NZ Photographer of the Year showcasing colourful talents

01 Dec 2022

With more than 6000 entries in this year’s New Zealand Geographic Photographer of the Year Awards, picking a favourite was a tough job for the judges in this year’s competition. Among the 10 categories three categories cast a spotlight on colour, architecture and the landscape: the Resene Built Environment award, Resene Colour award and Resene Landscape award and talented photographers Mike Scott, Gasper Weber and Cruz Erdmann won the top prizes in these categories.

“This year marked a cautious re-emergence from social distancing into a world of gradually increasing freedoms,” says NZ Geographic publisher James Frankham. “We were flooded with images of quiet hope, resurgent social gatherings, and in particular, photographs of nature that were dramatically backlit or featured figures dwarfed in their landscape—images of the natural world that evoked awe, scale and the intrinsic power of land and sea.”

Tangata whenua exploring Te Waihora. Image by @gasperweber

Gasper Weber was the winner of the Resene Colour Award, which awards photographers who have an exceptional eye for colour. He won this for his photo featured in the Arial and Colour category of the NZ Geo Photographer of the Year awards.

Gasper captured the vibrant green colour of Te Waihora/Lake Ellesmere in Ōtuatahi/Christchurch resulting from the algae that has taken over the lake’s water. With pollution a growing issue, this brings the topic to light, showing the harmful repercussions of neglecting the environmental.

Early morning light, a single motionless figure, a whorling flock of pigeons: Mike Scott was captivated. “It was only after several minutes of inhuman stillness by the lone figure that I remembered it was a cutout figure attached to the bridge.” Photo by @mykeyscott

NZ Herald visual journalist Mike Scott took out the Resene Built Environment award for this this incredible moment at the dawn of a new day in Hamilton on Victoria Bridge.

Cruz Erdmann went for a dive in search of crayfish for dinner but found this spot was barren, “the only life being an eerie canopy of kelp”. This patch of ecklonia kelp forest is growing in murky water with low light - which, he reckons, is probably why it was forced to grow so tall. Photo by @cruzerdmann

Cruz Erdmann picked up the Resene Landscape award for his eerie photo of kelp swaying in the tides on Great Barrier Island. 

Bali born Cruz’s love for the ocean began at a very early age and he received his diving certification at the age of 10 and logging over 160 dives. He is inspired by his marine conservationist parents and has gone on to win many awards for his breathtaking shots of the ocean and wildlife.

See more of the winners at www.nzgeo.com/photography/photographer-of-the-year-2022-winners/

Published: 01 Dec 2022