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Photographer Joel Coleman Captures A Sydney Night From The Air

Photos out the Airbus window never come out this good.
Joel Coleman

There's a crisp quality to photographer Joel Coleman's magical series of Sydney by night, and it's no accident.

He said it was a technical shoot that required perfect conditions.

"There are so many reasons why photographing from a helicopter at night simply shouldn't work," Coleman said.

"Get the mix of equipment, aircraft, pilot (and photographer) right and you can push the limits of a modern digital camera to produce photographs like these."

Sydney Harbour
Joel Coleman
Sydney Harbour Bridge
Joel Coleman
Circular Quay And Darling Harbour
Joel Coleman
The Central Business District
Joel Coleman
Manly
Joel Coleman
The Sydney Opera House
Joel Coleman

Coleman has previously photographed whales, sea lions and surf breaks and said he'd always wanted to shoot a night flight.

"You know life is treating you well when you have to make a decision between flying around Sydney in a helicopter at night, or flying south to Victoria to surf a monster swell," Coleman said.

"The photographer in me won this battle as I had been planning a night shoot over the city for some time.

"Conditions last week were lining up to be perfect with the forecasts showing a two-day window that was the best for aerial photography I had seen in nearly three years."

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