After unexpectedly shooting the Big Chill Festival for The Rocky Bottom Girls, I stuck around to photograph the headliners using a pair of vintage 1970s Nikon lenses—an experiment that resulted in plenty of misses, but a few shots I absolutely love. Between the chaotic manual focusing, the live music, and seeing acts like Sneaky Sound System and The Presets, it ended up being an unforgettable night.

This year’s Nundle Dog Races felt more like a relaxed holiday, shooting light with just a 24mm lens and focusing on enjoying the day with family and dogs. The photos were hit-and-miss, but the vibes were great—and that’s what it’s really all about.

This year I decided to enter the Armidale Show photography competition, submitting 10 images across 10 themes, an experience that involved a lot more trimming, mounting, and trial-and-error than expected. Even though I was running on fumes after a hectic couple of days, I still managed to capture a few moments from the show that I really liked. Despite only taking home one win, it was a valuable experience, and it was great to see others in my circle do so well.

I revisited my long-dormant “Home Movies” project over the weekend while also taking the chance to practise some portraits with family. A little too much sticky date pudding made the creative process harder than expected, proving photography is sometimes easier on an empty stomach. Even if the results weren’t perfect, it was a fun and valuable return to experimenting.

From street parades to jousting, live music to wrestling, dancing to LARPing, the Australian Celtic Festival 2025 had it all.