“We have used these awards as a centrepiece to our photography programmes to introduce students to the professional world and at the same time give them an opportunity to shine.”
Gummer got his start as a photographer in the late 1980s, photographing for architects and architectural magazines in and around London.
“I had spent over a decade working as a laboratory technician in science and medical research but had no passion for it. I started a photography course with no intention of doing more than a few weeks but I got hooked from the outset and have never looked back.”
His first professional job was for the English magazine Country Life, which features expensive country houses.
“The squire of the mansion even brought me sherry on a silver tray. My second job for the magazine was to shoot antique tennis gear, which included photographing the first-ever tennis racket at Wimbledon.”
Gummer and his family moved to New Zealand in 1997, and he started teaching at UCOL the following year.
Some of his most memorable moments from the Iris Awards are introducing learners to their photographic heroes, who themselves are UCOL graduates.
“Our students have won the New Zealand Student Photographer of the Year 15 times in the 25 years we have been attending. That only happens with a huge amount of hard work by students and staff.”
