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The official journal of the Australian Institute of Professional Photography.
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Working ProThe
Issue 227 • November/December 2014
YOU'RE INVITED TO OUR
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING &
MEMBERSHIP Q&A SESSION
Come along, join the discussion, and help shape our institute.All members welcome.
If you can’t make it to Melbourne... Join us on the livestream, and use the chat facility to join in the Q&A
https://new.livestream.com/liveaustralia/aippagm14
WEDNESDAY 26TH NOVEMBER 10AMPUNT HILL ESSENDON GRAND, 1142 MOUNT ALEXANDER ROAD ESSENDON
Working ProThe
C o n t e n t s# 2 2 7 - N o v / D e c 2 0 1 4
4 Ross’s Ramblings - The Getting of Wisdom Ross Eason pays tribute to Ian McKenzie and reflects on the importance of friends made through the AIPP.
6 Around The StatesWhat’s been happening in your neck of the woods? Our state councils keep us in touch with what matters around the country.
1 4 A Life Of Grain and Pixels - Exhibition OpeningMilton Wordley sent through some social photographs from Rob Imhoff’s exhibition opening last month!
1 6 100: The Perfect PrintHow does Kelly Gerdes feel about her amazing score at APPA this year, and what do they put in the water in Tasmania?
2 2 RPA, UAV or Drone: Are You Licensed?Andrew Gregory outlines the issues with RPA work and how it is becom-ing increasingly popular with our clients.
2 8 AIPP Honours 2014Each year the AIPP recognises photographers and members for the work they have done and achievements made.
3 4 Vale: Ian McKenziePeter Eastway reflects on his friend and mentor Ian McKenzie, an AIPP stalwart to the end.
3 8 Commissioned or Non-CommissionedWhen it comes to judging commercial genres of photography, what should we be looking at? What do you think about these arguments?
4 0 Matt Palmer: AIPP MemberA wedding photographer by day, Matt Palmer explores a range of differ-ent areas for his personal work.
5 4 Fighting For Your RightsAIPP member Chris Shain continues to work tirelessly behind the scenes and now joins the AIPP as a Board Adviser.
5 6 Moran Arts Foundation In SchoolsWilliam Long reports on another successful mission - the introduction of photography to the youth of Australia.
5 8 Making Money Out Of WeddingsProfit is not just money, but time as well, so when you look at what you’re charging for your work, you need to look at what you offer as well.
6 0 2014 Gold AwardsThe Best of the Best from the 2014 Canon APPAs! Now you can seel all the Golds and Golds with Distinction together - for free!
6 2 Photographers & CopyrightThe Australian Copyright Council has released its latest book on copy-right for photographers - essential reading for all of us.
6 4 An AGM With A DifferenceAsk the Board anything you like this Wednesday 26 November 2014 - and you can do it all online!
The Working Pro is the official newsletter of The Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP).
Editor Peter Eastway
G.M Photog., FNZIPP, Hon. FAIPP, Hon. FNZIPP, FAIPP
Disclaimer The information provided in The Working Pro and associat-
ed publications is made in good faith, but is general in nature. Neither
the editor, the publisher or the AIPP accept responsibility for or will be
under any liability for any recommendations, representations or infor-
mation provided herein. The Working Pro presents information, opin-
ions and suggestions for subscribers to evaluate in coming to their
own decisions in the light of their own individual circumstances. The
information should not be relied upon without readers first obtaining
independent advice from their own financial and legal advisers.
Unless otherwise noted, all articles are written by Peter Eastway.
Publication The newsletter is published 10 times a year – monthly
with November/ December and January/February being combined.
The Working Pro newsletter is published by Pt 78 Pty Ltd,
ABN 75 003 152 136, PO Box 351, Collaroy Beach, NSW 2097, Australia.
Phone: (02) 9971 6857; Fax (02) 9971 6641.
E-mail [email protected]
AIPP Membership Contacts
Suite G.02, 171 Union Road,
Surrey Hills, Victoria 3127
Phone: 03 9888 4111
E-mail: [email protected]
Cover
Matt Palmer AAIPP
2014 AIPP PROFESSIONAL SPORT
PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE yEAR
h t t p : / / m a t t m a k e s . p h o t o s
4
Ross’s RamblingsR o s s E a s o n M . P h o t o g . , H o n . L M , N a t i o n a l P r e s i d e n t
The Getting of Wisdom
I told a group of photographers recently that
after 40 years in this industry, I was still an
emerging photographer, that learning never
stops and we all evolve as we move through
our life’s journey.
Without doubt, if you speak to any member
of the Institute and ask them what is the
biggest benefit of the AIPP, it has to be the
friendships we form along the way and that we
should never take them for granted.
I lost one of my AIPP friends recently, a man
I thought I knew well. We shared many drinks,
many laughs, offered each other numerous
amounts of advice, helped each other out
and got equally pissed off with each other (as
friends are allowed to do), but never, not once,
did we lose respect for each other and never
did we lose sight of that friendship.
So why did I think I knew him well?
Surely you can’t know someone that long
and not understand who they really are? Well,
perhaps you can if that friend, who never
stopped giving, is a humble soul who was
focused on others rather than their own ego or
self.
Our industry and the Institute lost a legend
recently, a man who shaped the Institute and
fought for the rights of the industry. I was
privileged to be invited by Ian McKenzie’s wife
Louise to a memorial in Ian’s honour and stood
there gob-smacked (I think everyone present
was) as one by one, representatives from three
other groups stood in honour and shared
what he had contributed to those groups. He
contributed to each of these organisations as
much if not more than he had contributed to
our photographic industry: automotive and
sailing associations as well as a philanthropic
foundation in support of refugees and victims
of torture.
And in his spare time, Ian captained a
volunteer bush fire brigade!
If I reflect back on any benefit I have derived
from being a member of the Institute, in reality
the one that has really helped me develop in
my career, are the friendships and relationships
that expand my life and live beyond any one
event.
I could spend a life time on social media but
never develop relationships as well as I can by
being face to face with a colleague or afriend,
getting to know them. I guess it comes down
to participation, taking a step to attend an
event.
So, yes, learning does continue. Wisdom is
55
hard fought. Take some advice, work on those
friendships and make sure you take some time
to really get to know those you admire – and
tell them that you do.
There’s a wonderful line from a song, Lemon
Tree, by Peter Paul and Mary:
“A sadder man, but wiser now, I say these
lines to you” ...
Reach out. The AIPP is more than a certificate
on your wall. Work on those friendships, get
to really know those you share your time with.
They will have more importance in life than
awards and titles.
0412 108 362
AIPP New Accredited MembersN e w A P P s f o r S e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 4
Accredited
Professional
Photographers
NSW
Jason Allan
Jennifer Promenzio
Kevin Du
Teerapong Sirisonthi
Kellie Rasta
Hayden Brotchie
Mark Campbell
Carol Donaldson
Colin Boyd
SA
Samantha Chi-Shan
Larsson
Megan Macdonald
Carolne Camilleri
Jennifer Sando
NT
Louisa Sams
QLD
Venita Wilson
Natalie Cockram
Marvin Fox
David Silva
Vibeke Gargan
Alyson Brimecombe
Susan Grayina
Mark Chapman
Anne Suse Smith
Alison George
Tanatha McLeod
VIC
Amy Rushbrook
Rebecca Heaton
Tanja Rankin
Ian Charles Rolfe
Christine Anne
Hadden
WA
Paul Winzar
Laura McLean
Carly J Williams
Kelly Bergsma
TAS
Jodie Coward
Deb Sulzberger
Accredited
Professional Video
Producers
Michael Jepson
6
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99
10
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PROUDLY SUPPORTING THE AIPP
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Proud supporter of the AIPP
TRADE PARTNER
14
A Life of Grain And Pixels OpeningP h o t o D i a r y F r o m t h e A r t G a l l e r y o f B a l l a r a t
Milton Wordley sent through a selection of photographs taken in early October at the opening of Rob
Imhoff’s retrospective exhibition, A Life of Grain and Pixels. Rob Imhoff was the AIPP’s first Master of
Photography and you can see images from his exhibition in The Working Pro #225.
