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“You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” – Ansel Adams Photoshopped images have become somewhat of a taboo among the general public. With today’s technology, artists can manipulate reality so convincingly that viewers have learned to assess the integrity of an image by aski...

When a student asks me how to process their image, I always feel a little hesitant in directing them. I can show them what tools to use, where to set each slider, and how to crop the image—there is nothing wrong with imparting such information. But in doing so, I run the risk of...

The deep shadows of floating islands and black sand beaches define the structure, transitions of tones within the sky and sea guide your eye across the image, the luminosity helps connect distant parts of the frame. All this can be lost if our eye is caught by unwanted...

Often while immersed in capturing a stunning landscape, bathed in beautiful warm light at sunset, a passer-by will stop to talk to me. The first and more than likely only question will typically be; “what are you photographing?” As if there is something that they are missing...

An Introduction to Style and Vision “How do we find our unique expression of the world, and how can we convey this to the viewer?” Achieving competence in photography is easy enough; with some basic technical understanding, almost anybody can create a good photograph. In the age...

Shaun Barnett gives advice for the aspiring macro nature photographer. While taking my children on nature walks when they were small, I was often surprised by what interested them. Big, impressive mountain vistas? Zero enthusiasm. A small leaf on the track? Appealing. Some...

Shaun Barnett – Professional landscape photographer and NZPW tutor. Location: Tunnel Point, Dunedin, Otago Richard Young and I spent a great afternoon here before one of our Otago Wildlife Master Classes in 2019. I’d seen pictures of Tunnel Beach before but never been...

  How important is sharpness? Well, this depends on the end-use of your image. If you are only ever going to display your image at a maximum size of 1200 pixel on Instagram, Facebook or a website, I would say not very. If however, you intend to make large scale prints of an...

New Zealand’s beauty and diversity of land and seascapes make it a world-class location for long exposures. The Bay of Plenty on New Zealand’s North Island is named by Captain Cook for having a vast abundance of everything. There are a variety of different beaches and...

Ken Wright – Professional landscape photographer and NZPW tutor. My work takes me to some amazing places, as a professional landscape photographer, I am often in an environment that’s both rugged and wet, I expect a lot from my gear in all weather conditions. Filter Choice:...