Laura Knight (aus1952) Interview
Keywords: nature, macro, photography, flowers, aus1952
Living in two great countries Laura Knight draws her inspiration for photography from both as she explains…
“I am the product of Italian parents who immigrated to Australia in the early 1950’s. Following a long professional and business career, spanning Australia, Europe and the US, I have been able to pursue a long held passion for photography which has increased over the years. I am largely self-taught and am constantly reminded of how much I have yet to learn; it is very much a journey of continual practice.”
“My pursuit of photography has become a way of life based on self-imposed education and observation. For me it is a journey to which there is no end, it is merely a transition from one phase to another. I adhere to Pablo Picasso’s philosophy of, ‘…always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it’.”
“I have lived in the USA since 1980 and currently divide my time between the US and Australia. I believe photographic opportunities exist anywhere you are; you just have to be creative and use imagination, not limiting yourself with needing to travel to exotic locations to capture amazing imagery.”
Laura has delved into photography in perhaps a different way by sharing her interests as she describes, “I am drawn to the world of nature, more flora than fauna; however, I do believe that everything before us has the potential for a grand photographic image, thus what I end up capturing reflects selectivity regarding subject matter married with the necessary photographic skills. Having said that, I do have a fondness for the floral artistry that can be created using the Lensbaby optics and have done much in that area to the point where I wrote my first eBook on Lensbaby flower photography; ‘The Magic of Blur’. I enjoyed the process of combining writing with photography immensely, so much so that after a trip to Tasmania I decided to write a second eBook on ‘Travelling with Purpose’.”
I also enjoy capturing long exposure imagery and close up expressions of children and people. Therefore, as Rick Sammon would say, ‘I specialise in not specializing’.”
Laura found Nikonians a number of years ago as she describes, “I came across Nikonians years ago when I was researching Nikon cameras and lens. I joined in 2007; however, I was not a very active member at that time as I was still fully engaged in my professional career. I returned to Nikonians for the purpose of learning more, interacting with others on all manner of issues from composition to post-processing.”
“The many and varied views that are presented on Nikonians causes one to think about one’s own approach to a subject matter. I enjoy the opportunity to read, comment and provide constructive feedback on images as I feel at this stage of my photographic journey that I have something to contribute.”
She shares a few comments with respect to inspiring the development of photography technique, “Practice every day, be creative and review all the images you take that you don’t like and analyse why you don’t like them. I don’t believe it is ever about equipment, yes equipment helps but technique and imagination are more important… and most importantly create what resonates with you… and if no one else likes it, too bad.”
In reflecting on experiences while out shooting Laura recounts, “For me all photographic experiences are memorable… that is what photography for me is… creating memories, so that when you look back on the images of the past you can enjoy the past as well as the present. I did have an unfortunate experience with equipment when I was shooting flowers at a local garden and my camera, which was mounted on a tripod (a D300 at the time), accidentally fell in the mud. That was an ordeal I never want to repeat. However, Nikon equipment is sturdy and the camera and lens were just fine after a good clean.”
Thank you Laura for sharing informative comments and captivating images. We appreciate the knowledge and views you have shared in your posts and will continue watching for your beautiful photography.
Originally written on November 15, 2016
Last updated on November 29, 2017
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7 comments
Marsha Edmunds (meadowlark2) on December 3, 2016
Thanks for all of the comments! Laura is very talented as is shown in her writing and her amazing photography.
User on November 26, 2016
Another great article Marsha , Laura sure does have some talent and so diverse sure is a pleasure viewing her captures,, kip
Harish Subramanian (Harish1957) on November 24, 2016
Great snaps and a good article. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Regards Harish.
Tom Jacob (sevendayimages) on November 18, 2016
Another great article and some stunning images here Laura, really love seeing them. I agree that photography is about creating memories...it's nice looking back upon them on cold winter nights and remember the day you took them. Thanks Marsha too for bringing Nikonians a bit closer to all. Well done. Cheers
Mark Kraus (pipco) on November 18, 2016
Laura, Beautiful Images you have a eye for art using your camera. Mark
Don Roarabaugh (NatureDon) on November 17, 2016
Laura and Marsha, Thanks for sharing the experiences and thoughts. Great photos as well! Regards, Don
David Summers (dm1dave) on November 15, 2016
Great article and an extraordinarily talented photographer. Thank you for sharing.