Rob Imhoff (standing) keeping an eye on Michael Shmith (second from left, seated) to make sure he sticks around to open the show.
The large attentive crowd. Thanks to Eric Victor who showed me how to use my iPhone for Panos!
Paul Burrows Hon. FAIPP, introduces everyone and talks about the book.
1515
The opening by Michael Shmith of Rob Imhoff’s exhibition, A life of grain and pixels at the Art Gallery of Ballarat, October 2014.
Rob on his way to thank Michael - and looking very pleased we are all here!
Sunday afternoon came around and Rob had had enough. You can all go home and I can get some work done on the farm !
There were photographers everywhere! Some even took a few snaps.
Rob addresses the very full house.
16
Kelly Gerdes AAIPP’s perfect score of 100, Canon AIPP Australian Professional Photography Awards, 2014. Some of the elements (full frame) and the Photoshop Layers panel are shown below.
1717
100: The Perfect PrintK e l l y G e r d e s ’ A m a z i n g S c o r e A t A P P A
The judging room was packed.
Photographers and interested observers
alike jostled for position, peering intently at a 26
centimetre wide print positioned under bright
lights on a grey wall. In front, five judges and a
panel chair sat around in a semi-circle, intently
discussing the merits of the image before them.
The silence as the judges entered in their
final score was instantly replaced by a raucous
applause as the audience realized the print had
earned the ultimate Canon AIPP APPA score:
100.
Early Labour
The photographer, Kelly Gerdes AAIPP was
observing proceedings from home via live
streaming.
She was many months pregnant and the
scuttle bug around the judging venue was she
had just gone into labour early (but this was not
the case). However, Kelly admits the score has
really challenged her.
“It’s freaked me out a little. I mean, how do
I move on from here? Now I feel like I have all
these expectations, mainly of myself.”
Smoke & Mirrors
“I have always set myself goals, but I wasn’t
expecting to go this far. So now I’m not sure
how to progress. Do I do more images using the
same technique, or do I move onto something
else?”
If past APPA events are any indication, there
will be a raft of composite images using smoke
(and mirrors) at future events as photographers
search for their own measure of success.
And while imitation is the sincerest form of
flattery, what these other photographers don’t
realize is that finding your own voice, your own
approach is the key to success, not following
someone else’s. It’s a case of the result not being
nearly as important as the journey.
New Associate
This was Kelly Gerdes’ second year entering
APPA. She won the Emerging Photographer
of the year in Tasmania last year and became
an Accredited Professional Photographer just
prior to APPA 2013 so she could enter as a full
member.
“I even travelled to Melbourne to see what
it was like. I watched all three days of judging
including all the different categories.”
Some would suggest Kelly obviously
cracked the ‘code’ because her scores this year
were outstanding. In addition to her Gold With
18
Distinction, she took home two Silvers with
Distinction (86, 86) and a Silver (83).
The Challenge
“I’m not trying to make it sound easy, but I just
wanted to enter something different. After
looking at the judging last year, I thought that
there was a lot of the same thing being entered
and so I wanted to do something different,
something no one had seen before, so I set
myself a little challenge and it worked.”
All four of Kelly’s images use her ‘smoke’
technique, images composed of swirls of smoke
against a dark background and post-produced
to create representations of her imagination: a
dancer, a pregnant woman, a bull’s head and a
figure in a boat beneath a full moon.
Kitchen Table
“The boat image isn’t entirely smoke because
the stars above are from a night photo of the
sky, but everything else is smoke.”
Kelly used her kitchen table and a dark
background to photograph smoke from incense
and other materials like rolled up Post It notes.
“Different materials burn differently
and produce different qualities of smoke”,
Kelly explained. “I’d take 600 to 700 shots
in each session and then I’d trawl through
the exposures until I found something that
triggered an idea.”
Kelly says she’d tried working the other way,
where she’d start with an idea and try to make it
out of smoke, but the smoke rarely co-operated.
It was much better to let the smoke do its
thing and make something out of what was
presented.
The shape of the boat man was what
triggered the idea for Kelly’s 100.
“He’s not a composite, it’s how the smoke
was formed and when I saw him, I started to
build the rest of my picture around him. He was
the trigger.
“I can’t go in with a vision of what I want to
create because it simply doesn’t work. If I force
the image, then I end up with images like my
dancer which I don’t think is organic enough.
She looks too manipulated and I felt this was
the case when I entered it, but as each image
takes 100 to 150 hours to create, I didn’t have
time to do another one.”
The photo of the dancer was Kelly’s lowest
score, just 83!
Why Enter?
“I see APPA as a challenge. It’s what drives
me and keeps me motivated - putting myself
up against the best photographers and the
photographers I look up to.
“It’s not for self-gratification, but to keep me
challenged.”
Kelly says she is currently looking for gallery
representation.
“I don’t make a lot from what I do just yet,
1919
Photographs by Kelly Gerdes. Silver (83) on left, Silver with Distinction (86) on right, Canon AIPP APPA 2014.
20
but I sell my matted work at markets, mainly
abstracts. The smoke images are something
I started on this year and I hope to build a
collection which I can exhibit early next year.
“It’s about trying to find my way as a
photographer and figuring out the direction I
should take. It’s all new to me and a big learning
experience.
“I always enjoyed art through school and I
used to do landscape photography, admiring
the work of Christian Fletcher and Tony Hewitt.
However, when the kids came along [Kelly
now has three], I couldn’t get out and about as
much, so I had to find another avenue.
“I turned to the kitchen bench and macro
lenses.”
Warp And Reshape
Kelly’s smoke images begin with a thorough
search of hundreds of images, looking for
shapes and forms that represent what is
needed.
Kelly also uses the warp tool in Photoshop
to bend and re-shape elements if required,
but many of the components are as they are
captured.
For instance, the moon in her winning image
is straight out of camera, and the cloud over the
top added from another exposure.
“I find I have to take hundreds of shots to
get the shapes I want. In the dancer, the shapes
were heavily warped and shaped, changing the
opacity of the various layers to get the look. It
almost feels like I am drawing.”
Redefining Photography
Asked how she responds to criticisms that her
work is graphic design and not photography,
Kelly was forthright with her answer.
“I’ve discussed this at length with my friends
about how far I have gone and is the image too
removed from being a photograph?
“However, although the images are one
hundred percent derived from photographs, I
can see that it’s a drawing as well.
“People have said APPA has become the
Photoshop Awards, but I don’t let that bother
me because I know the images have come from
my camera.
“Why keep yourself in a box when it
comes to defining what photography can be?
Everyone has their own idea of how they want
things to look and this is my vision.
“And it’s still photography, no matter what
some people will say. you can get into a debate
about what photography is and you just can’t
convert some people, but I’m happy with what I
do.”
Kelly Gerdes AAIPP is a professional photographer
based in Hobart, Tasmania. You can see more of
Kelly’s work on her website at: kellygerdesphotogra-
phy.com.au
2121
Photograph by Kelly Gerdes. Silver with Distinction, Canon AIPP APPA 2014.
22
Examples of Andrew Gregory’s photography using RPAs.
2323
RPA, UAV or Drone: Are you Licensed?A n d r e w G r e g o r y o u t l i n e s t h e i s s u e s w i t h R P A w o r k .
Sydney photographer and AIPP member
Andrew Gregory has spent the last few years
teaching himself all about RPAs - remotely
piloted vehicles - and the multitude of
government regulations surrounding their use.
