Darwin photographer

The Outback landscapes of the Northern Territory are sweepingly majestic. All too often though those same landscapes look less than impressive in photographs. On a recent trip to the Top End of the Northern Territory I had the opportunity to meet with Darwin landscape photographer Louise Law of Create Evoke. Louise has managed to capture the essence of the landscapes of Darwin and the Top End of Northern Territory. She has built a business selling these landscapes to the residents and corporate clients who, even though they are surrounded by the very same landscapes, are keen to have her photographs hanging on their wall.

So what is Louise’s approach to photography and how does she capture such evocative subjects?

The way I approach my photography is to try and avoid simply making pretty pictures, it’s more about being able to evoke and convey feelings in people with the images that I create. I consciously start most shoots by asking myself some questions about why I like the scene in front of me, what does it make me feel, what elements do I like most about it and why. I require myself to be quite specific in those answers and the answers then speak to me and give me the clues to my camera settings and composition decisions.

Water, rocks and clouds are Louise’s favourite Northern Territory subjects along with sunrises and sunsets. She will often get up before dawn to capture to capture a specific subject in the right light even getting permission to enter National Parks before they are open to take her pictures. In the wet season it is the photographing of the approaching tropical storms that inspires her creativity. Darwin and its environs have plenty of all these and, as I mentioned in Sunsets over Darwin, has stunning sunsets on an almost nightly basis.

Louise constantly sets herself very limiting challenges to improve her creativity and technique.

Continuing to learn and setting new challenges is greatly important and I do this fairly regularly. My current project is “ThreeFive” – 35 days, 35 images all with my 35mm lens. It keeps the inspiration and creativity active and helps me avoid ruts.

You can find details of this and other challenges on her blog at www.createevoke.com.au

Who better to ask for the best places to take photographs in and around Darwin and the Top End than a Darwin photographer.

The Northern Territory is a photographer’s paradise because of its crazily diverse landscapes. The seasons and extremes of tides means the same spot can provide innumerable different photo opportunities each time you visit it. So whilst Darwin is small you’d be hard pushed to run out of photographic opportunities.

Here then are Louise’s top five photographic spots in and around Darwin

East Point – thick mangroves, coloured rocks, great sunsets
Nightcliff Foreshore – awesome rock formations and colours, good place for sunset and sunrise and plenty of rocks to enjoy it on
Fannie Bay and Vestey’s Beach
Stokes Hill Wharf – great place to watch the storms roll in
The Duck Pond (Frances Bay Dr – Fisherman’s Wharf) – old boats, fishing boats, Darwin city back drop

You don’t have to travel far out of Darwin before you are in the Outback with a whole different set of photographic opportunities. Here are Louise’s top five suggestions in the Top End of Northern Territory for places to visit with your camera

Fog Dam – birdlife, lilies, not bad for storms and sunrise or sunset
Corroboree Billabong – lilies, birdlife, barra fishing and saltwater crocodiles
Litchfield National Park – specifically Buley Rockholes and Tjaynera Falls
McMinns Lagoon
Kakadu National Park specifically Ubirr, Nourlangie Rock, Yellow Waters River

Many of Louise’s photographs where water is the subject are taken using long exposures to blur the movement of water into mystical misty trails. She runs tutorials on her techniques which are well worth booking onto if you are in Darwin when one is scheduled. Details can be found on the Create Evoke website.

To see more of Darwin photographer Louise Law’s work visit her website www.createevoke.com.au where you can purchase some of her work including a 2014 Two Seasons calendar. You can also follow her on Twitter (@createevoke) or like the CreateEvoke page on Facebook. There is a stunning gallery of her work on Flickr too including the picture used for the challenge in Where in the World (58) featured on this website.

For more on what to do in Darwin and the surrounding area apart from photography visit www.australiasoutback.co.uk