As my work tends to be very unusual and there is a high ‘curiosity value’ around what and how I photograph my subjects, I have given presentations on several aspects of my photography to a variety of audiences.

In an effort to make my work and methods easily accessible for photographic clubs and societies, both in New Zealand and around the world, I have recorded two of my presentations which can be downloaded and played at club nights.

‘Abstracted Reality’

‘Abstracted Reality’ is a look behind the scenes at how I approach my abstract photography, my work processes and how I create some of my images.

The presentation lasts for an hour and covers:

•    How I got started: working in themes/studies
•    Guiding Principles and Goals
•    Defining ‘Abstract’
•    Learning and Selection Process – What works and what doesn’t
•    What makes a good Abstract?
•    How ideas grow and develop
•    Mini-studies: explore different methods of photographing one subject
•    My top ten reasons for taking Abstracts

‘The Art of Creating a Triptych’

In ‘The Art of Creating a Triptych’, I focus exclusively on my abstract triptychs, revealing my design concepts, creative processes and in-depth aspects of their construction.

Over the course of the hour, I canvas:
•    A brief history of the triptych
•    The broad categories which most triptychs will fall into
•    “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”
•    Options for construction
•    What makes a good triptych?
•    The triptych ‘cut’
•    Deciding where to crop your triptych
•    Getting creative and tips for starting out

Requesting Access to the Presentations

I am happy to make the presentations available to recognised groups with an interest in the visual arts. Please encourage one of your club’s officers to contact me and, provided everything checks out, I will send them details on how to access the presentation and resources.

Accompanying Presentation Notes

I know how difficult it is to write notes in the dark while a presenter is displaying and talking about their images, so to help your club members, I have also created handouts of the key points for each of the presentations.

You are free to distribute these handouts to your members or, if more convenient, load them on to your club’s website.