Perhaps one of the biggest changes in
photographic technique in the last decade has
been the use of ‘drones’ or remote helicopters to
carry cameras into the air.
Although used more for video than stills
photography, the aerial perspective is in big
demand and it’s certainly a lot cheaper than
hiring a full-size chopper.
After working editorially for publications
such as Australian Geographic, Andrew knew
how difficult and expensive it could be to
get an aerial perspective, which lead him to
thinking seriously about RPAs.
(These are also referred to in CASA
documentation as UAVs - unmanned aerial
vehicles - but the official terminology has now
been changed to RPAs.)
“Often you just need to get 20 or 50 metres
above the ground for a shot, so even a full size
helicopter mightn’t be permitted to do what an
RPA can.
“However, keeping an RPA still enough to
create a sharp exposure is a challenge and so I
set about researching and even designing my
own.”
Aerial Systems
According to Andrew, there are two main
players in Australia for RPAs. Aerobot in Byron
Bay was the first to offer Mikrokopter and
Cinestar (a number of different systems), but
in recent years it has met with competition
from the less expensive DJI brand sourced from
China.
“After a couple of years experimentation, I’ve
found the latest DJI A2 units to be reliable and
stable. It’s also easier and quicker to get parts
for DJI. All copters can be twitchy if they are not
set up correctly and this is why photographers
planning to use RPAs should also be familiar
with their technical requirements.”
Photographers wanting to use an RPA
commercially under the current law need a
licence from CASA. This law is being reviewed,
but even if changed, Andrew believes that
photographers really need to learn and
understand the issues required for the licence,
simply to do a professional job.
“A lot of RPAs crash and usually it’s because
they are not set up correctly or due to operator
error. To overcome this, you need experience
and in some ways, this is what the licensing
24
process provides.
“I started with a simulator program and
spent 20 hours practising on that. But in the real
world, you need to understand how the aircraft
operates and how to set it up correctly.
“For instance, although most RPAs are GPS
enabled, you need to calibrate the GPS so the
copter knows where it is and when it’s level. The
same with the gimbal holding the camera - it
can’t be levelled unless the copter is level first.
“There’s a whole checklist to go through
each and every time you fly and the more
experience you have, the sooner you can tell
something’s not right when you take off.”
Andrew has used a number of cameras
with RPAs, including Panasonic’s GH3 and
GH4, Canon’s EOS 5D Mark III, Sony’s A7 and of
course GoPros. However, depending on the lens
attached to each camera, the gimbal needs to
be re-balanced to ensure an error free flight.
However, the technique of flying and
shooting is just one part of the equation. The
big issue for professional photographers is
licensing.
Sensible Restrictions
Whether you’re working commercially or
privately (e.g. when learning to fly an RPA), there
are some commonsense restrictions you must
abide by.
“For instance, you cannot fly within 30
metres of people, buildings, boats or vehicles
- whether or not you are licensed - but I see
people taking off just a couple of metres away
from little kids. This is really dangerous as an RPA
can do a lot of damage to a person. It’s not a
toy.
“The reason CASA is getting involved is
purely because of incidents where people are
not doing the right thing. If we see someone
operating an RPA at the beach near people,
we should talk to them and explain why they
should stop. I won’t fly in any of these situations.
The 30 metre rule is important.”
While safety seems to be the major
consideration, Andrew says most of the
proposals concerning licensing of RPAs deal
with privacy issues, but that’s a whole story
on its own. There has also been talk about
not requiring licensing for RPAs under two
kilograms in discussion papers, but Andrew
believes this format is currently in doubt and
that there may be a different approach to which
RPAs require licensing.
Andrew says many photographers ask if
there is an easy way to get a license, but in
short, there isn’t. “you essentially need a pilot’s
licence and sit the theory exam for the Private
Pilot Licence. Currently there are a number of
schools set up to teach you all the required
theory for an RPA licence and it takes an average
of 6 weeks to achieve.
“Then you apply to CASA for an RPA
controller certificate and that in turn requires
you to do manufacturer training so you know
2525
how the RPA works and how to set it up.
“The manufacturer training is specific to the
RPA you are using, and your controller certificate
is issued as a license to fly either an under 7 or
an under 20 kilo class. However, you need to log
a certain number of hours flying time working
for an operator, and from there you can become
an operator in your own right.
“In my case, I worked with a company that
had all the approvals for flying an RPA, but
needed a photographer, so I helped them and
in turn this gave me the experience I needed.
“And to get your own operator certificate,
you need to write your own operations manual,
26
your own maintenance manual and checklists,
and pass a CASA flight test. These last stages
took me a good six months.
“I think all up, photographers should allow
9 months to become fully licensed and allow
at least $3000 for training purposes. Plus it
costs about $4000 to apply for an operators
certificate and your public liability insurance is
about $3500 per annum.
Client Education
“There’s so much information about RPAs that it
can be difficult to know what is right and what
is fiction. This becomes a big problem when
dealing with clients because often they have
unrealistic expectations of what is possible and
what is allowed.
“I find I need to educate my clients about
the rules and while it is usually possible to
shoot in most situations, you can’t always do it
when the light is exactly right or from the ideal
location. For instance, some locations restrict
when and where they allow you to fly and other
places may be in restricted areas
“Clients also think I can shoot at any time
of the day, but there is a limit to what you can
achieve technically. For instance, shooting stills
25 minutes after sunset isn’t going to work
unless you can ensure your shutter speeds
are fast enough. you also need to consider
issues like flare as in the air it’s just as likely to
be coming from reflections below as the sun
above. And if you’re stitching images together,
can you rotate the camera around the nodal
point and keep the gimbal correctly balanced?
“There is a limit to what can be done
technically, but this is also part of the attraction
of using RPAs. I’m finding out what those limits
are and improving on them.”
Andrew is a vocal member on the AIPP
Aerial Photograph SIG. “What I found is that
if I keep all this knowledge secret, then I’m
competing with photographers who are not
doing the right thing. It’s got to the stage where
we need to tell unlicensed people that it’s not
okay and sometimes it’s just as important to
educate our clients as other photographers.
“For instance, if I’m doing a job for Australian
Geographic in a national park, it’s important
that I have obtained the proper permits so my
client is seen to be doing the right thing.”
RPAs For PhotographersAndrew Gregory’s suggestions for our
profession
1. To work commercially, you have to be
licensed (or hire someone who is)
2. We must explain to our clients that there
are rules we have to follow. If people break
these rules, it will make things tougher for
everyone else. It will take only one serious
accident for the whole industry to be
changed.
2727
Examples of Andrew Gregory’s photography using RPAs.
28
AIPP Honours 2014F r o m t h e G a l a C a n o n A P P A D i n n e r
Gavin Blue
2014 Claude McCarthy Award
His diverse work covers commercial
photography, portraits, annual reports and very
big trucks.
Gavin Blue is an accomplished
photographer and a busy man. He considers
being part of the community a two way street,
so he donates his photography, time, effort and
resources to many charities including SIDS and
Kids, Ardoch youth Foundation, World Vision,
Clean Ocean Foundation, Australian Charity of
Child Photographers, Now I Lay Me Down to
Sleep and Heartfelt.
Heartfelt is a volunteer organisation of
professional photographers from all over
Australia, dedicated to giving the gift of
photographic memories to families who have
experienced still births, premature births
or have children with serious and terminal
illnesses. Gavin has been president of Heartfelt
since November 2010.
According to Gavin, “It’s a gift to give them
some memory because usually it’s the last thing
people think of in a time like that. And when
this sort of stuff happens, having a photo that
you can share really helps the grieving for a
family”.
A grieving mum wrote this about her
experience with Heartfelt: “Beautiful precious
moments with our babies you capture forever, a
gift to a stranger in their darkest moments. That
is heartfelt!
