OUR NATION’S BEST IMAGES – free outdoor exhibition opens in Auckland
Public invited to vote the best of the best
From jellyfish the size of dinner plates to muddy kids being hosed down after a fun run, the New Zealand Geographic
Photographer of the Year 2015 exhibition opens at the Viaduct this Saturday (October 3rd), offering viewers a fresh
vision of our country’s environment and culture. The public is invited to get along to this free, all weather outdoor
exhibition and put themselves in the judges’ chair by voting for the People’s Choice Award.
Now in its eighth year, the New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year is the nation’s preeminent photographic
competition. This year, a total of 27 finalists were chosen as the pick of the crop from the largest ever field of
entries; 5800 entries were received across five categories: Society & Culture, Wildlife, Landscape, Photo Story and—new to the competition in 2015 —the Timelapse category.
The diverse images from these 27 finalists have been combined with some of the best images of prior years to form an
impressive outdoor exhibition. Located in Karanga Plaza, adjacent to the Viaduct Events Centre, the New Zealand
Geographic Photographer of the Year exhibition consists of large format prints and digital screens housed inside
specially fitted out shipping containers with an image forest beneath a parabolic sail – it’s suitable for all ages; a
perfect school holiday, lunchtime or weekend outing.
The 2015 finalists depict subjects as diverse as the closed religious community of Gloriavale to young women vying for
the title of Miss Universe. They span the entire realm of New Zealand, from deep underground caves on the mainland to
albatrosses dwarfed by massive waves off the subantarctic Bounty Islands, some 700 kilometres to the east of the South
Island.
The judges were full of praise for the entries and the effort photographers went to in order to capture them. “The
timelapse category, in particular had some eye-wateringly good entries”, says convenor of judges James Frankham.
“Photographers lay in sleeping bags beside their cameras, monitoring the output every few minutes throughout the
night—one photographer spent 40 hours in a glow-worm cave for a single two-minute clip!”
“In its entirety, the exhibition is a celebration of our diversity as a country. How many people have hunted fish with
bows and arrows? Who has camped in a cave in temperatures like a fridge for a week? These photographers have been to
little-known and remarkable corners of our nation, and shared these original perspectives with us. They help us
understand who we are as a people, and what makes our country unique.
The public is invited to put themselves in the judging chair and vote for their favourite image on touch screens at the
exhibition, or online at www.nzgeographic.co.nz/photocomp. The winner of the public vote will receive the People’s Choice Award when the category winners of the competition are
announced in late October.
“The public voting aspect of this competition is one of the things that make it unique,” says Frankham. “Every year, New
Zealanders get to have their say about the images that move them most. It sparks a lot of discussion and often just a
small number of votes separate the top few choices, despite the tens of thousands of votes cast. This year there’s
incredible depth across all categories, so it won’t be an easy decision. In fact, voting opened at the end of August and
there are less than 200 votes separating the leading 10 images – it really is wide open.”
New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year is New Zealand’s most popular and richest photographic competition: Winners of each category receive $1000 cash,
publication in New Zealand Geographic and other prizes. The overall New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year 2015 will receive a further $1000 cash and a berth on board a Heritage Expeditions voyage on
assignment for New Zealand Geographic magazine. The Young Photographer of the Year 2015 also receives $1000 cash as well as special mentoring and a workshop
with wildlife photographer and judge, Kim Westerskov. The People’s Choice winner also takes home $1000 cash and other
prizes.
To see all the finalist images and vote on your favourite, go to www.nzgeographic.co.nz/photocomp
Visit the Photographer of the Year exhibition at Karanga Plaza, adjacent to the Viaduct Events Centre from Saturday
October 3 to Sunday November 1 (10am–5pm daily). Open until 9pm on Tuesday October 13th for the Late Night Art Event during Auckland Art Week.
- ENDS
-
ABOUT NEW ZEALAND GEOGRAPHIC:
New Zealand Geographic magazine is the journal of record for New Zealand, celebrating its people, places and wildlife. The magazine has built
a strong reputation for lavish photography, showcasing the natural and cultural riches that make New Zealand unique. The New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year competition launched in 2009 and has become New Zealand’s most popular photographic
competition. In 2014, a free public exhibition of finalist images and best work from previous years, toured Auckland and
Christchurch, attended by some 33,000 visitors and attracted more than 36,000 votes for the People’s Choice Award.
FULL LIST OF 2015 FINALISTS
FINALISTS:
SOCIETY & CULTURE
Alan Gibson: Sand artists near Mt Maunganui
David White: Girl performing a pukana on a horse
Ricky Wilson: Muddy boys being hosed down by firefighters
Richard Robinson: Cat rescuer surrounded by felines
Iain McGregor: ‘Color Run’ afterparty in Christchurch
Iain McGregor: A home bordering Christchurch’s red zone
Arno Gasteiger: Man dragging a large broadbill onto his boat
Lawrence Smith: Police barricade at a budget protest
LANDSCAPE
Jeff McEwan: Whanganui Coastline from the air
Jason Hosking: Giant waves at Palliser Beach
Michinori Kagawa: A frosty morning in Mt Cook National Park
Susan Blick: Dawn looking over the Hauraki Gulf towards Rangitoto
WILDLIFE
Alex Stammers: A juvenile fish sheltering within a jellyfish
Spencer Clubb: Seals cavorting at Cape Palliser
Richard Sidey: Salvin’s albatrosses dwarfed by a large swell
Jeanette Nee: Monarch butterfly at Te Puna Quarry Park
Richard Robinson: Blue shark rearing out of the water
Kyle Taylor: Fur seal diving at Poor Knights Islands
PHOTOSTORY
Cam McLaren: Inside the religious community of Gloriavale
Richard Robinson: Bow-hunting carp fish in the Waikato River
Peter Meecham: The finals of Miss Universe New Zealand
Neil Silverwood: Exploring Bulmer Cavern, NZ’s largest cave system
TIMELAPSE:
Mark Gee: Moonrise over Mt Victoria
Mark Gee: Nightscapes around the Wellington region
Bevan Percival: Tongariro National Park
Bevan Percival: Star scenes around New Zealand
Jordan Poste: Glowworms in Waipu Cave, Northland
Steven Pearce: A giant rimu tree in Pureora Forest