Ranfurly photographer Janyne Fletcher has won the Sony New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography (NZIPP) Iris Award for Landscape (Open) Photographer of the Year, for the second consecutive year.

Janyne also won the NZIPP Landscape Photographer of the Year Award in 2019, as well as the Landscape (Open) section last year, and was a finalist in the Creative Photographer of the Year section this year and “about five times” in previous years.

Entrants provided a portfolio of three images, and Janyne’s works also received a gold with distinction medal, and two silvers with distinction. She said the open landscape award allowed photographers to use photoshop and their creativity in their finished picture.

“You can do what you want,” she said.

Her gold medal piece (above) was the highest scoring landscape image in both categories. She said it is a composite image showing a number of different scenes from around Waipiata which were incorporated into a panel referencing Japanese art forms. 

Janyne started taking photographs at about age nine or 10, she said, when her mother bought a Kodak Instamatic. From a young age, she was interested in more than simple documentation.

“When I was a wee bit older, I started taking all the weird pictures. I was the one who always had something a little strange.”

She grew up in Dunedin but has lived in Central Otago since 2000, because she and her husband Deane wanted “a great place to bring up our kids”.

Janyne in her gallery in Charlemont St, Ranfurly. PHOTO: Geoff Marks

She sells out of her own gallery on the main street of Ranfurly and said that gives her the financial freedom to not need to take commissions. 

“Most fine art photographers are also doing weddings and portraits or have other jobs,” she said. “I just do work for me.”

A lot of her customers are people enjoying the rail trail and there is also a lot more vehicle traffic from people driving the Central Otago Touring Route, she said. During winter, the gallery is open by appointment.

Janyne said the natural beauty in the region is incredible.

“We live in an epic landscape here and it’s really nice to document it but when you start to get creative, you can show more of the feeling.

“I don’t think I would be doing what I’m doing if I wasn’t living here. I do make good use of the mountains around here and some of my new work has zen, Japanese-Chinese undertones to it.”

Janyne welcomed the NZIPP awards, and said the competition improved her work.

“The really important thing about this award is it is really lovely to be recognised but it has also been part of making me better at what I do. The calibre is so high that it really makes me push myself.”

Janyne Fletcher is live on The Outlet today - click here to listen.