Best known for his stunning panoramic work, world famous photographer Ken Duncan has also shot for National Geographic, Time, The Passion of The Christ and World Vision. He talks to Digital Image about his amazing career.
Ken became hooked on photography at the age of 16 after seeing some black and white prints come up in the process tray "I thought 'this is magic.' Back then it was detrimental to my schoolwork because I just loved taking photos - mum and dad weren't very well off so they said if you are going to do photography you have to make it pay for itself because we can't foot the bills."
Ken describes Australia as the ideal country for photography. "I love it in Central Australia, especially the Kimberleys. I love it where there is not too much political stuff going on, and not too many restrictions. I find it very stressful taking photos at Uluru these days because there are too many rules and regulations. A couple of my other favourites - down in Victoria, Tasmania is a very beautiful place, incredible locations there although not all the forests are still there. The trouble there is you have to work for your photos - you're dealing with rain, sunshine, all in the same day so you've just got to hang around and wait. The Central Coast (of NSW) where I live is also great. Good photos can be anywhere, it's just a matter of looking.
I love shooting overseas as well, America has some spectacular beauty and I love shooting in the UK and Ireland. When you get to Europe you are dealing with different lighting conditions. It's a big world and I'd love to shoot the lot, but I don't think I will get it done in one lifetime. I'm planning to try and shoot as many locations around the world that I can but my first love is Australia, especially working with Aboriginal kids. I am going to be shooting in Israel and other European countries soon. You sometimes need a bit of diversity because it just keeps you thinking and exploring areas beyond your ability."
Despite being a workaholic Ken doesn't get up before sunrise every day "When I am out bush I am always up at sunrise, but I like the odd sleep in as well. I don't carry my camera with me everywhere either. Not all the time because sometimes you have to turn the camera off and enjoy things for the moment. My wife helped me learn this. My natural thing is to carry the camera all the time, but you end up living your life through the lens and it is very important to experience life not just through a lens. The other thing is that when I am taking photographs, I can only take them for about 3 weeks because I have to be switched on - afterwards I have to just switch off. I have to really get into it, start feeling and sensing what is happening around me, so I find after 3 weeks or so I'm not seeing anymore. I've talked to other photographers and they are the same - after about 3 weeks you're running on auto pilot."
According to Ken, one of the biggest issues facing photography now is the current rules and regulations in Australia regarding taking photos in public arenas. "I'm sure a lot of guys reading this article might get a beautiful photograph that they would like to publish one day but sometimes when they publish a photo of say Uluru and you don't have permission, they can charge you a fortune. Photos of things like Uluru and the Sydney Opera House help promote Australia to the world and the more people that come here the better. I believe it is every person's right to be able to share the beauty of our country and experience it for themselves. No-one should own the copyright for a natural wonder."
Ken's latest project involved spending time with youths in an Aboriginal community in South Australia. "I went out there and realized we need to share some of the gifts we have. I really like to spend time with the young kids because a lot of them out there don't have many opportunities and I just know that they are such creative people that if they can just learn a little bit of the technicalities - like the
EOS 300D is such a great camera. It's like a PHD camera - click here and take great photos. So I took them out with some kids just seeing them take the photos, they were so wrapped. Then to see the results on the computer, they just loved it. So I just want to keep working with the kids out there and see what we can do to try and excite a few kids so they might want to take it further. Digital has allowed people to take greater control of their own art."
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