The positives and negatives of press photography

Te Pāti Māori co-leader Rawiri Waititi during his maiden speech to Parliament in December 2020. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Being a parliamentary gallery photographer usually means focusing on the goldfish bowl of New Zealand politics.

Beyond The Tiles, a new exhibition in the hallowed halls of power, turns that notion on its head, illustrating the diverse and interesting life of New Zealand press photographers.

The work of Robert Kitchin, Angus Dreaver, Samuel Rillstone, Phil Smith and the Herald’s Mark Mitchell is on public display at Te Papakura (Parliament’s art gallery) from 10am to 4pm Tuesday to Sunday until October 8.

Image 1 of 11: TJ Perenara scores a try for the All Blacks against Namibia in the 2019 RugbyWorld Cup in Japan. Photo / Mark Mitchell

The pictures include scenes from in and around the Beehive, as you’d expect, and also a varied collection of images that travels the full gamut of human experience – tragedy to happiness, hope to despair, loss to success and everything in between.

The subjects come from sport, crime, politics, art and everyday life but always feature Kiwis at their best and their worst.

It’s a fascinating peek through the lens of some of Aotearoa’s most experienced and gifted photojournalists and will, perhaps, offer a different perspective of how our lives and experiences are viewed.