“When our baby was stillborn, I feared I
would in time forget her. I wanted to hang on
to every moment and absorb every detail of
her soft skin, beautiful face, ten perfect fingers,
ten perfect toes, her huge feet and hands - and
how tall and gorgeous she was.
“In October last year, late one Friday
night, Gavin Blue drove two hours in the rain
to donate his time and talents in order to
photograph our precious stillborn baby girl,
capturing memories that we will cherish forever.
2 0 1 4 A I P P H O N O U R S
F R O M T H E H O N O U R S C O M M I T T E E
2929
“I just wanted to send you an email to let
you know how grateful we are for what you did
for us. I would never have imagined exactly how
much comfort these photos would bring me.
“Thank you. Thank you.Thank you.”
In recognition of his outstanding
contribution to Heartfelt and other charities,
the AIPP awarded Gavin Blue with the Claude
McCarthy Award for 2014.
- Richard Bennett M.Photog., Hon. FAIPP, FAIPP
Ryan Schembri M.Photog., HLM
Honorary Life Member
Starting work in his father’s Kodak Express store
at the tender age of 12, followed closely by
shooting Christmas Santa photos at the local
shopping centre, Ryan Schembri was an early
starter in the profession of photography. This
should be of no surprise, having been brought
up the son of Martin Schembri, a long standing
AIPP member and leading Sydney wedding
photographer.
Ryan shot his first wedding at the age of 17
and had photographed over 400 weddings by
the time he was 25. Even at the tender age of
20, Ryan had become the AIPP’s youngest ever
Master of Photography and had also won the
NSW AIPP Wedding Photographer of the year
award on three occasions, the NSW Epson AIPP
Professional Photographer of the year in 2011,
the AIPP Australian Wedding photographer of
the year in 2012. He is currently the Queensland
(his newly adopted state) AIPP Wedding
Photographer of the year.
Ryan has been a popular speaker at state,
national and international conferences,
including being a judge and speaker at WPPI in
Las Vegas for the last 12 years.
Outside of Ryan’s excellence in photographic
practice, he has made another outstanding
contribution to the AIPP and especially APPA.
Ryan joined the APPA committee in 2001 in the
capacity of ‘digital specialist’ and spent 12 years
on the committee, rising to Chairman of Jurors
in 2011.
On a more romantic note, Ryan often says
that if it wasn’t for APPA, he wouldn’t have met
his wife, the beautiful Jessica (obviously that’s
one of the best scores Ryan ever got at APPA).
Ryan also found his involvement in APPA to
be one of the greatest learning experiences of
his life and gives thanks to his APPA mentors
Richard Bennett, Peter Eastway and David
2 0 1 4 A I P P H O N O U R S
F R O M T H E H O N O U R S C O M M I T T E E
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Paterson for their invaluable direction and
insight.
The Australian Institute of Professional
Photography recognises Ryan Schembri for
his outstanding contribution to the AIPP, the
Australian photographic profession and APPA
with the honour of Honorary Life Member of
the AIPP.
- Greg Hocking G.M.Photog., Hon FAIPP, FAIPP
William Long M.Photog., HLM
Honorary Life Member
Since his arrival in Australia in 1993, he has been
involved with and contributed towards the
progressive development of the professional
photographic community.
William Long is a Fellow of the Royal
Photographic Society and a Fellow of the British
Institute of Professional Photography. William
is one of the best ambassadors we have in
social media, which extends well beyond the
Institute. His defence of the AIPP in those circles
is unwavering and William regularly contacts
members and non-members alike to help them
through a difficult time or to clarify an issue.
William undertook the task of running the
Queensland awards for two years and was
committed to ensuring the Awards were run
correctly and for the benefit of all involved.
With the Photo Watchdog Facebook site,
William has taken it upon himself to help
ensure that photographic competitions are
administered in the interests of the entrants
and he works with competition organisers to
achieve this aim.
William has also worked with others on the
establishment of the Australian Photographic
Digital Guidelines which are now in common
use. He is an AIPP Master of Photography with
four gold bars whose many awards include the
2013 Australian AIPP Commercial Photographer
of the year, the 2000 British Institute of
Professional Photography Portrait Photographer
of the year, and the 1998 Australian AIPP
Illustrative Photographer of the year. He
has won the Queensland AIPP Commercial
Photographer of the year five times.
The AIPP Board holds William in high
regard because he works hard and he cares.
He scrutinises policy to help keep all on the
right track and to ensure that what the Board
does is best for the Institute. He has exceptional
commitment to the photographic industry and
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to the AIPP.
The Australian Institute of Professional
Photography recognises William’s valued
contribution to this Institute and to the
photographic community with the distinction
of Honorary Life Member.
- Richard Bennett M.Photog., Hon. FAIPP, FAIPP
John Lamb and Bruce Postle
Honorary Fellows
Helen Keller once wrote, “Alone we can do so
little, together we can do so much”. It’s not that
our next Honours recipients have achieved
little on their own, quite the contrary, but more
the latter, that together they have achieved so
much.
It is near impossible to compare
photographers of different eras and different
genres, but if there were ever a debate about
who were the greatest Australian press
photographers of all time, I am sure that Bruce
Postle and John Lamb would be at the top of
the list.
Same-day press photography is only
a little over 100 years old in Australia. In
fact The Melbourne Age didn’t have a staff
photographer until after the First World War and
the Sun News-Pictorial was still a few years away
from its first edition.
Postle and Lamb were on the job for a good
portion of that period and their portfolios
reflect some of the great moments and images
of Australian history. Both have won a bevy of
awards, including Walkleys, Press Photographers
of the year and more. Bruce and John are the
same age as each other and both commenced
work in the mid ‘50s.
Lamb began as a messenger boy at The Age
with no intention of becoming a photographer.
He worked in the mail room, then photo
sales, then as a gopher in the darkroom. Athol
Shmith’s Collins Street window display was
of both intrigue and inspiration to him, but it
wasn’t until one day the picture editor tossed
him a camera and told him to go to the airport
and take a shot that he found his true calling.
Lamb told his editor he wasn’t interested.
However, he changed his mind quickly when
the photo editor threatened to sack him if he
didn’t get to the airport.
Postle, on the other hand , was born
with a camera in his hand. His father was a
photographer at the Courier Mail in Brisbane
and Bruce took his first picture at age seven
with his father’s Graflex. Ten years later he
followed his father to the Courier.
Postle and Lamb were joined at The Age
in 1968 when Postle moved to Melbourne
from Brisbane. It was at that time The Age was
being reinvigorated, after being half asleep
for the best part of half a century. Part of that
reinvigoration was better use of pictures. One of
the few editorial advantages of the larger page
size of the old broadsheet was the ability to run
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much larger pictures than the smaller tabloid.
This created an environment where good
photographers flourished.
John and Bruce, along with some of their
peers at the rival Herald Sun, redefined press
photography at a time when it was feared the
introduction of television would kill the still
image. Fortunately this wasn’t to be the case
and not only did they thrive, but they took
pictorial creativity to new levels.
For a period of over 30 years they were the
definitive leaders in their field and a wealth of
inspiration for more than one generation of up
and coming photographers.
Graham Perkin, who is considered by many
as possibly the greatest Age editor of all time,
once made the comment that if he was ever
short of a front page story and Bruce or John
were still out on assignment, he knew he had
it covered. Such was the respect for these two
master craftsmen that they were basically given
a free reign.
Postle and Lamb worked contacts as hard
as any reporter of the day, winning the trust
of prime ministers and archbishops alike, who
sometimes did ridiculous things for them all in
the name of getting that great shot. Regardless
of how mundane an assignment seemed, they
refused to believe that there wasn’t a front page
picture in it.
Of course, when they went out on a job,
quite often they weren’t returning with the
picture they expected, but if by chance there
was no picture, there was always the likelihood
they would find something on the way back to
the office.
