Capture by A photoblog

With the realisation that we turn 4 this weekend (yay!), and inspired by Russell's excellent post Stories: Home, I thought we could add a visual element along similar lines.

In the Home discussion thread, which proves that sometimes you can read the comments, we came to discuss the notion of tūrangawaewae, and what it could mean to anyone who now calls Aotearoa 'home'. This from The Encyclopedia of New Zealand.

Literally tūranga (standing place), waewae (feet), it is often translated as ‘a place to stand’. Tūrangawaewae are places where we feel especially empowered and connected. They are our foundation, our place in the world, our home.

I've posted here before about my own connection to the East Cape, and beaches on the Eastern Bay of Plenty coastline. If you have a photographic memory, you may even recall some of these pictures from comments a few years back. We recycle. :-)

For me this is 'a place to stand', even though time and distance mean I get there less often than I'd like. In a virtual sense, this has also been true of Capture over the past 4 years, so thanks for all your homely contributions.

Where do you feel 'empowered or connected'? Hopefully last time you visited you took some photos. It may also be the lounge you're standing in, or the deck out the back.

Competition

We have had a quiet year on Capture, by all accounts. Corresponding with an otherwise crazy year in the other parts of my life. We moved to a new home, for starters.

But I have still enjoyed getting the occasional post going, and appreciate everyone staying in touch.

To inspire you all to jump in before Christmas, we are running a competition with the BEST PRIZE EVER on offer!

1st Prize: A copy of New Zealand Photography Collected, by Athol McCredie.

Released this October through Te Papa, with over 350 photos from the 1850s to the present, drawn from the National Collection. There is so much goodness in this book, it may even contribute to world peace!

2nd Prize: A copy of the brilliant 2nd edition of Tell You What, edited by Susanna Andrew & Jolisa Gracewood, published by AUP.

The 2015 edition was the perfect summer holiday reading companion.

We'll announce the winner before Christmas, using our normal arbitrary approach, coupled with an online randomizer, and get it to you before the 25th, if possible.

Capture away.

It's becoming a bit of a tradition. I mean, almost an obsession. Spring starts to push its way into the brittle cold of winter, and the darling buds of August grab my attention. Or something.

This time I've been caught up in a magnolia maelstrom.

One of the things that has come from being a photographic petal pusher is an increasing awareness of the symbolism flowers carry. Magnolias have symbolic meaning up the yin yang!

If you're interested in such things, you can read all about that here. In short, they rock.

What's your favourite spring bloom, and what does it symbolise?

Go steal its beauty.

Capture away.

Having a new outlook on the city, by virtue of moving, has resulted in a mild obsession with the sunrise this winter, which apart from its uncanny regularity, has been quite a show.

Looking back it surprises me we haven't had a dedicated thread for the sun going up and down, so here it is.

Have at it.

Capture away.

Here's the challenge.  Take one tiny thing, drop it into a scene,  see what you can make of it.   

I started playing with one Tiny Cat,  mucking around with different sets and scenes for it.  The cluster of oyster shells, the chive flower on a lacquered table,  the boggle set.  Then out and about, the museum, the art gallery,  the hothouse, cafes.   

It wasn't as easy as I thought it might be.  That cat is much tinier than He/She might look, so getting the right part of the cat in focus was a bovver.   Some settings worked better than others too.   Setting it up with other tiny animals didn't work all that well,  until I got hold of a second Tiny Cat.

Look for elevated sites for placing your Tiny Thing,  unless like me, you can cope with funny looks from passersby as you lie on the footpath peering into the camera at ground level.

My 'rule' was that the Tiny Cat had to be able to sit by itself on it's prop,  no Blu-Tak, no gum.  So I stuck with indoor shots on windy days, and outdoors on calm days.

Using such a small subject becomes very absorbing,  you really have to get right down there with it.   It was a perfect activity for escaping from weightier matters.  The most important thing?  These made me laugh.

Give it a go.  Post what you got.  

On their first Auckland visit since 2011, David Kilgour and The Heavy 8s brought Sam Hunt along to play songs from their latest collaboration, 'The 9th'. David Kilgour has written some words about the album here. There's also an interview with Sam Hunt here on Mysterion Art Factory, and another on Radio New Zealand's Music 101.  

The photos were taken at the Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland on Saturday 27 June 2015.