Look Twice

...DIFFERENTLY

TREE OF LIFE: Lake Cakora, at Brooms Head on the north coast of New South Wales, has been photographed from above to reveal stunning, tree-like patterns.

Amateur photographer Derry Moroney discovered the secluded lake in June 2020, after following a winding beach estuary inland. The lake’s unique shifting colours and branch-like patterns are created by a combination of the connected beach and tea tree-lined estuary.

Following a significant rain event, this tea-stained water washes into the lake, then gets pushed in by the tides to create the intricate ‘branches’. Moroney captured the ever-changing lake fortnightly, using a DJI Mavic Air 2 drone.

“The best time to visit is after big storms,” he says. That’s when his excitement builds. “I wonder what I might get to see and how much it has changed.”