An old Sesame Street song is the inspiration for a new column asking five questions of a person in your neighbourhood.
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The local Cootamundra Herald office, while part of the larger Fairfax group office based in Wagga, is a tiny team working tight deadlines to get you local print and digital news.
Photographer Kelly Manwaring is hired for a few hours each week to create imagery from community events and we asked her five questions:
When did you start taking photos and why?
My parents didn’t own a camera when I was growing up; I don’t have any baby photos and only a few photos of myself as a child. After the birth of my daughters Ashlie and Hayley, I wanted to make sure they could look back and enjoy many memories forever captured in photographs.
What do you love most about photography?
I love how you can capture a split second in time and its documented forever. I think of my camera as a little time-machine. There isalways something different to photograph and new techniques to learn; I would love to try astrophotography and super macro.
Who is a photographer you find inspiring?
There are so many brilliant world-class photographers but the photographer who has inspired me the most is friend and former Cootamundra Herald photographer Louise Leahy. She encouraged me to take my photography to the next level and in 2009 I joined her as the second photographer at the newspaper.
What is your top tip for people wanting to capture good photos?
Know your camera and read the manual. If you only have a phone camera go online and learn how to get the best photos with your model and always take your camera with you. How many times have you seen something amazing only to think, “If I only had my camera!”
Where are your favourite local spots for a photo shoot?
It’s hard to pick a favourite spot as everything changes with the seasons. One of my favourite photo shoots was for a friend’s pre debutante-ball. She wanted something iconic of Cootamundra so we shot on the platform at the train station. My favourite photo is of Georgia and her partner with the XPT in the background.