A pile of gas pipes at Wandoan might not seem like the most picturesque subject at first glance but photographed at 4am against a night sky with a long exposure, it has won a national photo competition.
Established by the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association, Pipes in Space won first place overall for Spiecapag health and safety manager Phil Woodhouse.
A sunset image of the iconic Australian Hotel at Miles won a sub-category award for former Arrow Energy employee Grant Schmidt.
The two Western Downs images were among 120 submitted across three categories - community, people and environment - for the In.Site Photographic Award.
The awards called upon gas industry employees to show an unfiltered view of their world.
According to APPEA CEO Andrew McConville, Australia's natural gas industry operates in many of the country's most secluded and picturesque areas.
"The idea behind In.Site was to showcase Australia's beautiful landscapes, towns and people through the creative talents of those in our industry who appreciate them most," he said. "This...shows others what they see every day."
Spiecapag was building the Project Atlas pipeline for Senex Energy's client, Jemena, when Mr Woodhouse took his winning image.
He said a full pipeyard on a project represented that the construction journey was about to begin.
"There is a sense of anticipation, optimism and excitement," he said.
"I wanted to share this photo because it shows the pipeyard in a new and unique light, under the stars before it becomes part of the underground picture.
"Wandoan always provides a stunning sunset and an even more impressive astro display at night, due to its distance from big city light pollution."
Getting up at 3am on a winter morning, Mr Woodhouse spent at least an hour with his camera and tripod getting the right composition and lighting.
"As for specialist photography lighting, I used my phone light to help luminate the pipe caps," he said.
The high calibre of photographs meant it was difficult for the judges - Mr McConville, federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley, and media personality Jules Lund - to narrow the field.
Senex managing director Ian Davies congratulated Mr Woodhouse and said his talent had showcased a stunning match of natural gas infrastructure and natural beauty.
"This striking image has brought the beauty of western Queensland to a broader audience," Mr Davies said. "It's a fitting tribute to the community of Wandoan and all those who worked on developing Australia's first natural gas acreage dedicated to supplying domestic customers."
Grant Schmidt received the community award with his Western Downs Sunset image that captured a golden sunset over the Hotel Australia in Miles.
Jessica Wrigley, Santos, won the environment award with her Goanna and Tanks entry, while Roger Xiang, Mitsui E&P Australia won the the people award with an entry titled Teamwork.
Sally Gall
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
