Yarra River Photo Survey
Engineer Christian Taylor has a very unusual hobby - for fun and as a public service, he is photographing in 360 degrees the entire 218km length of the Yarra River that is publicly accessible and posting the photos on Google Street View. He covers about 1.5km each Sunday either by foot or kayak, and using a spherical camera the size of a TV remote control, mounted on his backpack, he takes 360 degree images every 10 to 20 metres.
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Christian Taylor at the Yarra River at McMahons creek, East of Warburton. Photo: Joe Armao -
![Christian is taking 36degree pictures of the whole length of the Yarra river which he'll submit to Google maps.]()
Christian is taking 36degree pictures of the whole length of the Yarra river which he'll submit to Google maps. Photo: Joe Armao -
![Small rapid in the Yarra Ranges National Park, Reefton. Picture like these are taken using a spherical camera the size ...]()
Small rapid in the Yarra Ranges National Park, Reefton. Picture like these are taken using a spherical camera the size of a TV remote control, mounted on his backpack, he takes 360 degree images every 10 to 20 metres. Photo: Christian Taylor -
![Christian Taylor at the Yarra River at McMahons creek, East of Warburton. He is walking at present, sometimes chest-deep ...]()
Christian Taylor at the Yarra River at McMahons creek, East of Warburton. He is walking at present, sometimes chest-deep in water, because the river is fairly shallow; further downstream he will kayak, when he might do 5km a day and have the camera on automatic timer. The entire project could take up to three years. Photo: Joe Armao -
![Self- portrait of Christian Taylor photographing the Yarra River in the Yarra Ranges National Park near McMahons Creek.]()
Self- portrait of Christian Taylor photographing the Yarra River in the Yarra Ranges National Park near McMahons Creek. Photo: Christian Taylor -
![He always brings another volunteer to help measure water quality, to tell him when the camera is straight, "and ...]()
He always brings another volunteer to help measure water quality, to tell him when the camera is straight, "and generally when I get thigh deep in mud, to pull me out. And also if I break a leg or get bitten by a snake to tell them where the body is". Photo: Joe Armao -
![The start of the survey. Christian Taylor and intrepid assistant Kath Rowley on top of the Upper Yarra Dam at Reefton.]()
The start of the survey. Christian Taylor and intrepid assistant Kath Rowley on top of the Upper Yarra Dam at Reefton. -
![On a river flat near Reefton, he snapped a long abandoned colonial farm hut that's falling down, its paddocks overtaken ...]()
On a river flat near Reefton, he snapped a long abandoned colonial farm hut that's falling down, its paddocks overtaken by scrub. It has a sprawling oak tree and the name Walker is etched on a fence. Photo: Christian Taylor -
![Near Warburton, he's seen the wreck of a Holden Camira half-buried in the river bank. It looked to have come off Woods ...]()
Near Warburton, he's seen the wreck of a Holden Camira half-buried in the river bank. It looked to have come off Woods Point Road, down a steep embankment and had no number plates, suggesting it was stolen. He took a photo inside the car. "I did look in the boot for bodies but I didn't see any."
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