"I always knew about them and was fascinated by them. In some ways I garnered my interest in photography from my grandfather."
Kevin says his grandfather, who died in 1983, was a bit of a renaissance man who painted, played music and took photos.
It was rare and unusual to use colour film during that era and Kevin's grandfather used to import the film by mail order. He developed the photos in his kitchen.
He wasn't a professional photographer, more a camera club amateur and his photos have never been shown. He was drawn to landscape, social documentary and scenes centred around water like harbours.
"You can tell by looking at the photos he had an artist's eye."
Kevin has been taking photos for about 20 years and left the engineering trade to study photography in 2008. He has since turned his passion into a job and picked up many awards along the way. He uses the camera to create feeling in his photos.
"They are sort of like alternative landscapes. I don't want to take chocolate box landscapes, but ones I can take meaning from."
The exhibition also features a composite image featuring portraits of South Taranaki war veterans taken in 2014. It serves as a homage to the men as many have died since.
* A Retrospective in Colour Photography: Lysaght Watt Gallery, Hawera until August 5.
