As mentioned 
before 'we' (me really rather than my husband) were attached
to the ferry and living by the beach and being able to see the sea!
Not hard you would think in Sydney, the largest natural harbour in the
world. Of course so does everyone, so property is at a premium.
My first choice was Manly or the surrounding areas, as this satisfied all the criteria. We actually ended up living in Fairlight which is a 10 minute walk from the ferry terminal and just far enough away from Friday/Saturday night noise.
My husbands first choice was Rose Bay, also on the ferry routes, and we did see apartments on the sea overlooking the harbour bridge, there is no beach immediately there, although they have a great high street with lovely shops and cafés.
Other options included - Balmain, (ferry, no beach), Mosman (near ferry and Balmoral Beach but ferry is a bus ride from the main street in Mosman and as such there are no shops by the ferry).
In our opinion Domain.com.au seemed to offer the most comprehensive cover of Sydney (it is the website of 'The Sydney Morning Herald').
Write a list of agents and start calling to make appointments. Top tip - calling from a Sydney phone box is a set charge for land line (no matter how long the call). Mobile phone calls are by the minute. The rental market (at the time of writing) is very aggressive. Agents don’t take your number, and generally only show properties at their convenience (Wednesday or Saturday at a time prescribed by them). This does vary depending on the area and the agent, but rarely seems to have anything to do with price (even at the mid to high range - over $1000pw).