House call: Man from Oz

"It's amazing what you can buy on eBay," muses Shawn Connell, a 33-year-old shutterbug for NYC wedding photographer Christian Oth (christianothweddings.com). The former Sydney resident—and fledgling handyman—has scored big on the auction site, finding both a eight-foot-long walnut slab that he crafted into a rustic dinner table, and an iron spiral staircase that he precariously transported across the George Washington Bridge in the back of a U-Haul truck. Some things he found closer to his Bushwick home, like the century-old wood beams unearthed in nearby Dumpsters and installed by his friend Jeff Shepherd.

Despite his extensive renovations, Connell's Craigslist-sourced bi-level loft is a rental—one with "a long lease" he assures us, and much more affordable than a comparable space in his previous neighborhood, Williamsburg. When he's not swimming with and snapping pictures of humpback whales in the South Pacific or shooting weddings, Connell spends 95 percent of his time in his light-flooded abode, making the hammer-and-drill hours logged worthwhile.

Another perk to Connell's outer-borough residence is the building's communal rooftop area, where he projects surf flicks at twilight for his neighbors. (The movie night's popularity sparked a friend to round up indie films about riding pipelines for a festival; It premieres this September in Tribeca. For more info, go to nysurffilm.com.) One to grill even when it's snowing, Connell, with Shepherd's help, also tricked out a corner of the outdoor space with a glowing patio that's patterned after Aussie hangouts, using inexpensive rope lights, a table fashioned from reclaimed lumber and a Danish daybed reupholstered by "a local Puerto Rican guy down the road." What Connell loves best about the resulting wood-wrapped nook—besides that it now serves as a spot to fire up traditional, jaw-stretching Australian hamburgers—is the counter built for folks to sidle up to and set their brews upon. As an Australian, he says, "you want to be able to lean, have a beer and a view of the ocean." "I can't see the water, but I do have a beautiful view of the city skyline."

Click for a closer look at Connell's loft

Photograph: Imogen Brown

How to: Make an Aussie burger

Connell prefers using ground lamb and "heaps of herbs" for his patties. He suggests piling toppings such as grilled pineapple rings, sliced beets, bacon, cheddar cheese, avocado, red onions, tomatoes, lettuce and a fried egg in between two very sturdy buns.

Connell's top summer ficks

The Big Blue, $12.87, at amazon.com

Big Wednesday, $7.95, at amazon.com

Brazil, $11, at amazon.com

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