About

I've held a strong passion for photography since graduating as a graphic designer in 2004.

Working as a designer for just under a decade, I held a successful career in senior roles, and I decided to take a 6-month trip around Australia in 2012.

During this trip, I started pursuing photography that kept some of my technical skills sharp, whilst documenting adventures and maintaining a creative outlet.

After I'd been living in Darwin for a few years, I noticed that I was starting to take significant adventures purely to take photographs.

Whilst working at Charles Darwin University, one job was to photograph the Prime Minister. This was a great opportunity however my passion is solely for the natural environment.

My 4WD was getting tired, so I bought a road/trail motorcycle, and began to explore and experience some truly amazing landscapes.

My philosophy has been to genuinely experience places that are difficult to get to. I wanted to build a body of work.

I began adventures like cycling from Darwin to Broome via the bungle bungles, and then cycling back along the Gibb River Road.

I was hooked.

I found a new understanding of my own physical and mental ability and I was now looking for work in places like remote cattle stations in The Kimberley.

This work, combined with other outdoor, physically demanding positions I had held whilst travelling around Australia, helped sustain the financial aspects of taking landscapes photographs whilst building a body of work. After 18 months in the Kimberley, I was ready to head back to spend time with family and friends in Tasmania.

When I arrived back in my home state of Tasmania, my ambition was to explore more of the Tasmanian wilderness and capture its natural beauty.

I found what I thought would've been the perfect job at Tourism Tasmania, in a role that I held at the University of Tasmania for 2 years prior to leaving in 2012.

Whilst writing the selection criteria for the position, another job caught my eye, it was a job building walking tracks - and I thought what better way to promote Tasmania whilst also exploring and helping to provide sustainable access for others to enjoy to our pristine Tasmanian wilderness.

After years in the north, I was the fittest and strongest that I had ever been, I applied and met with Geoffrey Lea (an outstanding Tasmanian Photographer and owner of Walking Track Services) the next day. I didn't send off the application for Tourism Tasmania position.

I was off to work in the Great Western Tiers.

Holding qualifications in design, and in 2021, graduated in data and environmental management, my recent career has been quite diverse due to a passion for photography.

Building walking tracks has been a great way to stay fit, earn some income and really get to know an area. I've been building tracks for over 4 years.

I enjoy landscape photography as it allows for high level technical skills to be combined with exploring beautiful areas.

Great photographs can be taken with basic camera gear and I believe that the gear that we use, are simply tools of the trade. Modern phones can take beautiful photographs and the software that your phone uses, is smart enough to produce nice images - especially for instagram etc.

That said, I choose to use cameras with full-frame sensors as the quality and detail that is achieved and presented in the printed piece is outstanding.

I have a strong background in software design, and my preference with photography is to have complete control of the photographs that I produce.

I take photographs in raw format and remove any form of automatic processing done by the camera and the software that is used.

I have developed my own custom linear profiles for the cameras that I use to ensure that I produce the photograph - not the software or the camera.

This process is complex, however it helps to ensure that these photographs are unique and not affected by trends.

I am specific with the tools that I use, and I aim to gain an complete understanding of the strengths (and weaknesses) for each and every piece of equipment that I use. I think understanding the equipment that you have is more important than buying the latest/most expensive photographic tool.

Landscape photography demands being in remote locations in all conditions. I like the idea of travelling light, however it is just an idea that is rarely possible. In 2016, I transitioned from Nikon to Sony full-frame mirrorless and that same body is still going strong. Now instead of carrying one heavy camera, I carry two lighter ones. I also prefer prime lenses for their optical qualities which means that I carry multiple lenses. The benefit of this setup is that I can use a wide lens and a long lens at the same time to capture a moment instantly, the only downside, is the weight.

My philosophy with camera gear revolves around opting for durability and reliability with all the equipment that I use.

• Sleeping bag

  Mont Brindabella Hydronaute XT-700 sleeping bag.

  This bag handles anything that Tasmania has thrown at it. I've got the 800g XL version.

• Sleeping pad

  Nemo Tensor alpine ultralight mountaineering pad

  This is light, durable & comfortable. I've had self-inflating mats fail in the past and this is easy to inflate. It also comes in a longer size.

• Pack

  Macpac 90L Cascade backpack, I don't think macpac make or sell these anymore... This bag is heavy, but this bag is amazing. this is a good write-up.

• Camera bag

  I've modified a Lowepro to suit my needs.

• Tent

  Macpac Apollo 3-season tent.

  I can sit up in it and it is very quick to pitch. It's a 3-season tent but with a tarp it has handled some wild nights - plus my sleeping bag is waterproof.

• Communication

  Garmin inReach Mini

  I carry this as an alternative to an epirb. Simple communications can assist in so many ways and stop a problem turning into an emergency. It is great for getting reliable, up to date weather information when there is no mobile reception, and the maps are a good backup.

• First aid

  Complete first aid kit with Snake bite kit.

• Clothing

  Many wet weather jackets, over pants, boots, gloves, woollens - depending on the trip, it nice to have variety to swap these out.