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  • Pukekohe Visit

    My last post farewelling the raceway suggested that Pukekohe was built around it. Thats a false statement – simply my personal links to the are were tied to that memory. Pukekohe itself has far richer (thats a pun) history than a track for cars to boom around.

    Originally called Pukekohekohe, the area was a settlement of local indigenous Maori, (Ngāti Tamaoho, Ngāti Te Ata) and featured super fertile lands for crops. In roughly the 1860’s during internal wars in NZ, it saw land confiscation from Maori, and by 1880 it was a new European settlement town of Pukekohe – again, with its focus on market gardens and growing crops for wider Auckland.

    Farming and agriculture continued to grow and boom in the area… so all was well on the plants side of things, but as suggested above, culturally it was not New Zealand’s brightest era. Maori and European relations were less than ideal and it was an era of racial segregation, with a seperate by-laws and a Maori school in the 1950’s. Things were not just bicultural of course – the area also saw a lot of success with Indian and Chinese immigrants in the early 1920’s (they had even less rights legally at this time in NZ history). We also saw the reactionary ‘The White New Zealand League’ set up due to some of these immigrants… I don’t think I need to go into detail the cultural angle that group took…

    So yeah… a troubled era, not unique to this physical town.

    Hmmm… Not an overly positive story to spin into my photos is it. So when did it improve for non-western people?… nothing like this is time specific. Things happen in small steps over lengths of time. In 1963 Rai Wai Ching contested a seat for parliament to highlight the racism in the area. He failed, but this did spark change. Non-white bans in cinemas and hotels began to disappear. The segregated school closed in 1964 – Once a movement starts, it continues. But wow, 1963 was only 60 years ago. We still have members of the community who remember that era, that time, that place where we had so much division.

    Current day about 70% identify as European, 20% Maori, 12% Asian and 9% Pacific (my math is not incorrect – you can identify as multi ethnicity in NZ). Thats reasonably level with NZ wide (bar lower level Asian demographic currently). I don’t live in the area, so cannot comment to the general feel if one is part of a minority. Some articles suggest though the world has changed, the past lingers… we do carry it with us.

    Though still a Hub of fertile ground and crops for the masses, urban life has well and truely moved in and is sprawling. Housing areas are popping up like crazy with new areas of housing opportunity for our growing population. As was the case with the racetrack the other day – Change is always afoot, and though the past is never gone, with change comes the opportunity for renewal and a path that moves us to the next era.

    All photos taken on my antiquated Canon EOS 300D – the 6MP beast.

  • Once Was Pukekohe Raceway

    A recent weekend took my small follower and I to Pukekohe. Armed with my ‘vintage’ Canon EOS 300D we ventured to what was known as Pukekohe Raceway. At the time of visiting, I thought the place looked a little run down from memory… my observations were founded in that the actual raceway (opened in 1963) closed in 2023, bar a couple of later events, the last being D1NZ (drifting) giving the track a final farewell.

    As well as the ‘run down’ feeling, the visit was awash of memories – Supercar Races, Open Class, V8’s, Drifting, NZ Grand Prix… some just relic history in NZ Motorsport today. The noise gone, but almost still present in the ghost of the breeze passing through on a otherwise hot day.

    It’s still in a stage of decommission as it turns into a race horse venue. Gone are the pit buildings, the over bridge and armco barriers. Remnants of race life still visible in a non locked shed and the demolishing area.

    So much of historical Pukekohe township (to me a visitor) is built around the shadow of its motorsport history – it has a Possum Bourne Retirement Village! (One of our great Rally Drivers now gone). Bruce McLaren, Chris Amon, Paul Radisich – all big names of their time who tested vehicles to the limit there. The area feels a little odd without it frankly. But times always change. The owners decided to repurpose to thoroughbred ventures and we have a nice world class car facility/track an hour down the road from there in Hampton Downs. Also, digitally the track has been scanned for future e-racing with iRacing – which was cool to read about.

    So a belated farewell from me Pukekohe Raceway. Thanks for the memories!

  • The MS Noordam Visits Auckland

    A relatively new ship, the MS Noordam was launched in 2006 as the final member of Holland America Line’s Vista-class. It is a mid-sized vessel that blends traditional maritime elegance with some additional modern refurbishments added in 2024. The ship has a guest capacity of approximately 1,916 to 1,972 passengers served by a crew of about 800, ensuring a high level of personalised service across its 11 passenger decks. Throughout the year, the Noordam follows a seasonal deployment, primarily operating 7- to 14-night Alaskan voyages from Seattle and Vancouver during the Northern summer, before transitioning to Australia and New Zealand for the Southern summer (March 1st in NZ). Its diverse itineraries also include expansive South Pacific crossings and “Legendary” voyages to the Arctic Circle, catering to a demographic that values art-filled interiors and refined destination-focused cruising.

    Though I have no actual scale of reference, whenever I look at these big cruise ships, I wonder how large they are compared to the Titanic… according to google, the MS Noordam is near double the internal tonnage, longer, wider, taller- but interestingly slightly less human capacity (2353 compared to Titanic’s allotted 2435). Simply put – it’s bigger all around and offers guests more space, hence lower max head count… and its only ‘mid sized’ by todays standard.

