My journey from Amateur to Award Winner…
After a decade of amateur photography, in 2024, I finally took the leap to turn my passion into a profession. Although motorcycles and events were my main passion, having a young daughter, family photography was where I found my calling. I love working with families and could relate to young kids. I found I had a knack for finding the magic amongst the family chaos and was able to create beautiful photos from even the most challenging sessions.
But I still had a lot to learn and wanted to set a higher standard for myself and my clients. So I joined The New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography (NZIPP) in 2024 as a student member. To become really good at what I wanted to do, I wanted to be amongst the best in the business and join an internationally recognized organisation. I reaped the benefits of joining NZIPP straight away by signing up to their mentorship program. I spent the next several months building the foundations of my business with the help of my incredible mentor.
I was growing and learning so much and the foundations of my business were set. But despite all the positive feedback from my clients, was I really any good? How could I do better? What more could I learn?
In 2025 I was about to find out. I decided to enter my 1st professional photography awards, The Asia Pacific Awards. I wanted to gain feedback on my work from professionals in my industry. I entered 4 photos and was blown away to receive highly commended awards on all of my images!
Although I didn’t view myself as an award winning photographer yet. This was just a warm up to what was to come, the prestigious, Iris Awards.
In 2025 I also entered my 1st Iris Awards. I submitted 8 digital images and to be honest wasn’t sure what to expect. But it was invaluable and so insightful. Watching the live judging through You Tube made me think entirely different about how I photograph. It gave me an greater understanding of what to look for during photoshoots and how to make my work look even more professional. The biggest surprise of all was receiving two bronze awards for my family portraits. This felt completely different to the awards I won at the Asia Pacific Awards. This was on the next level and I felt I could now call myself an award winning photographer!
It had taken less than two year to go from amateur to award winner and I was only just getting started. This year I entered 8 images into The Asia Pacific Awards and was awarded with 7 highly commended awards….
I have since entered 7 printed photos into this years Iris awards and eagerly await the results coming in August. But I know whatever the outcome there is something new to learn and room to grow. Just from the feedback from the Asia Pacific awards, I learnt new editing techniques which I used for my Iris Award prints.
Although I still suffer from imposture syndrome, I can positively say that I am no longer an amateur and I can proudly call myself an award winning photographer.
Donna May Photography 