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Lamb was a gunslinger – fast, cunning,
cool, determined and persistent, but he was a
big-hearted gunslinger, capable of conveying
great warmth in images of people, especially
children. He had an amazing eye and instinct
for a picture. For years in the 80s and 90s, he
worked in partnership with John Lahey to
produce hundreds of extraordinary picture
stories of ordinary Australians under the dinkus
Lahey At Large. John Lahey says that many
of those stories were found by John, some of
them simply by pulling up on the highway and
chatting to someone.
Postle on the other hand was an artist.
He saw the world differently to anyone else
and it showed in his photographs. Like many
geniuses, he had a touch of insanity and absent-
mindedness. He once got a dressing down at
the Courier Mail for pretending to be a trained
parachutist and persuading people at an air
show to let him jump to take an air-to-air shot.
He had never jumped in his life.
But the picture did make page one!
He once drove an office car through a
paddock, steering with his feet while he hung
out the window to take a picture of horses on
the move. He did so because his reporter didn’t
drive. Again, the picture made page one.
Postle has lost more camera gear than any
photographer in history. One picture editor sent
him swimming in the Maribyrnong River after
he dropping yet another camera into the drink.
Both John and Bruce were extremely
dedicated in their work, staying back at
the office when the journos and other
photographers would knock off to get to the
pub before the then 6 o’clock close. This often
resulted in them being around to get the good
jobs.
Bruce and John have an incredible respect
for one another and although they fiercely
competed for that front page, they were also
friends who would share ideas and help each
other out when required. On a recent meeting
with John, he told me that he was once
shooting at the tennis in Kooyong when he
suggested that the paper should put another
photographer at the other end of the court. The
paper did and the resulting picture of Pat Cash
that Bruce took won him the Press Photograph
of the year that year.
I asked John if he was annoyed that he didn’t
get the shot and without hesitation he said,
“Not at all. I was happy for Bruce and it could
just as easily have gone the other way”.
Bruce Postle and John Lamb, we are
all forever indebted to you for your great
photographic vision and the huge archives of
amazing images that have resulted from it. In
recognition of your work, we award you both
with Honorary Fellows of the Australian Institute
of Professional Photography.
- Ian van der Wolde, M.Photog., Hon. FAIPP.
- Photos thanks to David Glazebrook.
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Vale: Ian McKenzieA n A I P P S t a l w a r t T o T h e E n d
I will miss gruff old Ian McKenzie.
When I joined the AIPP, I was encouraged
to stand for the state council where my
accounting background was needed to sort out
an issue. From here I was nominated onto the
AIPP National Board as Treasurer where I met
AIPP heavyweights like Val Foreman, Will Street,
Rob Gray and Ian McKenzie.
Ian was a former national president by then,
but he was still very active and very passionate.
I was intimidated by him, not physically or
anything, but because of his experience and
knowledge. When he spoke, he spoke with
authority. He could see the direction the
Institute needed to take, what was required for
professional photographers around Australia,
and how to get there.
But beneath that gruff exterior was a very
sensitive and caring individual. There was also
someone who was prepared to admit he was
wrong or that there was a better way, all you
had to do was show him. So while I know of a
few of us who felt the McKenzie flames, we all
understood they came from a heart of hot gold.
Ian was a consummate professional. I can
remember being asked to take a photograph
of all the delegates at an AIPP convention in
Hobart, probably 20 years ago. I used my 4x5”
wooden camera and a Grafmatic film holder
with six sheets of film. Although I had used the
camera for many years, Ian watched me fluffing
around, getting things ready, and offered to
take the photograph for me.
I thought this was a good idea. Ian stepped
in and I can remember to this day how quickly,
accurately and expertly he handled my camera.
Cocking the shutter, inserting the Grafmatic
and then taking the photograph - he had
the skills of someone who knew his craft and
profession intimately. That to me was what a
true professional was all about, knowing your
job so well, it was completely automatic.
Ian and I have been great friends for nearly
30 years. It is hard to believe he is no longer
going to attend APPA each year and complain
about the type of photographs that are winning
awards - the type of photographs I love! We
may have disagreed on some things, but that’s
what made our relationship so engaging - and
the fact he (and I hope I) could respect other
opinions.
Ian is survived by his wife Louise McKenzie
and a profession who will mourn his passing.
Vale Ian McKenzie M.Photog., Hon. FAIPP,
FAIPP, OAM.
you will be missed.
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(Above) Ian McKenzie doing what he loved. Photo by Barat Ali Batoor.
(Below left to right) A small memorial service was held. Two speakers from Ian’s photographic life were Kevin O’Daly and Bruce Pottinger.
Photos Ian van der Wolde.
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Ian McKenzie BioW r i t t e n b y P a u l C u r t i s
The following short biography is taken from A
History of Professional Photography in Australia,
by Paul Curtis (2013):
In 1978 the presidential baton was passed to
Ian McKenzie.
Tall, slim, athletic, articulate and highly
intelligent, the perpetually all-in-black and
casually dressed McKenzie cut a dynamic figure
across the Australian photography stage for
four decades. Indeed, his influence is still felt
strongly to this day.
Industrial Photographer
Born in Melbourne in 1939, Ian spent two years
in chartered accountancy before becoming a
professional photographer in 1958.
Basing his business in Melbourne, he
specialised in architectural and industrial
photography and also shot aerial and illustrative
pictures for company reports.
He joined the Institute of Victorian
Photographers in 1959 and became a member
of the Institute at its inception.
Educationalist
In 1966, Ian began a four-year program
designing and overseeing the construction
of educational facilities and the Diploma of
Photography course at Prahran College in
Melbourne.
He was department head for two years and
the diploma course Ian introduced was later
reclassified as a degree.
Convention Organiser
In 1973, he returned to private practice and
became the convener of the Institute’s national
conference.
Such was the success of the program, Ian
was asked to perform this voluntary task for the
next four conventions up until 1981.
Ian has also had a long association with the
Australian Professional Photography Awards,
joining the National Awards Committee in 1976
and then serving as a judge and panel chairman
until 2012.
Publisher
Venturing into publishing with Attila Kiraly
and Val Foreman, Ian republished Jack Cato’s
The Story of the Camera in Australia under the
Institute’s imprint.
He went on to publish the Contemporary
Photographer Series. This consisted of
monographs by photographers such as David
Moore, Athol Shmith, Lewis Morley, Wolfgang
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Sievers, Graham McCarter, Ian Dodd and
Michael Coyne.
Up until the end of Ian’s term as president,
the national conventions were held every
second year and were known as ‘Hypos’,
followed by the last two digits of the year they
fell in: thus ‘Hypo ‘77, ‘Hypo 79, etc.
The state divisions were encouraged to hold
a division convention in the off year.
International Connections
At the Hypos, a trade display, which would only
operate during conference lunch and coffee
breaks, would be held in conjunction with the
convention.
The trade participation was important to
the success of the convention as the revenue
was mostly responsible for keeping convention
finances in the black.
Ian was also actively involved in the first
moves to bring internationally-respected
photographers to Australia to give lectures to
photographers and help lift the standards of the
profession.
Among the first of these celebrated
international visitors were Sam Haskins and
Monte Zucker.
PICA
The national convention model which Ian
devised worked well until the trade suppliers
felt that because of the escalating costs of
mounting displays, they needed to expand the
show and attract larger audiences.
This led to a new body, called the Australian
Photo Industry Council, which was made up
of delegates from all the various associations
representing photo dealers, consumer and
professional distributors, photo laboratories and,
of course, professional photographers.
Ian McKenzie was elected to represent the
Institute and at his instigation it was agreed that
the distributors rather than the Institute would
fund the costs of overseas photographers to
lecture at the Institute’s conventions.
