Next in our series of profiles is Donna Crebbin, who took out the Ballarat International Foto Biennale 2019 Open Program People’s Choice award for her exhibition 'Element', photographs taken in the high country in eastern Australia, covering Mt Stirling (VIC), Kosciuzsko National Park (NSW) and Namadgi National Park (ACT).
These photographs visited heritage huts and followed Australia’s wild horses and other wildlife calling the mountains home in our coldest element. A 2018 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year finalist, Donna was named as one of Australian Photography magazine’s top 50 wildlife photographers in 2017.
Q1. How did you start out as a photographer?
A. I have always enjoyed hiding behind a camera to capture a moment in time, my passion grew in a time I needed to spend quiet times of refection.
Q2. What is your favourite subject to photograph & why?
A. Nature, landscape and wildlife give me peace in a busy world of noise, finding solitude with the camera grounds me.
Q3. What is your biggest challenge as a photographer?
A. My biggest challenge has been overcoming the fears of unpredictability, getting close enough to observe and capture moments of wildlife behaviour in challenging weather that I envisage my best images –winter and snow.
Q4. What’s your next or dream destination to photograph?
A. I have recently been obsessed by images of the bears and somewhat fearful..along with the Northern lights having captured the southern lights here.. time for a trip to Alaska.
Q5. Social media - love it or hate it? What platforms do you use?
A. I use Facebook and lnstagram, thou I get nervous about exposing too much.
Q6. What equipment do you use, favourite lens?
A. I generally travel with 2 camera bodies and 2 pro lens , most used is the pro lens 40-150mm. Using an Olympus OMD em5 and em1 system.
Q7. How do you know when your photo editing is finished?
A.My edits are conservative, preferring to capture in camera and post images that are true to my experiences.
Q8. What’s the most difficult/challenging place you’ve photographed?
A. Most challenging environment would be winter snow, freezing the blizzard in camera and enduring the temps whilst shooting, definitely the brumbies and wildlife that are unpredictable in such conditions.
Q9. What is one question you’d like to be asked and have never been?
A. Many people ask WHY ! but few ask HOW. My answer would be commitment, passion and Love to bring an insight you may not otherwise see.
Q10. What do you think about having jigsaws made from your images?
A. It's absolutely awesome! Being able to see an image emerge, your own jigsaw piece by piece allows the consumer to appreciate every piece of your work and it’s a great alternative to an art print that engages but a jigsaw engages on a different level therapeutically.