OVERSEAS PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR AWARD - NZIPP 2012

Shooting fine art nudes I'm sure is meant to require a considered and thoughtful approach and even more likely are meant to be created in a nurturing warm environment. Well one of my favourite images of the last year is certainly a nude but falls far from either likely approach in it's creation! Shot in about 90 seconds flat on a spontaneous urge from the beautiful Mandarine and taken just below the snow covered peaks of one of Europe's biggest mountains Jungfraujoch - it's a huge testament to Mandy that it even happened at all! I didn't want to ask her how cold it was after, though I think the 90 second window was a bit of a giveaway?! 


I put this image together in a folio of four images and sent it off to NZ last month to the Epson/NZIPP Iris Awards held in Christchurch. Yes there were some mini quakes during the event, but that was kind of the idea. Not for professional photographers from around the country to experience a shake up, but to support the local photographic industry that most certainly had... It can't have been easy and must  take a bucket-load of courage to remain living and working there - so hopefully the 5 day event and conference gives them all a much needed boost in both spirits and business!


A couple of weeks ago late on a Monday night I received a very suprising message from the irrepressible Kylie Lyons (President of the Australian Professional Photograph Association).  I had to read it a few times to see if I was reading clearly but the jst of it was that I'd won NZIPP Epson Overseas Photographer of the Year!! Pretty funny being that I'm a kiwi! Three of my five images entered were taken on an amazing journey around the world with my lovely lady at the time, Mandarine Montgomery, and one of the images was of her, so I have much to thank her for. 

Here is a link to a gorgeous online  publication the kiwi's created from their National Photography Awards. It's full of all the amazing images from the Category Winners. There's some very inspiring work in there! I really love one of Richard Woods especially - on page 12 - so delicately and subtely crafted... Anyway, maybe take a break and have a look - it's well worth it I can tell you!

http://issuu.com/nzipp/docs/nzipp_proreport_iris_awards_2012?mode=window&viewMode=doublePage

Also, here is a great video of the behind the scenes at the Epson/NZIPP Iris Professional Photography Awards. The show of Gold Award Images in the second half is absolutely stunning...! Very proud to be in that company I tell you!

http://vimeo.com/50249623

F11 Magazine's latest online issue also has some great coverage of the Awards and a few of my images form the Folio I sent In... Enjoy!!!

http://www.f11magazine.com/site/pdf/f11%20Magazine%20-%20Issue%2015%20-%20October%202012.pdf

ANZAC DAY

I haven't been to a Anzac Day service for many, many years, but this day I somehow felt very moved to do so. It was a beautiful service. Right at the end, I met seven men who had served together in a platoon in Malaysia in the 50's. They made a pledge to meet together for Anzac Day in a different place in Australia every year. Good fast friends even now, this was, quite incredibly, their 51st Anzac Day celebration together. For one of these men, Nebo, this was likely his last. I had a wonderful conversation with him and this gallery is in honour of his life & my grandfather Andre Hoelen who fell in WWII...

http://paulhoelenphotography.dphoto.com/#/album/e0b16l

 I hope the leaders of this world can learn from the mistakes of the past and always find a path to peace... blessings on all those who gave their lives so that we may live as freely as we do now...Pau

THE AMAZING MIRANDA GIBSON IN THE 'OBSERVER TREE'

Just recently I ventured deep into the beautiful forests of the Styx Valley to photograph a very exceptional person - Miranda Gibson. She has been living 60m up a huge Eucalyptus Regnans tree on a tiny wooden platform  aptly named 'Observer Tree' for over half a year now - just breaking the Australian Record this week for treesitting. She has been regularly posting an amazing blog of her journey and of the situation with the forest agreements which has reached people all around the world...

http://observertree.org/

The views are incredible up there but braving freezing temperatures, high winds and so much isolation is not for the faint hearted - not to mention heights! I have so much respect for her incredible passion to save the high conservation forests of the region. She is committed to staying up there for as long as is needed until the government honours their promise to place the forest under a conservation agreement.

It was quite an adventure getting up there to see her. 

3hrs driving, 2.5 hrs bushwalking (including a bit of - um - which way was it again on the way back - oops!) and a 200 foot climb and abseil down in the dark later...not to mention a blister or two (hey, I've ever tried to climb 200 feet up a rope before!) Here are a few of the images...

Thank you very much Miranda for welcoming me into your home and being such a gracious host! And all the best with your worthy cause...

Here's a link to a web gallery of some of my favourite shots from the trip
http://paulhoelenphotography.dphoto.com/album/a5e45x

Paul Hoelen Photography - The Observer Tree

paulhoelenphotography.dphoto.com

RUNNER UP EMERGING LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR IN AUSTRALIA

I had an exciting phone call the other day from my good friend Mr Tom Putt, letting me know I'd made it onto a list with some very talented company - The Top Emerging Photographers of the Year in Australia. These awards have been running for seven years and are hosted by the hardworking staff of the photographic magazines at Yaffa Publishing. They develop a shortlist of folios from around the nation, consisting of six carefully chosen images that represent your best folio of work in a specific category or genre. I was awarded Runner Up in the Landscape Category which was judged by a very esteemed panel of judges, many of whom I've met in recent years and really look up to, namely Mr Peter Lik, Jackie Ranken, Urs Buhlman and Nick Melidonis. There are eight categories altogether - there's some really exciting work coming out - so have a look at mine and the other winner's folios at...

http://www.australianphotography.com/news/landscape1 

Here's a small thumbnail preview of my folio...