St

 

Off Elizabeth Street, the air hums with noon 
trams rattle, pigeons scatter crumbs.
A man stands easy, jumper looped around his neck,
glasses glinting like a second sun.

He props one foot upon the bench,
beside a quiet patron lost in thought,
their worlds just inches apart 
one resting, one mid-motion.

The city flows around them 
coffee scent, sirens, street chatter 
and for a breath,
the scene becomes a sketch of Melbourne:
casual, alive,
where strangers share a bench
and time forgets to hurry.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 976

Melbourne Candid Series #1221 De Graves St

 

A wicked smile flickers 
he wipes his lips with the back of his hand,
crumbs falling like careless words.
The mullet catches light,
a halo of defiance
under the café’s striped awning.

He leans back in his chair,
street laughter spilling past,
steam rising from cups and grates alike.
There’s swagger in his stillness,
a kind of rough poetry
in the way he owns the moment 
De Graves Street watching,
and he, unbothered,
watching it back.

Sony A7RV

FE 135mm f1.8 GM

Check out Candid 975 and FACE OFF