Capturing a classic Kiwi summer

EXPLORE SUMMER: A picture of his niece on Makorori Beach at sunset has won Gisborne artist Conor Jeory first prize in a photography competition. Picture by Conor Jeory

A summertime photograph shot with a cellphone that Gisborne artist Conor Jeory bought for the quality of its camera has won him a Canon Powershot G7X Mark III.

Jeory entered the photograph of his niece on Makorori Beach at sunset after he saw a post on Twitter about online publication Newsroom's competition.

Newsroom's challenge to its readers was to submit pictures that best captured the New Zealand summer.

Jeory's winning image in the Canon Explore Summer Campaign competition features his niece Raiha Jeory-Reynolds who was holidaying with her family at Makorori last summer.

In the picture, Raiha stands in a shallow channel of water that trails from the sea and across the sand. Sunlight ripples on the water and flares behind Raiha as the sun sinks behind the hills.

“My niece co-opted me to be her social media operator and had me take a series of pics for her Instagram one evening on Makorori Beach outside of Gisborne, Tairawhiti, after ‘fush un chups', Jeory told the judges.

“This one really struck me.”

“Any one of that series we took would have looked just as good,” says Jeory in an email to his niece.

“This one is the one that summed up the winding down of another long summer day best. You look like any person looking for shelter as the evening draws in.”

Jeory forgot he had entered the competition until he got the message to say he had won.

“I entered because I loved the sequence of pictures I took. I sent that picture because it tells the best story. Her attitude, all that energy wound up.”