Last weekend I attended one of the biggest events on the NZ photography calendar. The New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography Iris Awards and InFocus conference. It’s a huge deal – the print-judging is a showcase for the work of the finest professional photographers in the country, and the conference is packed with high-calibre NZ and international speakers. The part that I love the most, though, is all the stuff that happens around the conference – the social gatherings, meetups, random chats, silliness and fun of getting a pile of super creative and talented artists together once a year. It’s a wild ride and I never miss it. I’m still fizzing on the buzz of the whole thing.

This year was especially exciting for me, though. I achieved a great deal more than I anticipated at the awards – a total of 1 gold, 2 silvers (one with distinction), and 2 bronzes out of 8 prints entered. (For more info about how it all works check out the NZIPP website). Getting my first gold was amazing – to have my work recognised at that level – by my peers and those photographers who I look up to, the living greats of New Zealand (and Australian) professional photography – absolutely blows me away. And to top it all off, I accumulated enough points to advance through the system of honours. I was an Associate of the NZIPP when I went to Auckland, and now I am a Master. Pretty nice ring to Master of Photography!

Here are the images I received awards for…