Commercial Group
Still continuing his service, in 2006 Ian McKenzie
established and chaired the AIPP Commercial
Group and became a member of the Institute’s
Policy and Planning Committee.
In 2010 he developed the structure and
syllabus course materials for the AIPP National
Mentoring scheme and managed the scheme
nationally.
It is hard to think of many who have made
such a long and sustained contribution to the
Institute and to professional photography in
Australia.
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Commissioned or Non-Commissioned?W h a t S h o u l d W e B e J u d g i n g A t A P P A ?
If photography competitions like the Canon
AIPP APPAs and the Epson AIPP State Awards
are only for professionals, what should they be
judging?
There are two possible answers. The first is
that they should be judging the work produced
by professional photographers. For some
people, this means work that photographers
have been commissioned to take - in other
words, real jobs. This is because shooting a real
job under real pressure is different to shooting
something on spec or personally. There is a
perception that the former is more difficult than
the latter.
The second answer is that professional
awards should judge photography based on
professional standards.
Few people disagree with the second
answer, but not all photographs submitted are
produced for clients. There are categories in the
awards that allow non-commissioned work to
be entered and for some photographers, this
is seen as an advantage over entrants who are
submitting commissioned work.
Let’s take wedding photography as an
example. Many years ago, some photographers
were hiring models and shooting mock
weddings in order to enter the awards. This
appeared to put the photographers working at
real weddings at a disadvantage, so the rules
were changed so that only photographs taken
at a real wedding could be entered.
The same applies to commercial categories
such as advertising, fashion and architecture,
but should it?
you can only earn a living as a wedding
photographer shooting real weddings, but
it is possible to earn a living as a commercial
photographer shooting stock images for
yourself on speculation. you don’t have
to have the same pressures as shooting a
commissioned job, yet it is a valid way to earn a
living.
So, should these non-commissioned
images be accepted for entry into commercial
categories, or should they be entered in
another category like Illustrative? Currently they
are not accepted.
Or if you shoot personal work for your
portfolio, should this be accepted? Currently it is
not, yet 2014 AIPP Fashion Photographer of the
year Peter Coulson suggested being allowed
to enter personal work would be good for the
category.
What do you think? Join the Commercial
CAG to have your say, or post on the AIPP blog.
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S i l v e r A w a r d • C o m m e r c i a l C a t e g o r y
Michael Evansw w w . m i c h a e l e v a n s p h o t o g r a p h e r . c o m2014 CANON AIPP AUSTRALIAN PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY AWARDS
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
Matt Palmer AAIPP is a
wedding and portrait
photographer with a
background in graphic design,
commercial photography
and live music photography.
Explained Matt, “I started
as a graphic designer 20
years ago and worked
extensively in design before
my photographic passion
took over. I was fortunate
during a transitional phase
to work in jobs that allowed
me to pursue both graphic
design and photography at a
high level. For instance, I was
the Creative Director of the
Brisbane Roar Football Club
for two years which allowed
me unparalleled control
over the look of the brand. I
was able to conduct all the
photo shoots and then carry
those photographic elements
through to a finished design.
Right now, I’m concentrating
solely on photography, but
using my design skills to boost
my business where I can.”
Matt says he has been
following his photography
dream for around a year now.
“It’s been a tough 12 months,
but I am always excited by
the future and I am certain
that image making will be my
lifelong passion and source of
employment.
“Not knowing what kind
of images I might be making
or how I might be creating
them in 10 years from now
keeps me interested and I
am always in pursuit of the
perfect image. I go into every
job hoping to capture the
best images of my career thus
far.”
Matt has been entering
the Epson AIPP state awards
and Canon AIPP APPA awards
for just two years and says
he is grateful for the success
he’s had so far. This year
he won the Epson AIPP
Queensland Documentary
/ Sports Photographer of
the year, was a finalist in the
Epson AIPP Queensland
Landscape Photographer of
the year, and won the AIPP
Australian Professional Sports
Photographer of the year at
APPA.
“I’m already thinking and
planning how I will push
myself next year.”
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
“When my core
photography was capturing
musicians, I would always
say there were four main
components to the outcome
of an image: photographer
ability, access, lighting and
subject.
“Often we could only
control our ability and
the subjects we chose to
photograph. On occasion
though, I would get stage
access to create something
different, such as images
of performers interacting
with their fans. The same
is probably true of most
action photography because
getting a good position gives
you an edge.”
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
When it comes to equipment,
Matt is a strong believer in
knowing how to use external
light on location and in a
studio.
“Whilst a photographer
may not always need it, in an
industry where professional
gear is being sold more to
lawyers and doctors than it is
to photographers, knowing
how to use and see light is
such an advantage that we
must grasp it. I love my Paul
C Buff Einstein lights for their
flexibility in light output
(but unfortunately they no
longer take on new Australian
customers).
“Before using the Einsteins,
I had an army of small flashes
including Canon Speedlights,
a few Vivitars and whatever
else I got my hands on.
“Today, I love my Einsteins
and for most subjects in the
studio, I use large flattering
light sources such as big
umbrellas with layers of
diffusion. On location, I’ll
use umbrellas, Octoboxes
and even a beauty
dish, depending on the
requirements and logistics of a
given shoot.
“The Manfrotto 001B
collapsible light stand is
amazing for traveling with
small flashes because the
legs fold back up the centre
column, allowing it to pack
very easily.
“I always want a scene
where there is visual drama
or where visual drama can be
created. In terms of adding
your own lighting, an overcast
or stormy sky is beautiful as it
provides an almost blank slate
of light with which you can
add your own drama through
artificial lighting. Otherwise,
a good action photographer
survives on what they are
given and the best ones make
bad light look good.”
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
The images selected for
this portfolio are primarily
from Matt’s personal projects.
“I think personal projects
are so important for rounding
out your skills and polishing
them. My landscape
photography and work in
the live music industry have
hugely influenced the way
I approach weddings, for
instance, especially in terms
of the technicalities of taking
challenging images.
“Photographing music for
over seven years also helped
me become a good sports
photographer. Anticipation
is key and if you’re pressing
the shutter when you see
the action happening, you’ve
missed it.”
Matt’s winning images at
Canon AIPP APPA this year
were taken at Muay Thai
kickboxing bouts. “I try to
anticipate the fighters’ moves
as if I were in the ring with
them. I need to understand
when the fighter is throwing
a fake (tricking the opponent
into expecting a certain strike,
but setting up another strike
instead), and when the fighter
is about to throw something
that they intend to do some
real damage with.
“The image needs to be
taken when I see them first
throwing the strike because
by the time shutter lag and
human reflexes are taken
into account, it’s too late to
be taking the image when
the strike lands. When I hear
my shutter noise at the same
time as a cracking noise from
the ring, I am happy that my
timing and anticipation have
come together.”
Matt uses the same
anticipation when
photographing the actions
of a musician (often helped
by knowing the music), or
photographing Brisbane Roar
matches. “The best images
come from an understanding
of the subject and knowing
what is about to happen
before it does.”
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
50
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
“When it comes to action
photography, I look at the
existing lighting set up and
break it down into what it
would be like in a studio.
Where are the main lights
coming from? What fill light
is there? Is that white wall
going to be bouncing fill light
back into the ring to fill out a
fighter’s face? Generally the
light is terrible, so you have
to take every advantage in
positioning that you can.
“When I work with athletes
for a posed portrait, I try to
involve them in the process
somehow, so they buy into
the end product. For the last
marketing photo shoot I did
with Brisbane Roar, we had a
list of poses we needed from
everyone, and then some
optional ones for the players
if they wanted to. We got a
few key players on board for
the ‘cool’ shots and once we
showed the other players
what they looked like, most
of them wanted to be more
involved as well.
