Australian Photography June 2022

Have you ever considered what makes someone truly great at what they do? Back in 2008, author Malcolm Gladwell released a book, Outliers, that proposed it takes 10,000 hours of intensive practice to achieve mastery of complex skills and materials, like playing the violin or getting as good as the Williams sisters at tennis. Since then, Gladwell’s ideas have been reassessed and critiqued, but I think the essence of his idea is still sound. Consistency and perseverance are vital components to becoming ‘great’. I’ll make it clear at this point that I’m not a great photographer, and nor will I ever be. However, you don't need to be great at something to identify the important factors to getting there, and it’s something I have found interesting to consider both inside and…

ROBERT SKIDMORE Robert (Bobby) Skidmore is a landscape and severe weather photographer based in SEQ. After picking up a camera almost 10 years ago to help with depression and PTSD, he opened a whole new world of adventure. In 2016 he won the Heritage Bank Photographic awards. See more at facebook.com/MrSPhotos TIM LEVY Tim Levy is an award-winning Sydney based freelance photographer specialising in events and portraits. See more of his work at levy.photo and theprint.network MICHAEL SNEDIC Michael Snedic is one of Australia’s most experienced professional wildlife and nature photographers. See more at wildnaturephotoexpeditions.com DOUG GIMESY Doug is a professional conservation and wildlife photojournalist who focuses on Australian issues. His clients include National Geographic, BBC Wildlife, bioGraphic and others. See more at gimesy.com…

It was June 2021 and the borders between Queensland and Tasmania had just opened for the first time in what felt like forever. In any other year visiting during this period, I would be surrounded by snow. But, in a strange twist of fate, a low-pressure system had sent Tassie’s weather up to the NSW/QLD border region and with it the snow. What I was left with was endless days of cold, wind, and constant rain. Tasmania can be a strange and wonderful place. I was surrounded by roaring wind and rain, but just an hour’s drive in any direction could mean sunshine, rainforests, or beaches. I wanted to focus on landscapes I hadn’t previously captured, but first I had unfinished business with a failed attempt from my last trip. By now…

AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHER TAKES OUT $33K SONY WORLD PHOTO AWARDS AUSTRALIAN photographer Adam Ferguson has won the Photographer of the Year title and accompanying $25,000 USD ($33,000 AUD) cash prize in the 2022 Sony World Photo Awards. Ferguson’s winning series, Migrantes, is a series of black and white self-portraits of migrants in Mexico, taken as they waited to cross the border into the United States. Photographed in collaboration with the subjects, the Dubbo-born photographer said he set-up the scene for each image, mounting a medium format camera on a tripod with a cable release and then stepped back, allowing the individuals to choose the moment of capture and participate in the process of documenting their lives. Speaking to 9 News, Ferguson said he travelled to Mexico during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Upon arriving…

GERMAN auction house Leitz Photographica is celebrating its 20th anniversary by holding the world’s largest auction of historic cameras. Among the collectibles up for auction are a Leica 0-Series No. 105 produced in 1923 that has an estimated price of €2,000,000 to €3,000,000 ($3-4 million AUD). Bids will start at a whopping €1,000,000. According to Leitz, the 0-Series, a batch of prototypes, holds special appeal for collectors. Before the Leitz Camera (‘Leica’ for short) went into series production in the mid-1920s and made the 35mm format the new standard for professional photographers, approximately 20 examples of the 0-Series were manufactured. Only around a dozen of them are estimated to still be in existence today. This particular 0-Series No. 105 is not only exceptional because of its rarity, it was also one of the personal…

INSTA360 has announced the Insta360 ONE RS interchangeable lens action camera, an update to the two-year-old Insta360 One R. Like the Insta360 One R, the new ONE RS is modular in design, and comprises three main parts; a battery, processor and three lenses. It’s a relatively minor upgrade over its predecessor, with the base (or “core,” as Insta360 calls it) and mounting system the main changes. Like the R, the camera can swap between a traditional action camera and a 360-degree camera, which makes it more versatile than rivals like GoPro. The standout feature is the addition of a new high-performance 4K ‘Boost Lens’ that features a ½”-type 48MP image sensor. The company says it has an upgraded ½-inch 48MP image sensor, but it’s slightly faster too, with an f2.4 aperture (vs…