NZPhotographer Issue 46, August 2021

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preconceptions allows visitors to explore, experiment, and express their own vision. Despite some of the limitations, I still enjoy visiting iconic landscape photo locations (provided they are not too crowded) and believe they serve as an important learning step for photographers starting to engage with the landscape. It can be useful for photographers to pitch their own ability to capture a scene against that of others to learn the craft, and I get excited in helping people capture such images. Teachers of photography often focus heavily on technique, but what I enjoy most is teaching people to see: to break down the scene in front of them, decide the story, determine the key elements of their photograph, and figure out how to express their vision. Time and time again, even when I’m sure I’ve visited a location far too many times to see a fresh interpretation, someone always finds a way to create something totally new. Maybe they have seen some small detail that others overlook, or maybe they just approach the view in front of them in an unusual way. THE IMPACT TO THE LANDSCAPE As a NZ based landscape photographer, I have seen the impact photography has had on well-known locations. In today’s world of social media, it is hard to keep a beautiful location secret for long: as soon as it is picked up by well-known “influencers”, the crowds start to arrive. In this rush to get the next best shot, are we considering our actions to the landscape we are shooting and sharing? Photography is a powerful marketing tool that can be used to present products in a way that is irresistible to the consumer, and over recent years, some of our natural resources - our landscape have been treated like a product, something that can be packaged up and sold. The likes of tourism boards have quickly jumped behind this: realising the marketing power of photography to attract more visitors to a destination, using Instagram 76 August 2021 NZPhotographer
posts by wide-reaching influencers to attract as many visitors as possible to honeypot locations. Looking at this post-COVID, people are starting to question the benefits of bringing in more visitors. What impact are all these people having on the locations they visit? How does the experience match the dream view that has been sold to the viewer - captured in the best light, by a skilled photographer, excluding the large crowd of other people that were also there. Does the actual experience match up to this image? Most likely not; the visitor might even leave feeling a little disappointed. As landscape photographers, we must consider the part we play in this. Although we may wish to share the beauty we find and gain exposure, we also need to consider how our actions impact the locations we’re shooting. As someone whose company involves guiding photographers to locations as part of my job, I feel responsible for assessing and managing the impact of the visit. This is something we have worked hard on at New Zealand Photography Workshops: we have worked hard to obtain DOC (National Park) concession permits for the locations we use, so that visitor numbers can be managed, along with any negative impact to sensitive landscapes. Our aim is not just to reduce our impact on the location, but to positively affect it. As part of this sustainability philosophy, we sponsor and donate to various programs throughout the country, including bird conservation and habitat protection for marine species, with the aim to leave a positive local impact wherever our tours visit. We also offset all the carbon from our tours by planting native trees in national parks and conservation areas (which will also positively impact our future photography, since there will be more trees and native wildlife to photograph). Of course, there is more work to be done than we can do alone: we need to see significant cultural changes, both here in New Zealand and on a global level, to the way we treat the places we photograph. This is why New Zealand Photography Workshops decided to join Nature First as a silver partner, not only adopting their principles, but helping to educate others on the importance of these values when we engage with groups on our workshops. While all of the principles are equally important, I wish to focus on the need to #UseDiscretionIfSharingLocations. This can reduce the impact of too many people visiting a particular location. Perhaps it can also positively impact our photography, helping us approach location choice from a more personal perspective, rather than chasing the latest honey pot. A couple of months ago, I was chatting to the exmanager of a local tourism board while we were both camping out at a remote and photogenic hut. We were speaking about the damage that could be done if this became an “Instagram location” - it was a remote area that could not handle large numbers of visitors. He shared how he had seen the impact of this in his past actions, actively using Instagram influencers to promote the area as a top