A glittering explosion of gay pride has lit up central Sydney with thousands joining in the 2017 Mardi Gras parade.
Hundreds of rainbow flags were seen waving across crowds gathered in confetti-filled Oxford Street as LGBTQI groups paraded their support for equal rights on Saturday night.
Dykes on Bikes - one of Australia's oldest LGBTQI groups - kicked off the colourful celebration, followed by thousands of other feathered and fleshy marchers.
"We all want equal rights. We all deserve it too," one parade-goer told the SBS.
Despite poor weather forecasts and police concerns over possible terror threats, the event is thought to have drawn up to 30, 000 revellers.
The use of vehicles as weapons in Nice and Melbourne had changed the context of policing large gatherings and was the reason 1000 officers were deployed to the parade, Acting Commissioner Superintendent Tony Crandell said on Friday.
"We have certainly considered all of those threats," he said.
The police strategy included barricades, mounted and aerial units, the dog squad, crowd control specialists and tactical officers.
Supt Crandell also pointed to the massacre at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, as having influenced the "world situation".
The Gay Nomads, Australian Marriage Equality, LGBTQI+ Youth were among dozens of LGBTQI groups which brought colour to the party precinct in its 39th year.
It's become a strong, continuing tradition for Sydney - born from a single night of political protest in 1978.
Peter de Waal and his partner Peter Bonsall-Boone, who last year celebrated their 50-year anniversary, were part of the parade.
"We have been in the parade many times. Over the years we have been a part of various causes we felt strongly about and we represented those causes in the parade," said Mr de Waal.
"Marriage equality has been a cause close to our hearts for almost half a century."
Equality had always been central to the philosophy of Mardi Gras but its message also went beyond marriage equality, said Mardi Gras chief executive Terese Casu.
Malcolm Turnbull, who became the first sitting prime minister to attend the celebrations last year, wasn't at the parade.
However, he says he remains a strong supporter of the event.
"I go most years," he told reporters in Queensland.
NSW Ambulance deputy commander Wayne McKenna said before the event a strong contingent of paramedics would be on hand but warned revellers to think about safety.
