LIT 2025 - Wyndham City’s Light Festival

Summer has passed, and autumn is here. The weather is cooling down, with average temperatures settling in the mid to high twenties—perfect for a walk at any time of day. With school holidays just around the corner, many parents are looking for fun and quality activities to enjoy and to spend time with their children. Recognising the demand, a variety of events—both free and paid—are popping up across Melbourne.

One such event is Wyndham City’s free annual Light Festival at Wyndham Park, Werribee. Now in its fourth year, the festival runs from Thursday to Sunday evenings, between 27 March and 13 April.

Werribee also offers several other attractions, including the African-themed Werribee Open Range Zoo, the stunning Werribee State Rose Garden, and the intriguing Werribee Water Treatment Plant. We’ve experienced all three, and the most fascinating and memorable by far was the tour of the Water Treatment Plant.

We decided to visit the lightshow on a Friday night—not only to see what all the buzz was about but also to give me a chance to practise some night photography. Since I’d never been to this part of the city before, we relied on Google Maps to guide us. As we neared the pinned location, we started to get a bit anxious. There were no obvious signs of a park or festival nearby. That moment of doubt crept in—had we ended up in the wrong place, or was this whole event just a scam?

After parking, we noticed a couple nearby, looking intently at their phones. They seemed just as lost as we were. As we debated which direction to go, they headed one way—the direction I didn’t feel good about. Fortunately, we spotted some construction workers packing up nearby and asked them for directions. They pointed us in the opposite direction, confirming my gut feeling was right.

About 200 meters down the path, we began to hear the sound of children laughing and spotted some glowing lights in the distance. Soon enough, we saw signs pointing us toward the festival. The evening air was a bit cooler than expected but still pleasant.

As we arrived and looked out over the large open area, the first thing that caught our attention was a cluster of giant bubble-like structures stacked on top of one another, glowing with shifting colours from within. The park was busy but not overcrowded. We followed a path that led us to a bridge—offering a pretty stunning view of the whole festival.

We decided to explore the left side of the park first before checking out the bubbles up close. Along the way, we came across a giant, man-made lizard installation, complete with an audio track telling its story. While the setup was interesting, there wasn’t much else in that area, so we made our way back toward the glowing bubbles—the clear centrepiece of the festival.

The bubble structure consisted of four large spheres—three on the bottom and one perched on top. I think there were about three or four such installations in total. Photographing them without people in the frame proved tricky. It took patience and quick reflexes to snap a shot during those rare quiet moments, as people streamed in from all directions. I managed to get a few good ones. I usually try to avoid including people—especially their faces—in my photos, but tonight I made an exception. Some figures appeared only as silhouettes, adding a nice touch of character to the shots.

Further down the path, we came across another display—large lantern-like structures. Unlike the vibrant and playful vibe of the bubbles, these gave off a calm and peaceful atmosphere. After a quick walk around the edge of the park, we decided it was time to head back. The crowd was definitely growing as we left.

As for the couple we saw earlier, I assume they eventually found their way into the park. There are multiple entry points, so it’s really just a matter of finding the closest one to where you’ve parked.

In terms of photography, shooting at night was definitely a challenge. I had to constantly adjust the ISO to compensate for slower shutter speeds, since I struggle to keep my hands steady. I still can't quite remember what my limit is for handheld shots, but I’ll figure it out next time.