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Solitude, awarded Best Monochrome image, was inspired by the beauty of light and scenery at Muriwai Beach.
Deborah Martin
Bird’s eye view
Kaka
Matakana photographer Deborah Martin collected a number of national awards in the Sony National Exhibition of Photography held in Christchurch last month.
Deborah was awarded the Arthur Bates Trophy for Best Monochrome image and had another nine images accepted into the competition. As a result, she also won the Ron Willems Medallion for Best
Projected Image Photographer in the exhibition. The Ron Willems Medallion is awarded to the photographer with the most accumulated points for their awards and acceptances.
Highlighting the status of the Photographic Society’s annual exhibition, president Moira Blincoe said it was considered to be a key event on New Zealand’s photographic calendar and represented some of the most outstanding works by New Zealand photographers.
Deborah said that to have an image accepted in this prestigious exhibition was a real honour, but to win a trophy was even greater.
The winning entries were selected by three panels who viewed more than 1000 images. Only 350 were selected to comprise the exhibition.
Deborah is a member of the Hibiscus Coast Photography Club and the Warkworth Kowhai Art Centre print group. She says she is grateful to the Estuary Arts Centre team in Orewa for providing her with access to additional workshops and opportunities to exhibit.
“Nature, particularly NZ nature, inspires me as photographer, but only if I can find something unique in what I see, and more importantly feel, at the time. It might sound odd but it’s more important for me to feel a connection with what I am photographing rather than to rely on my eyes. For example, when I photographed an ordinary seagull on a beach, the moment of connection arrived when the gull turned towards me while grooming.”
Deborah currently has an exhibition on at Estuary Arts called From Pixels to Paper. It runs until May 30.
