NZPhotographer Issue 21, July 2019

YOU’RE A REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR TO OUR
READERS SUBMISSIONS SECTION, HOW DID IT
FEEL THE FIRST TIME YOU SAW YOUR PHOTOS
IN OUR MAGAZINE?
It felt fantastic! This Winter landscape was the first one,
I ever got published in NZPhotographer. It was in the
August 2018 edition, which featured the best “What’s
your Winter” competition entries.
I think our little camera group in Te Kauwhata must
have decided to give it a go, as I had entered this
image, Nichola Smith had entered ‘Colours of the
Rainbow’ and Ali Pike had ‘Winter in the Winterless
North’. I had literally stepped out onto our deck to get
my shot which was taken on the 4th July at 6.20am to
show a typical Waikato mist though it was quite frosty
that morning too.
I always doubt my photography and think I’m not good
enough so imagine how I felt when I saw my image
featured all those issues ago and then when you asked
if I’d like to be featured this month on the cover!
HOW DO YOU PUSH YOURSELF TO IMPROVE
YOUR PHOTOGRAPHY?
I have been posting a daily photograph on project365
for three years now. It’s a great site for inspiration, and
when you’re really stuck there are challenges to take
part in. I have also been doing 52 Frames for nearly
a year which is another site where you are given a
weekly challenge. It certainly stretches your mind, and
I look forward to the new challenge each week.
I sometimes get people stopping me to ask if I’m
a photographer when they see me with my tripod
and big lens. I’m always a little embarrassed and
say “no, I’m just an amateur photographer” but
when my friend asked me if I would be interested
in doing a course with her, I leapt at the chance
of having a qualification so I could say “yes, I am a
photographer”.
Consequently, we have embarked on an online
Diploma in Photography through SIT. We’re doing
it part-time but doing two papers this term; An
Introduction to Digital Photography and an
Introduction to Digital Post-Production. It has certainly
taken me well out of my comfort zone! One of the first
marked assignments we have had to do is portraiture.
I’m learning a lot about lighting, and composition.
It’s also really different using Photoshop from a
photographer’s point of view rather than a graphic
designer’s – I’m using parts of Photoshop I’ve never
used before.
July 2019
21