How Dunedin teen brothers became award-winning photographers
"I stripped down and got into the freezing cold water, just trying to keep my camera above the waterline and managed to get that photo of it after about 300 others."
Seventeen-year-old Dunedin teen Sam McGee, who took home the top awards at Tūhura Otago Museum’s photography competition alongside his brother, has been submitting his photos for about 10 years.
Inspired by Hungarian wildlife photographer Bence Máté, Sam built a type of camouflage hide to capture images of wildlife in his own backyard at the age of 8 and has been pursuing the competition ever since.
Sam won the overall photographer of the year title among more than 4000 entrants and was placed first in the youth wildlife category for his photo of a white-faced heron. His 15-year-old sibling, Monty, was named youth photographer of the year, and his photo of a native crested grebe was a runner-up in the youth wildlife category.
Sam McGee standing by his winning photo - Water Wings - of a white-faced heron.
Supplied / Sam McGee
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Equipped with his Canon camera and telephoto lens, the Logan Park High School student, who was meant to be studying for his mock exams, took a trip to the Otago Peninsula with the aim of finding some wildlife to photograph.
“My first mission was a failed mission. On the way back home, I saw this heron just on the beach. And I was like, ‘oh, might as well have a wee shoot’,” Sam told Afternoons.
“I got as close as I could without getting soaked. I think I was about 10 meters away,” he says, joking he had practiced his ‘granny shuffle’ beforehand.
“I lay in the sand and I noticed it was fishing some weak critters out of the water. I waited until it flicked one up and that's when all the water went up in the air.”
How to take an award-winning photo
Sam McGee's photograph Water Wings, of a white-faced heron.
Supplied / Sam McGee
Sam didn’t realise just how good his photo was until he got home. He says he edited the picture to capture just how cold it was by amplifying the blue tones.
“I think when I was lying in the sand, I was like, ‘oh yeah, it looks all right’. But when I got home, I was like, ‘wow, I think I've actually got pretty lucky with this one’.”
An email from the museum informing him he had made the shortlist was something he had experienced many times before, but this year he had an inkling it was different.
“I think the heron one is just something like I've never captured really before. And just sitting in the crowd and then them calling my name out was quite surreal.”
Another photo of his - a sea lion against the backdrop of Hereweka mirroring the animal’s head - was named a runner up in the wildlife youth category. “That was actually a photo I've been trying to take for probably 10 years now.”
Sam McGee's photograph Lone Lion, of a sea lion.
Supplied / Sam McGee
Sam’s “biggest competition”, his 15-year-old brother, Monty, mastered the art of taking photos on their Dad’s camera when he was isolating with Covid in his room.
Debuting at the competition this year, Monty made his mark by being named youth photographer of the year and a runner-up in the youth wildlife category.
His photo of a native crested grebe – the bird which won Bird of the Century 2023 with the help of a campaign by American comedian John Oliver – was taken at Lake Hayes beside the walkway.
“I saw it and it was on its nest, you know, helping its babies. So I stripped down and got into the freezing cold water, just trying to keep my camera above the waterline and managed to get that photo of it after about 300 others.”
Monty McGee's photograph Pūteketeke Yoga, of a native crested grebe.
Supplied / Monty McGee
Despite his achievement, Monty reckons he’s still got a lot to learn before he reaches Sam’s level.
“I'd be happy if he surpassed me,” Sam says of his brother’s talent.
Sam says their dad would like to take credit for teaching him, but he feels he’s mostly self-taught with some help from YouTube.
“Over the years, I have definitely learned kind of what the judges are looking for and the results of the years have kind of showed.
“I think in the last few years, I've definitely got a lot more photos up on the wall of the exhibition, which shows me that I'm doing the right thing.”
Sam is studying photography at high school and wants to dedicate the rest of his life to it too.
“I think wildlife photography is where I want to go and if DOC's listening or National Geographic or [anyone else is] listening, I would love to work for you guys.”
An exhibition showcasing the best from the competition is open until 12 October at Tūhura Otago Museum. Entry is free.