  • New Old Camera (Minolta SR-1) and Sunny 16

    I got a new old camera. The Minolta SR-1. First released in 1959, it was Minolta’s second ever SLR produced. It needed a lens, so I got an equally antique Rocker 55mm F1.8

    As prior posts have stated, I have always had a spot for Minolta. They are probably my favourite 35mm SLR producer. Though gone, their optics company is what really launched Sony into the main market as the digital era took over.

    ‘Sen’ F5.6 1/125th
    ‘Windows’ F8 1/125th

    Being such a vintage model, the SR-1 is 100% manual and mechanical. No light meter – though there is a mount space allocated for one. It’s been a real long time since I attempted the ‘Sunny 16’ rule – that is looking at the weather, making a call on the brightness and setting your cameras settings based on this. To make this more of a challenge (aka too much for such outdated practice), I had a roll of Lucky 400, which I read to shoot at ISO200. So for those unfamiliar, as an example, a bright clear sunny day on ASA100 film you would shoot 100th of a second at f16, or in my case at 200ASA, f16 at 200th of a second. Open your aperture a stop to F11 and your time doubles. It all makes sense (as long as you judge the light right), but if you don’t slow down, it starts getting muddy in the mind for a cloudy sky, shooting into the shadows, backlit etc…

    ‘Rail’ F4 1/30th
    ‘Layers’ F8 1/60th
    ‘Under Motorway’ F8 1/60th

    I didn’t quite get my timings 100%… it was also pretty sunny and I really wanted a ASA100 rather than a 400 I was shooting at 200. But, limited success still prevailed and I have some images that I like the mood and feel of. They were overexposed in most cases.

    The Minolta itself worked flawlessly. There is a real nostalgic pleasure in using a machine somewhere around 60 years old (mine is not the first 59 release based on some body indicators). I look at my digital bodies and wonder if any of them will make that age – at the least, modified batteries will be needed – but more likely they will fail or part of the media will become temperamental to support. Lets be fair though – as soon as film ceases one day, all these mechanical relics also become paperweights…

    So Sunny 16 needs some work, but that is part of practising something new. Stretching outside comfort zones and re-learning was of doing. I could have used a light meter and nailed all exposures, but I wanted to be completely analogue (at least until I scanned them for here). It was fun.

    I do have a couple of other impulse purchases of the 60’s era I am yet to test – same deal, no light meters. The Lucky 400 is all I currently have for home development, so I’ll just need to make a call if I try again pulling to 200, or shooting at 400 – Im limited to F16 and 500th of a second (or less) on most the units, so it might just depend on the weather next time…

    ‘Stairway Down’ F8 1/125th

  • Through Someone’s Vintage Eyes – Israel and Iran

    Today’s “through someone’s vintage eyes” takes us to Iran and Israel. Shot by the same unknown photographer as my Hong Kong series, we drop into some of the oldest cityscape on this planet, and view some sights before some of the areas have seen more modernisation.  Im estimating, like Hong Kong, these are 1960’s era approximately. The only indicating giveaways I can see are the cars – none specifically models I can date without any real digging online. Perhaps some key buildings or the cable car/tram might be a giveaway for some readers?

    I also don’t have any real sense of geography for the areas. Ive not travelled to that part of the world. This combined with the fact that these photo collections were incomplete and bar the main destinations, unlabelled, I have absolutely mixed up places and cities into the image decks displayed (they are out if order)

    What I do know is that one area is Akko Israel. For some better known as Acre.  To blatantly take googles summary or Akko: Acre (Akko) is a port city in northwest Israel, on the Mediterranean coast. It’s known for its well-preserved old city walls. In a tunnel in the walls is the Treasures in the Walls Ethnographic Museum, depicting daily life from the Ottoman times to the 20th century. The mosaic-covered Or Torah (Tunisian) Synagogue has 7 torah arks. The 18th-century Al-Jazzar Mosque has marble pillars and underground pools. 

    Also in Israel we have Jerusalem – I think the cablecar image is the Masada fortress here: Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the oldest cities in the world and is considered holy to the three major Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

    Isfahan in Iran is (I believe) the final destination of this collections journeys: Isfahan is a city in central Iran, known for its Persian architecture. In the huge Naqsh-e Jahan Square is the 17th-century Imam (Shah) Mosque, whose dome and minarets are covered with mosaic tiles and calligraphy. Ali Qapu Palace, built for Shah Abbas and completed in the late 16th century, has a music room and a verandah overlooking the square’s fountains. Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque is known for its intricate tiling.

    Quite the trip. As I understand it, assuming 1960’s all were popular or emerging tourism spots, especially if this is late 1960’s after the 6-day war which surged visitors under Israeli control unified the city split at the time.  Who are the tree kids posing in one photo – strangers? Whanau (family)?… unlike Hong Kong series, no suggestion of the photographer themselves. 

    Not the last box of slides I have from our mystery photographer. Im holding off viewing the next box still – perhaps the next will have a self portrait reveal?

    If you do have any information which might place a date of the images please do pass a comment.