Late afternoon, Queens Park, Toowoomba. A smoky western horizon and setting sun, workers busy setting up a fairground for the Carnival of Flowers.  Sitting with lad and dog watching Welcome Swallows, also busy, hawking for insects over freshly-mown fields. They weave and duck and twirl around us, too fast for the eye to see what they are doing, the dog just wants to chase them. They catch insects and chase each other, a network of tiny lives lived fast and furious. We enjoy watching them and taking turns trying to photograph them (the dog declines) by panning with a compact camera, a hopeless but fun task. The images are grainy and dodgy of course, but they give an impression of the afternoon.

Queens Park, Toowoomba. Bushfire smoke blankets the western horizon. The foreground looks empty, but it’s alive with activity. Photos by Harry and Rob Ashdown. 

Welcome Swallows, Danielle Davis