Nor did he lose his passion for photography, spending more than 80 years helping capture life's most precious moments from baby pictures to happy wedding days.
But it was chronicling Tauranga's history through his lens which held his fascination the most and was a regular contributor to the Tauranga City Library Research Collection.
In 2015, Tauranga Heritage Collections curator Fiona Keen and the Legacy Trust helped Alf publish a 160-page book Rendell's Tauranga -Historic Tauranga From Above.
It featured the best of hundreds of aerial photographs he had taken of Tauranga and surrounds taken between 1946 and 1956 and made the Indie Top 20 bestseller list.
Alfred (Alf) Hugh Rendell, who died on December 27, aged 102, was born in Whakatāne, on November 2, 1917.
Alf Rendell, 102, never lost his passion for capturing Tauranga's history through his camera lens. Photo / File
He was the fourth child of Robert John Rendell and Lois Rendell (nee Madigan), and his siblings Eric, Robert, Eileen and Marjorie are also deceased.
Alf was 8-months-old when his parents shifted the family from Whakatāne to the then-small village of Tauranga in 1918, and his father became the town's meter reader.
Rendell senior then bought a photography business in the then-Triangle Building at the bottom of Devonport Rd snapping portraits while his wife Lois ran the retail shop.
Alf's father was a professional photographer, who travelled the country taking images often published in the Auckland Weekly News.
Apart from Alf's three-and-half-years spent in the Pacific during World War II, he lived his whole life in Tauranga.
After leaving Tauranga District High School at age 17 in 1934, Alf joined the family business Rendell's Photo Service as his father's assistant and never looked back.
When his father's health failed, Alf took over the business in 1938 at age 20 and continued to run it until he was called up to join the war effort in 1941 and headed overseas.
Eldest son Kevyn Rendell, 71, said his father spent a few months in Fiji and Tonga, then was shipped out to New Caledonia to be closer to the fighting.
But it was at that point that, his father's rifle was taken off him and he was given a camera and spent the rest of the war in and out of darkrooms developing film, Kevyn said.
"I recall dad saying that most of his war service felt like being on some kind of 'south seas holiday' especially after he returned home without firing a shot in anger."
After his war service ended in 1944, Alf Rendell reopened the Tauranga photo business.
Alf Rendell during his World War II army days in the Pacific. Photo / Supplied
Introduced to Waiuku-born Joan Drury in Tauranga by a family friend, the couple wed in 1947 and had four children - Kevyn, Graham and Kay Ross and Susan Ravenswood.
Alf also worked as a freelance photographer and he loved flying in aeroplanes to capture panoramic views and recorded buildings and businesses which have long since gone.
Alf semi-retired in 1975, and his second son Graham took over the business in 1977 and continued to run it until he moved to Auckland in 1990s.
After his wife of 55 years died in March 2002 from cancer, Alf visited Te Puna Quarry Park and soon became a regular volunteer driving himself there for weekly get-togethers.
Kevyn said his father only stopped driving in June last year due to mobility problems.
"I don't think dad was a great gardener. He probably couldn't tell the difference between a weed and a flower, but he loved spending time at the park and enjoyed the camaraderie.
Alf was also passionate for trailer boats, had been a member of the Tauranga Yacht and Power Boat Club since 1933.
Kevyn said despite his father's advanced age, his sudden death came as a shock and they would miss him terribly.
"As fathers go, I think dad was a pretty good one. While he wasn't a very demonstrative person, which was typical of the men of his generation, but he was a loving, supportive and fiercely loyal to us," he said.
"One of the most important things our father taught us was that age doesn't constrict you from living a full life and dad had a real zest for life.
"I remember him saying, that it's very important no matter what age you are, to keep active and enjoy yourselves through a range of activities and interests.
"He also said that if you don't have an interest you're passionate about, then you to need to find one and keep in regular contact with your friends and family.
"He also used to tell us that if you receive an invitation to go somewhere, even if you're not too keen at first, always accept it as you never know, it could change your life."
Rendell was a regular contributor to the Bay of Plenty Times' day in history series.
He is also survived by his eight grandchildren and their partners, and four great-grandchildren.
A funeral service will be held at Tauranga Park, 388 Pyes Pa Rd, at 10.30 am today.
