purefocus

Pool Fern

Having my camera at the ready when I am tramping allows me to capture moments such as this. I have seen this pool numerous times but only once has it been this spectacular. The dark water is caused by tanins leached out of decomposing vegetation, the patterns of foam are from a small waterfall.

Bubble shell

Common in the north of New Zealand, this bubble shell goes wheer the currents take it, floating on the surface of the sea. I was fascinated to find this shell and enjoy its striking colour.

Kelp Circle

I love the way the circle theme is repeated in this image. I also enjoy the lack of perspective and context of this shot

Kina

Dead Moth

I thought of taking a shot like this for a few weeks before I found the appropriate subject.

Flax Lines

Flax and Lichen

Three flax blades curve out of plain, yet detailed, background of lichen. Simple and clean.

Hoki

Hoki, the Kakapo, appearing out of the darkness of the night.

Kakariki feather

This Kakariki feather was found on the forest floor. The tanins from decomposing plant material have stained he feather. For me, te misplaced feather and the brown blotches add interest to this photo.

Nikau with light from above

Nikau lines

Nikau scene

This shot shows the main parts of the nikau without relying on the classic shape which has been widely used in New Zealand art in recent years.

Flax curves

Titi a weka

Pohutakawa

From when I bought my first SLR camera at the age of 12, until a 4 or 5 years ago, the main focus of my photography was to take "nice" wildlife shots. I looked at the work and read about the techniques of photographers shuch as Geoff Moon. I spent hours in a hide photographing hawks, pukekos, and oystercatchers. I got some great results and loved it.

I began to realise that while I had some great results I was trying to take shots I hoped people would like, rather than taking time to think about how I wanted to capture the subject. I spent a lot of time discussing images with the artist Allan Hope, and began experimenting with a new digital camera using some ideas from Freeman Patterson. I began to leave more and more out of my photos and got some of the results you can see here. While I still enjoy taking the more classic wildlife photos, my aim is to combine the style I have developed in this phase of my photography, with the techniques I learned years ago to create clean, simple, interesting photos of more difficult subjects. Enjoy.

I am currently selling greeting cards of some of my images on ETSY

Purefocus sells images taken by Malcolm Rutherford. Purefocus images have been used in various publications including news media, magazine articles, as refernce material for artists, and in advertising. Images have also been exhibited as fine-art works and this is an anvenue I greatly enjoy.

Purefocus images are avaliable through Glowing Skies clothing stores. A range of local images can be found in the Wanaka, Waiheke Island, and Stewart Island branches of Glowing Skies. These images are avaliable as postcards, greeting cards, small prints, and large prints.

I have many more images than are on show here and am always adding to my collection. If I have an image you wish to purchase or use, or you wish to discuss a commission, I'd be excited to hear from you.

The majority of photos here are taken on a Canon A700. This is a 6 mega pixel point and shoot with a 6x zoom. A few of the photos here are taken on a 2 mega pixel canon A65. The majority of my photos are taken while I am walking on beaches, in the bush, or down the street. In these situations it is often quite impractical to have my SLR kit at the ready, therfore I stick with the point and shoot. My most recent work has been taken on a Canon Powershot G9. It is a point and shoot but very grunty which makes it ideal for travel..