Artist Bio

Michael is a professional photographer from Rotorua, New Zealand (NZ). He has lived in different locations throughout NZ, spent two years in the UK, two years in St. Paul, Minnesota USA and today lives on the island of Maui, Hawaii, USA.

Since studying photography at PhotoAccess in Christchurch NZ, Michael has spent the last 14 years honing his skills in becoming a specialist in Landscape photography. Loving his work, Michael has traveled extensively throughout New Zealand and counts himself lucky to have had experienced some of this amazing world.

As a dedicated Landscape Photographer, Michael has won numerous awards for his outstanding work. Recently he was winner of the prestigious “Laurie Thomas New Zealand Landscape Salon for 2011” with his “Summers Last Rays”.

I create photographs with my intuition, where I try to anticipate the light and find the perfect composition to capture the beauty around me. I love working in low lighting conditions, which utilizes the use of a slower shutter speed to capture movement through the lens. I also love working with water, you’ll find it in 80% of my photographs. I marvel at how water creates such brilliant reflections. It’s movement can be captured as it flows and falls over rocky out crops and throughout nature. I’ve seen it as it freezes a moment in time, as it emerges from within the earth out of hot springs, and in the waves that crash upon a beach and retreat back into the sea. It is forever changing and surprising.

Currently my work is based on the island of Maui, Hawaii, the most isolated place to live in the world. Getting used to the warm temperatures has not been a problem. Finding out I was allergic to mango trees was. This island offers so many opportunities for my landscape photography. I love using the ocean for sunrise and sunset shots, the forest is lush and green and waterfalls are abundant. It may seem small to some but if your like me and have to explore every inch of coastline and forest to find the perfect shot, its a mammoth task.

Recently I was based in Minnesota USA, the land of 10,000+ lakes. Upon arriving in this vast state, I found that Lake Superior immediately had my full attention. Being so vast, empty, and at times unforgiving, it reminds me of my own homeland by the sea. The seasons change so dramatically and so beautifully here, I have made this my main focus.

As my passion in life, I am always working on all aspects of my photographic work. I work relentlessly, constantly increasing my own library of stunning and intriguing images and sharing them with the world. There is never a time when I feel that there is nothing left for me to do. There is always something more to work on, to improve upon, and to capture in both work and in life.