Images of Kapiti & exotic action from further afield

1 February 2011

Well-known professional photographer Mark Coote has taken time out from shooting news and commercial photography to stage his first exhibition of some of his favourite personal work.

Mark, a Paekakariki resident, has decided to stage his first show on home turf - with the exhibition at Finns Bar and Restaurant in Paekakariki until 9 March.

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The exhibition of 14 large (900 x 600 mm) and 4 smaller images has been selected from personal projects representing Mark's passions outside of his commercial work.

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Images include unusual takes on the classic view of Kapiti Island, extreme close-up macro photos of brightly coloured succulent flowers in Mark's own garden, dramatic panoramas of the Tongariro Crossing, and images from Mark's travels through India, Pakistan, Cambodia and Panama.

"I've decided to choose a mix that includes work from close to home - and then contrast it with some images that are about as foreign as you can get."

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Favourites include long-exposure night shots of Kapiti Island under a full moon. "It really produces a view of Kapiti that's at odds to the daytime views that everyone knows and loves. The night shots, taken with a 30-second exposure, have a truly surreal quality. The level of detail is quite uncanny and, of course, the lighting is not what people are used to."

Other favourites are shots from the Tongariro Crossing. "The colours are extremely vivid. There are intense reds and even purples in the volcanic rocks and these contrast against unbelievably blue skies."

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Mark says some of the shots from his overseas travels in the past decade contrast to the serenity of the New Zealand images. "A great favourite is from a bus trip over the Karakoram Highway in Pakistan, on the way to China. It's the highest international highway in the world and, not surprisingly, subject to extreme weather. Our bus got stuck in a snow drift and we all had to help haul it out with ropes. I took a few minutes to get shots of about 15 locals hauling away. I never thought they'd succeed but they did. They're tough people."

Another particularly unusual shot is from a flight in a small aircraft in Panama. "We were flying directly into the sun - so the pilot and co-pilot decided to block the windscreen with a visor and a newspaper to get rid of the glare. I guess they knew what they were doing - but it did cut their forward vision somewhat..."

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Mark says his 20 years as a newspaper and commercial photographer has not lessened his passion for photography at all. "I got into professional photography because I loved it so much - and the personal work is all about staying fresh and keeping up the enthusiasm.

"I'm still able to look at the world and see things that are unusual and, more importantly, beautiful - and I still want to capture those images."

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Mark's photographs are for sale - for between $350 and $600.

ENDS

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