About the Artist
Born and based in Hobart, Michael Roberts created Mountain Peak Photography to share the natural beauty and rich heritage of his home state. He loves travelling around Tasmania and is a keen bushwalker and a member of the Tasmanian National Parks Association.
On Saturday you can find him at the Mountain Peak Photography stall at Site 140, Salamanca Market, Hobart.
My Story
Sometimes people ask if I’m from an artistic or photographic family. My grandpa, my mother’s father, painted landscapes. My family are bushwalkers and conservationists – my parents visited Lake Pedder before it was flooded, and both my grandpa and my mum were arrested at the blockade to save the Franklin River. I remember visiting Mum in prison when I was seven years old. I was taken bushwalking on the mountain from my early childhood and I grew up watching slide shows so that helped to start my passion for photography. I’ve had my own camera since I was 18.
I still use film occasionally. I get a different feeling using film – each image is precious and I have to think more carefully about composition. I just can’t fire away and delete those images later. With digital I can say to myself, “Oh, that one’s not good enough – I’ll just take another one.” Digital photography is cheaper and there is less waste, and the quality and resolution are excellent now. I take more images but it also takes longer to look through them and delete the unwanted ones. Film is the opposite.
To take a good photograph, I have to have really arrived at the place, to really be in the place. I can be lucky sometimes but my images won’t be consistently good unless I spend some time with my subject and build a connection, whether it’s with a place or an animal. For example, today I took a photo of a Bennetts wallaby in the backyard. I went to make a cuppa and looked out the back window and there was a wallaby grazing in nice afternoon light. I feel like the local animals are able to trust me and that I’ve made a special connection with them. I call my backyard wildlife shots my carbon-neutral photos.
For me, the best way to get close to wildlife is to go at their pace. I try to work around their agenda, their needs, and their psychology. If it takes many visits to do that, then so be it. I try and understand what they need, what scares them, how close I can get while they remain comfortable. I try to be patient, and get closer little by little, not to exploit them but to seek their permission. Sometimes I talk to them, quietly and calmly. If I get to know them, they’ll sometimes let me take a photo. I prefer to take photographs of wild not captive animals, but the same rules apply.
I’ve had many memorable interactions with wildlife. I remember a beautiful day at Devils Throne at the back of kunanyi/Mt Wellington when a grey goshawk circled overhead with the sun shining through its wings. And a time when I spent hours face-to-face with a platypus foraging in a small creek. One of the images I took was selected for the final round of the Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2014 competition run by the Natural History Museum, London. I’ve had echidnas walk up to me and pink robins almost trip me up. I’ve spent many enjoyable hours watching wedge-tailed eagles over the hills near Hobart. I still love seeing the wallabies in the backyard or the black cockatoos feeding in the hakea behind the house. New species or familiar animals doing unusual things are always exciting too, like an Australasian bittern appearing from the reeds or witnessing a huge flock of Eurasian coots taking off on the River Derwent. I’d love to be lucky enough to take a photo of a sea eagle catching a fish, and to be able to get close to some nocturnal animals in good enough light – bettongs, bandicoots, potoroos, and owls.
I love many parts of Tasmania but because I grew up walking on kunanyi/Mt Wellington, it’s still the place I return to most often. Each part of this island varies so much and has something special to offer, but if I had to choose I’d probably choose the mountains. I like going out over Thark Ridge across the moors, where it’s quieter, or to Cathedral Rock – that’s a lovely walk.
It feels good to sell something I’ve created and worked hard to achieve, to share the passion I have and the story behind the image, and to bring pleasure to people from all over the world, to make that connection with them, and to help increase their understanding and appreciation of our amazing world and the creatures we share it with.
I use Canon cameras. Digital-wise, I’ve used a Canon 400D, a Canon 5D, and a Canon 5D Mark2. I currently use a Canon 5DSR and a Canon EOS R5. I use Epson SureColor P800 and P405 printers using Epson UltraChrome HD inks and print on Ilford Smooth Pearl 310gsm Professional Photo Paper. My current film camera is a Canon EOS3. I used to have a Canon 3000 SLR. I’ve used a Nikon Coolscan 4000 film scanner and currently have a Nikon Super Coolscan 5000ED.