austin@austinnz.com
Ph: +64 (0)9 412 7613
Bio
Austin Langford first picked up a camera in the early '80s, and was fascinated by the relationship between light, aperture and shutter speeds. Immediately he set out to learn all he could about photography. With typical kiwi drive and tenacity, Austin started by taking night classes, and was very soon offered the opportunity to work alongside one of New Zealand's leading commercial photographers, Len Birch. Austin worked with Len for 3 years, learning and refining his craft on a wide range of subjects, from advertising still life studio photography to outdoor nature studies, and portraiture.
Finally, in 1986, Austin founded his own studio, Austin Langford Photography, which he runs from an idyllic country setting in Kumeu, west of Auckland, New Zealand.
Securing several large accounts within New Zealand and working closely with their design teams, Austin has consistently delivered results far exceeding his client's expectations and as a result, has built great relationships lasting many years.
In 1996, Austin was one of New Zealand's first photographers to venture into high-end digital photography, traveling to meet with Kodak executives in Rochester, New York. Being quick to realize the potential and strengths of the digital format, Austin returned to New Zealand with the first high-end (DCS460) digital capture technology in the Southern Hemisphere.
As with any new technology not everything was plain sailing but after many years "taming the beast" Austin has now perfected the techniques that extract the very best digital photography has to offer.
However, Austin is not all about digital: his work in traditional film techniques led him into the New Zealand wine industry, one of the most dynamic and fastest-growing of the time. Here, Austin pioneered a new and exciting period of creativity with some of the country's leading wineries, including Peter Hubscher's Montana Wines of New Zealand.
Ultimately, this led to Austin being commissioned by Stephen Woodman, of Montana Wines Design department, to work exclusively on Montana Wines' book, Wine in New Zealand*. For nearly a whole year, traveling extensively throughout New Zealand's varied wine regions, Austin was able to learn first-hand, the subtleties of the winemaking craft and to capture the people and the activities throughout a full season in the vineyard. His photographic skills contributed to the 1st place category win (for New World Wines) for the over 300-page book at the International Gourmand Book Awards, in Spain,2004, from a field of over 200 titles.
Austin has based his studio 30 km outside Auckland, New Zealand, where he is able to blend living in the world-renowned rural New Zealand landscape with his own creativity and to continue to produce outstanding results for his clients.
* Wine in New Zealand - Random House 2003