tourism destination in New Zealand. The board had supported famous influencers to post from a local mountain peak with stunning vistas and a well-known tree sitting in a lake. The plan worked a treat, and these locations became globally recognisable but it led to an uncontrolled number of people visiting, which in turn led to parking problems, toilet problems, and track erosion, which has become a considerable problem to manage. I’m sure the hut where we were camping had been photographed before, it might have even been shared on social media channels, but we decided we would keep it a secret. If we felt the need to post at all, we would be cryptic in its naming, referring only to the region of the country and excluding the sign on the door that would enable it to be found. As landscape photographers, when we post images with the location attached, it is important to consider not only the other photographers this will attract, which has a multiplying effect, but also general members of the public. After all, most of these are now “photographers’” too, armed with their cellphones. A few weeks after my visit to hut, while running a tour to a nearby area, I saw first-hand how quickly visitors can impact a location. In moody light, we drove out to a collection of historic miners’ huts nestled into an impressive wild mountain landscape. Just the day before, I had talked to the group, asking them to #UseDiscretionIfSharingLocations for the places we would visit during the workshop. It was important not to damage these places for others, and we were, after all, guests to the landscape; we intended to leave it how it was found. But when we arrived at the huts that day, another “special interest group” had taken them over - a group of 4WD enthusiasts. While I am sure many partake in this activity with consideration for the impact of their actions (we were responsibly driving a 4WD to get out here ourselves), this group was not. As a photography destination that day, and likely for some time until it recovers, the location was very unphotogenic. The visitors had managed to drive their 4WD and dirt bikes right between all the huts, turning the land around them into a churned-up muddy bog. I’m sure they were having a great time and that when they share the location with friends, many more will be back, but at what cost? When incidents like this happen, local authorities need to change the access to the location, which NZPhotographer August 2021 77
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ISSUE 46, August 2021 THE WONDERS O
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CONTENTS 5 8 14 32 40 52 57 58 70 B
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Behind The Shot with Bhuvanesh Rath
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Remarkable Form, Exceptional Functi
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Pxlr's background removal in progre
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FOTOR Fotor is last on my list of f
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13 Days - Subantarctic Islands Phot
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DENISE POYNER 16 August 2021 NZPhot
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GAVIN MARTIN 20 August 2021 NZPhoto
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JACQUI MCGOWAN
Page 28 and 29: JILL FEARNE
Page 32 and 33: Producing a Coffee-Table Book A Pho
Page 34 and 35: Ama Dablam (6,856m), viewed from 4,
Page 36 and 37: At their 130 year-old Tibetan-style
Page 38 and 39: Looking north-east to Cho La and so
Page 40 and 41: The Wonders Of Our World Interview
Page 42 and 43: Picnic Bay Jetty Canon R5, Canon RF
Page 44 and 45: Top: Guarding Her Babies Canon R5,
Page 46 and 47: TELL US ABOUT ONE OF YOUR FAVOURITE
Page 48 and 49: WHAT HAVE BEEN YOUR BIGGEST CHALLEN
Page 50 and 51: $120 / YEAR or $12 / MONTH SUBSCRIP
Page 52 and 53: Rising Star: Gracie Rozing Now in y
Page 54 and 55: Fallen Angel WHAT HAVE YOU STRUGGLE
Page 56 and 57: LEARN MORE www.excio.io 56 August 2
Page 58 and 59: PHOTO COMMUNITY From more than 20,0
Page 60 and 61: KITEKITE FALLS PAUL BELLI Kitekite
Page 62 and 63: WHITE WATER ROSE-ANNE SHAW Gulls en
Page 64 and 65: THE NOT SO UGLY DUCKLING ENZO GIORD
Page 66 and 67: AUTUMN TONES PAMELA JOHNSTONE The b
Page 68 and 69: NOT YOUR USUAL CATHEDRAL COVE ALICI
Page 70 and 71: Reconsidering Our Approach To Lands
Page 72 and 73: I have not been writing much lately
Page 74 and 75: capturing the most beautiful rendit
Page 78 and 79: impacts future photography. A class
Page 80 and 81: PATTERNS READERS' SUBMISSIONS Photo
Page 82 and 83: WHITE SCIENCE Circles and lines, pa
Page 84 and 85: BIG REACH ON THE BEACH Reaching to
Page 86 and 87: THE WEIRD AND THE WONDERFUL I was a
Page 88 and 89: MAGNOLIA PATTERN The magnolias bloo
Page 90 and 91: AZALEA An azalea in our garden. Ste
Page 92 and 93: HELLEBORES An anticipated sight dur
Page 94: "IF YOU WANT TO BE A PHOTOGRAPHER,
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NZPhotographer Issue 46, August 2021

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