Photo Review March - May 2016

There it was, a spectacular desert landscape spread across a six-lane-wide billboard above the madness that is Sydney’s Military Road at rush hour. The only text that registered on my heavily distracted brain were the words ‘Shot on iPhone 6’ placed tastefully below the image. I’m sure I wasn’t the only person thinking just how amazing smartphone cameras are these days as I rolled slowly under the sign, trying to avoid an altercation with a 180 bus asserting its right to merge. It turned out that the picture in question was one of a series shot by iPhone 6 users – both amateur and professional – which was then running in major cities all over the world. We are told that the pictures were taken with the iPhone’s built-in camera…

The Swimmer By Dianne English Second winner Image Review 5 Nikon D600; 28-300; f/7.1; 1/160s; ISO 250 Photographed at North Curl Curl Ocean baths NSW. High seas didn’t deter the locals who swim every morning. Don’s response I could easily imagine this slightly disturbing image by Dianne English turning into a quiet little earner in a stock photography library. The contrast between the purposeful swimmer powering through the still waters of the pool and that menacing explosion of spray under those foreboding dark clouds suggests all manner of metaphorical interpretations. By applying a little vignetting, Dianne subtly amplifies the tension. A well-composed, well-executed image. Yumi with pink rose By Zorica Purlija First winner Image Review 5 Nikon D4s; Nikkor 24-70mm; hand held Don’s response The best portraits make viewers believe…

‘I’m not there to change anyone’s view. That’s why I call myself a documentary photographer – I document whatever is there, whatever people created.’ When we published Nuran Zorlu’s work some 14 years ago, the young and unknown Turkish-born Armenian photographer had not long been in Australia. ‘When I arrived with my suitcase, there wasn’t any money in it,’ he said. ‘I’m a poor man. But the thing is, I brought my knowledge and my experience.’ And, he might have added, he also brought a talent for image making that was impressive enough to merit half a dozen pages in our fourth issue. Two children, an Aussie citizenship and many a move later, Nuran is still passionately committed to photography. Along with the usual mix of photo work, he’s developed…

‘Edwards has always considered himself a storyteller first and foremost, whatever the medium. But that urge has always been picture-driven.’ Tom Edwards seemed like the archetypal Pommy backpacker when he first set foot in Australia in 2009. After travelling in South East Asia for a year, he and girlfriend Helen bought a well-used van in Sydney and planned to head off on an outback adventure funded by fruit picking. ‘Actually, that’s probably the low point in the story right there,’ says Edwards. ‘We couldn’t wait to go bush, and we were in Sydney for longer than we would have liked because the van’s head gasket cracked on the way to the Blue Mountains. We returned to the dealer, refused to leave the premises until they fixed it and ended up…

How did you come to be interested in photography? I have always been interested in art, whether it be drawing, painting,etc, and I found that photography is really just another medium – but with the advantages of technology. Having started with basic point-and-shoot cameras, I moved on to a DSLR as my knowledge and confidence grew. Having a young family, it was also an interest I could fit into my life. Can you remember your first photo? It would have been a nature shot, something that was easy and attainable. And, it probably would have involved playing with textures and composition as I was learning what I could do with the camera. Can you remember the first time you took a photo where you had a particular outcome in mind?…

Why Visit If you’re looking for a photogenic area that is well and truly off the beaten track, the Lake Gairdner National Park is worth visiting. At about 160 kilometres long, Lake Gairdner is the largest of three ephemeral lakes that are remnants of the huge inland sea that once extended north from the Eyre Peninsula to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Lake Gairdner is fed by a number of creeks which only flow for a short period after rain. As a consequence, when there’s water in the lake it’s only a centimetre or two deep. When it dries out the salt crust, which is more than a metre thick in places, provides a glittering white surface that contrasts with the surrounding red of the hills. In recent years, the spectacular…