Overview
Wynyard Quarter is once again making the transformation into outdoor photo gallery slash art exhibition slash competition arena to house the championship of the New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year. The annual event is back again, and professional and amateur photographers have submitted their most promising works with the hopes of becoming New Zealand’s Next Top Geographic Photographer.
The winners of the previous five contests will be displayed to set the bar, and alongside them will be the few finalists that have been selected from thousands of applicants from over the country. Shipping container walls will act as the backdrop for the photographs, each of which will be in large format and of high quality. Each piece will fall under one of the four categories: Wildlife, Landscape, Society & Culture and Photo Story. The 22 chosen works all aim to capture the essence of New Zealand whilst tying into one of the contest themes. Amongst the most incredible is a photograph featuring an elderly Ohura woman and her small, evil looking dog by Michael Craig. Another stand out image is Mazdak Radjainia’s photo of a marlin at the exact moment it is speared through off the coast of the Three Kings Islands.
The best part of the event? You finally get you live out that fantasy that has been brewing since the very first episode of American Idol. The audience play the ‘peoples’ choice’ judges of the competition, by voting for their favourite images on interactive screens at the show.