“I also like to physically
demonstrate what I want
from a pose because when
they can see me doing it,
the idea is a lot clearer. I find
posing everyday people is a
lot different to posing athletes
and celebrities and often
requires a different approach.”
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M A T T PalmerA I P P M E M B E R P R O F I L E
“I love Adobe Lightroom and I can’t imagine
having to work without it. With Lightroom and
being able to move images from my catalogues
in and out of Adobe Photoshop, I can do pretty
much everything I need. I also do all my layout
in Adobe InDesign which was my primary tool
as a designer.
“I don’t take on any job where I need to
deliver while still on location (such as shooting
for Getty, for instance). I’m not the kind of
photographer who can let go of what I produce
enough to deliver that quickly, although I’ve
often worked all night after a shoot to have
things ready for press the next morning.
“Problem solving and being able to keep
cool under pressure is an important trait in a
photographer, especially when working within
tight time frames and on location.”
http://mattmakes.photos - personal site with
awards for reference
http://recordmakers.photography - my every
day work
“Photographers are always welcome to contact
me for a chat on [email protected]”
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Fighting For your RightsC h r i s S h a i n R e p r e s e n t i n g T h e A I P P
As Australia’s peak body representing
professional photographers, the AIPP fights for
the diminishing rights of all image makers in
this country.
We are active and vocal in defending the
viability of our industry. your AIPP membership
dues help fund this incredibly important long
term work.
The AIPP pushes for law makers and
influencers to consider the potential impacts
of their decisions on the day to day working
professional photographer.
Recently, we worked with the ATO to get
realistic depreciation values for our equipment.
We lobbied Instagram to re-word their
terms and conditions to respect photographer
copyright, which they did.
We lobbied for the release of photo
journalist Peter Greste and his colleages in
Egypt.
And we made submissions to government
on copyright, privacy, orphan works and fair
use.
Chris Shain has been a driving force behind
Photograph of Chris Shain by Matthew Duchesene.
5555
much of AIPP’s advocacy work.
“Chris is the most highly respected
photographer among those who fight to
protect artists’ rights”, explains Ross Eason, AIPP
President. “He has being fighting for the rights
of photographers for decades and now he is
officially doing so on behalf of the AIPP”.
The AIPP this month appointed Chris as
a Board Advisor regarding copyright, moral
rights and issues requiring the Institute to lobby
government to protect the interests of our
industry.
“Thanks to Chris, the AIPP was one of the
few organisations granted an interview with the
Australian Law Reform Commission to discuss
copyright law revisions.
“Chris has the ear of the big wigs and is
well respected around the globe”, said Ross.
“Australian image makers are bloody lucky to
have him on the case.”
On behalf of the industry, Chris meets
regularly with the Copyright Council, Copyright
Agency, Viscopy, and senior academics in the
copyright world.
He also has regular communication on
copyright issues with American Society of
Media Photographers.
Chris was an integral part of an industry
team that successfully made amendments to
the Copyright Act in 1998, and he was a director
of the Australian Copyright Council for eight
years until recently.
Chris was an expert witness in a federal
court case involving an American photographer
regarding copyright infringement in
Australia. The judgement was in favour of
the photographer, and the judge stated that
“breaches of copyright are common… and
the courts must do what they can to assist
copyright owners to maintain their property,
and prevent the unlawful use of it.”
[View the published judgement at http://
www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/sinodisp/au/cases/
cth/FCCA/2014/445.html?stem=0&synonyms=0
&query=title(Tylor%20v%20Sevin%20).]
Advocacy is an intangible but vitally
important service AIPP provides for you.
Chris Shain’s recent appointment is part of
AIPP continued commitment to fighting for
your rights.
Chris Shain is also one of Australia’s best commer-
cial photographers.
He is an Associate member of the AIPP and has
been a director of the Australian Copyright Coun-
cil. He has wide respect within the industry and has
addressed small and large groups of people world-
wide, and the media, on issues relating to photog-
raphy and the photo industry.
He has personal work in the Australian Pho-
tographers Collection and has been a finalist three
times in the Head On portrait prize.
www.imagesforbusiness.com.au
www.shain.com.au
56
Moran Arts Foundation In SchoolsW i l l i a m Lo n g r e p o r t s o n a n o t h e r s u c c e s s f u l m i s s i o n
This year, the AIPP’s William Long joined
Edmund Capon (former director of the Art
Gallery of NSW), Rick Amor and Aidan Sullivan
on the judging panel of the prestigious Moran
Arts Foundation’s photographic prize which has
been recently announced.
The Moran Arts Foundation sponsors a
$150,000 portrait prize, and alongside an
$80,000 contemporary photographic prize with
the winner taking away $50,000. This is the
competition that William was involved in.
There are also sections in the contemporary
photographic prize for secondary and primary
school children, with prizes ranging from $5000
cash to digital cameras.
School Program
In addition to supporting two awards with
very substantial prize money, the Moran
Arts Foundation provides free photography
workshops for school children around Australia.
According to the Foundation’s recent press
release, “The school photographic workshop
program is a great way to foster creativity
amongst school students in years 3 to 12.
“By encouraging students to be imaginative
and creative, they build valuable skills and
confidence. The workshops are run in a fun
and creative way, providing important social
development skills within the familiar school
environment.
“The workshops are run all day and are
conducted by a professional photographer.
Each student receives their own digital camera
to use for the day and is able to print off their
five favourite photos.”
Sherryn McConnell, a teacher from
Cooenruull Public School, wrote, “Thanks to
the Moran Arts Foundation, we were fortunate
to have Sally Mayman visit our school and
work with the students. As a result the class
continued their photography and held an
exhibition of their work on the School Open
Day during Education Week. The feedback from
this event was excellent. The exhibition was so
successful that we have been invited to exhibit
the students’ work at the local cultural centre.
Thank you for providing my students with such
a wonderful opportunity.”
The Foundation states it receives
hundreds of requests from schoools for the
free workshops every year and in 2014, over
160 workshops were conducted involving
approximately 400 students.
For more information, visit the Moran Arts
Foundation website: www.moranprizes.com.
au.
57This photo has nothing to do with Australian schools, but there are formal and informal programs the world over, using photography as a way to con-nect with youth. This was taken in Bhutan recently where a photography workshop interracted with a local school. Photo: Peter Eastway.
58
Making Money Out Of WeddingsP r o f i t I s N o t J u s t M o n e y , B u t T i m e A s W e l l
Should you charge $5000, $1500 or $500 for
a wedding? There is no single answer, but
the following analysis might help answer the
question for you.
To make the analysis, we need to make
some assumptions, so while you may disagree
with some of the details on the opposite page,
the principal is what we’re looking at.
Expectations
If you charge $5000 for a wedding, our clients
will have expectations. In the past, these
expectations have been amazing service,
possibly a second shooter or assistant, and an
amazing photo album or photo book as part
of the price. There is also quite a deal of client
contact which, it is argued, produces a more
tailored and personalised service.
For a $500 wedding, the expectations
are much lower. Generally the level of client
handling and service is not very high at all. Some
clients might only meet the photographer on the
day of the wedding and, to be fair, these clients
probably don’t value photography as highly as
the dress or the venue.
However, most clients don’t really know how
to value photography. They are probably paying
much more than $500 for the wedding dress,
the venue, the meals and the car, so a charge of
$1500 or $2000 for photography may well be
within the budget.
The Time Factor
So, in the market today, we have photographers
at the top level wanting to charge $5000,
photographers at the bottom end who are
probably undercharging clients at $500, and the
new ‘norm’ of photographers offering a service
of around $1500 to $2000.
Who is making the most money?
Well, the financial answer is obvious, but
when you look at the time involved, who is
better off?
If you only shoot weddings and nothing
else, then you have plenty of time on your
hands and you should go for the $5000
wedding package.
