Greg Newington

When you walk into Greg Newington's place in Serenbe you are greeted by some awesome photography.  It takes a few minutes to take it in.  There are so many wonderful black and white and color images.  

One of the photos I really loved was of an old pink auto out in the middle of nothing, in Australia.  The car and the landscape are wonderful together.  The composition is spot on.  The colors in the photo are very striking and work well -- pink car, blue sky (and not a typical blue sky that you think of when someone says 'blue sky'), and a pale, barren landscape.  I love that photo so much I wish I had taken it.

I am glad I visited the studio to see his work -- but I am very glad to have visited to meet Greg.  This is someone I could sit and listen to for hours.  He has some amazing stories.  All of the photos in the gallery come with a story.  The photo I mentioned -- the pink car -- it has a story.  I love when a photographer will tell you about what was happening when they took a certain photo.  You get to understand what they had to work with to get that image -- the events leading up to it and right after.  A picture is worth a thousand words -- you should get these stories with every photo you see.  It really adds to the experience.

Greg Newington has a lot of great stories.  It is easy to pass the time as he tells of the shoots he has been on over the years.  Stories of good times, funny times, and sad times.  The way he tells it you feel like you could have been in the room when he had a portrait session with Nelson Mandela.  You also get the feeling of what it was like visiting a burnt village in Somalia.

One of the best stories I heard from him was of shoving a cow into place for a shot in the dark.  (That sure sounds intriguing doesn't it?) And that photo session with Nelson Mandela -- he got the assignment truly by the luck of the draw -- his name being picked from a hat.  Not only does Greg Newington have a talent as a photographer -- he is a great speaker.

I am very pleased that he will be a part of the Nature, Undisturbed photography exhibit.