Month: August 2024

Are there any milestones in your life you’d like to highlight?

I spent 17 years working for top advertising agencies including Young & Rubicam Adelaide, McCann-Erickson Perth, and George Patterson Melbourne. I also travelled through Israel with the Anglican Church and lived in Romania as a guest of the Transylvanian Society of Dracula.

In 1997 I opened a bookshop in Melbourne which ran for 22 years and earned me a Lord Mayor Award. Back in Adelaide, I was shortlisted to be the Mill Gallery’s 2024 resident photographer and, recently, Experience Adelaide used my Fringe photo to promote the city’s nightlife.

What initially sparked your interest in photography?

My first advertising job was with Hocking Advertising Adelaide, which was next door to a used camera shop. When not working with art directors, I spent my lunchtimes rummaging through secondhand equipment before purchasing my first professional film camera, a used Canon A1, in 1983.

That’s when my photography took off. I set up a darkroom and soon found myself covering corporate events, television shoots, weddings and busking performances.

How has your style or approach to photography evolved over time? How would you describe your style?

My years in advertising taught me to approach each photography job in two ways – one for the client, one for the folio.

For the client I use a style that I think suits them. For example, when I was an Adelaide Fringe volunteer photographer, I took mostly vibrant, oversaturated colour images.

As for the folio, I have my own style that I call quiet dignity. It’s basically the opposite of my Fringe style in that colours are muted or desaturated.

What types of subjects or scenes do you find most inspiring to capture?

I enjoy photographing outsiders, fringe-dwellers, the overlooked or forgotten members of society. I prefer individual to group photos and close-ups where I can see the eyes and expressions.

What equipment or tools are essential for you, and why do you prefer them?

You don’t need to own the latest and greatest to be a good photographer. My favourite camera for decades was my first film camera, a used Canon A1. My current camera is a used 6D Mark II paired with a couple of decent used lenses and some scrounged accessories. It seems my habit of rummaging through secondhand stores has never changed.

Do you have any photography mentors or influences that have shaped your work?

In advertising I was influenced by the bold concept photography of Annie Lebowitz, minimalist stylings of Richard Avedon and the moody dramatics of Helmut Newton. I am interested in the elegant monotones of Lord Snowdon and the raw grittiness of Anton Corbijn. I also love the photography of Diane Arbus and the street photography of Robert Frank, Vivian Maier and Saul Leiter.

Can you tell us about your connection to ACH Group? How did you get involved with volunteering at Kapara Residential Care Home?

In 2022 I was photographing Housing Choices residents as part of a Life Stories program I initiated. When Jane Garforth, Social Manager Residential at ACH Group learned about this, she asked whether I would be interested in volunteering at ACH Group. I agreed and a few weeks later, I began photographing residents at Kapara Residential Care Home.

I enjoyed meeting and photographing the staff, residents and volunteers at Kapara. Some of the residents had amazing stories. 

How has your style or approach to photography evolved over time?

Over time my photography has evolved from anchoring special moments in hundreds of family photos which gives me such enormous pleasure, to a deeper pursuit of knowing what makes a good photo. I was drawn to exploring landscapes and what it was that created the depth and fullness of images that appealed to me.

Having had the privilege of attending two photographic workshops in Mashatu Game Park, Botswana, I learned from hands-on experience the knowledge and confidence to explore the challenges of making a great image. And that pursuit never ends.