However, most photographers if not shooting
weddings can spend the time shooting portraits
or commercial work, or spend time marketing for
more weddings. When you look at time as part
of the equation, a simpler service for a moderate
return may in fact be much more profitable on
an hourly basis.
There’s no one correct answer, of course, but
it’s worth carefully looking at what you provide
your clients - and at what your clients are really
paying you on an hourly basis.
This is general information only. We do not know your specific financial or legal situation and we are not providing you with advice. As such, this article should not be relied upon as legal, financial or accounting advice. Please use this article as a conversation starter with your own adviser.
5959
$5000 WEDDING
Package Fee $5000
Raw Costs
2nd Shooter $200
Album $800
Prints $400
Other costs $100
Total Costs $1500
Gross Profit $3500
Labour
Intro Interview 1 hr
Second Interview 1 hr
Wedding Shoot 8 hr
Post-Production 8 hr
Sales Interview 3 hr
Album Compilation 8 hr
Final Interview 1 hr
Total Time 30 hr
Income per hour $117
$1500 WEDDING
Package Fee $1500
Raw Costs
2nd Shooter -
Album -
Prints -
Other costs $100
Total Costs $100
Gross Profit $1400
Labour
Intro Interview -
Second Interview -
Wedding Shoot 6 hr
Post-Production 2 hr
Sales Interview -
Album Compilation -
Final Interview -
Total Time 8 hr
Income per hour $175
$500 WEDDING
Package Fee $500
Raw Costs
2nd Shooter -
Album -
Prints -
Other costs $50
Total Costs $50
Gross Profit $450
Labour
Intro Interview -
Second Interview -
Wedding Shoot 6 hr
Post-Production 2 hr
Sales Interview -
Album Compilation -
Final Interview -
Total Time 8 hr
Income per hour $56
60
2014 Gold AwardsT h e B e s t o f t h e B e s t f r o m t h e 2 0 1 4 C a n o n A P PA s
From November the AIPP will be sending out
free of charge a new publication to all AIPP
Accredited Members who entered the Canon
Australian Professional Photography Awards this
year: The Australian Professional Photography
Awards 2014 Gold Awards book.
Explained AIPP Executive Officer Peter Myers,
“This is a fabulous 12-inch square book which
features every Gold and Gold with Distinction
image from APPA this year.
“We have created this book because we
wanted to feature the fabulous images in all
their splendour on a single page, as opposed
to the traditional book design (which we will
continue with) which features several images
per page.”
Added AIPP President Ross Eason in the
introduction, “With many aspects of our careers,
the strive for perfection is ongoing, and the
day we stop trying to improve, to create better
images or better outcomes, is the day we need
to reassess where we stand as professionals.
“This book is an example, it is the
culmination of efforts by those photographers
who through pushing their personal
boundaries have achieved a level of success
and recognition from their peers that is second
to none - it is the pinnacle of professional
imaging in Australia.
The book contains over 100 amazing
photographs, divided into categories with the
Golds with Distinction leading the section.
Wrote Taz Nakamasu, Managing Director
of Canon Oceania, “Winning at these awards
takes years of dedication to the art of visual
storytelling, followed by the act of bravery to
put yourself ‘out there’ for the three-day judging
process.
“Not to be taken lightly, this final step is
described by some as a time when you ‘bare
your soul to be judged by your peers and your
idols’.
“Fortunately for the rest of us, this year’s
winners have done just that and, in doing so,
push us all to reach new levels of achievement!”
Continued Ross, “It is a great example of how
we as an Institute in partnership with Canon
continue to look at improving the quality of
the Awards book we deliver to our members.
Canon’s ongoing support in the production of
this book plus their sponsorship of the Institute
clearly demonstrates their commitment both to
the Institute and the industry.
“We are very fortunate to have as our
sponsor a global company of such esteem and
we value the relationship highly.”
61
62
6363
Photographers & CopyrightA B o o k A b o u t C o p y r i g h t F r o m P e o p l e W h o K n o w
Photographers entering the profession
often have little idea about copyright and
the importance it plays. Without copyright
protection, professional photographers have
much less to sell.
For many photographers, a photography
assignment is about being paid for the time
they work and the photographs they produce.
However, with copyright, those photographs
can have an extended life, allowing you to
use the photographs for other purposes such
as self-marketing and re-sale to other buyers.
Without owning copyright, you may not be
legally able to use your own photographs on
your blog!
Copyright is governed by legislation and
its interpretation by the courts. If you have
a copyright problem, you can approach
the Australian Copyright Council (ACC) for
assistance.
AIPP member Chris Shain sits on the
ACC board. It is an independent, non-profit
organisation. Founded in 1968, it represents the
peak bodies for professional artists and content
creators working in Australia’s creative industries
and Australia’s major copyright collecting
societies.
The ACC is an advocate for the contribution
of creators to Australia’s culture and economy,
and for the importance of copyright for the
common good.
As part of its mandate, the ACC produces
a number of publications dealing with many
aspects of copyright.
Copyright doesn’t just apply to
photographers, of course, but to many other
creative fields. However, many of the queries the
ACC fields are answered in these publications
and the latest update is Photographers and
Copyright.
A practical guide, Photographers and
Copyright explains what copyright protects,
the ownership of copyright, orphan works,
photographers’ moral rights in their work,
taking photos of people and copyright
protected materials, licensing photos, use of
images on websites and social media, and what
you can do if your copyright is infringed.
It also provides practical tips about how to
protect your images in the digital environment.
you can purchase the book directly from the
ACC’s online store and it costs just $45 including
delivery. It’s a must read for professional
photographers.
For more information, please visit http://
copyright.org.au/
64
An AGM With A DifferenceA s k t h e B o a r d A n y t h i n g Yo u L i k e t h i s We d 2 6 N o v e m b e r 2 0 1 4
Make your own cup of tea and join the AIPP
Board at it’s Annual General Meeting.
We all see the Australian Shareholders
Association on the news, turning up for annual
general meetings and grabbing a free cup of
tea and two free biscuits. Some shareholders
just go for the socialising, others are there to ask
the company’s board members some serious
questions. And if their questions are interesting
enough, they even get reported!
Our AGM With Tea
However, none of that is likely to happen at the
AIPP’s Annual General Meeting. To start with,
we have members, not shareholders and that
means no tea or biscuits either! But you can
make your own! And you’ll have a comfortable
seat. Sit down in your favourite chair with your
computer, laptop or tablet and watch the AGM
online. It will be live streamed and members
will be encouraged to get involved and ask
questions directly of the Board.
The formalities will probably take about
ten minutes, after which it is hoped members
will ask questions (via text) about the AIPP, its
direction and the Board’s plans.
One of the advantages of live streaming is
that everyone can attend. And while an AGM
mightn’t be everyone’s cup of tea, the ability
to raise issues, put forward suggestions or ask
questions is being promoted by the Board as an
opportunity for all members to get involved.
Now We’re Asking You!
How often do you listen to people wishing
this would happen or that had been done, but
nothing comes of it? Generally it’s because the
line of communication is either difficult or time
consuming.
However, one of the current Board’s
key objectives it to make the process of
management completely transparent. It’s
doing this in many ways with improved
communication, the introduction of SIGs and
CAGs, and now a Q&A session with the Board at
the AGM.
So, the AGM is your chance to get involved.
We’ll see you there - online or in person!
To be there in person, present yourself at
10.00 a.m., Wednesday 26 November 2014 at
the Punt Hill Essendon Grand, 1142 Mount
Alexander Road, Essendon, Victoria.
The URL for the AGM is: https://new.
livestream.com/liveaustralia/aippagm14.
The password is in your email, or if you think
you’ve missed the email, get in touch with
National Office now via the website - www.
aipp.com.au.
65
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If you download the files from the website, they will not play properly on the iPad.
How To Master Photoshop Layers
