Photographing bush kids

Photographing bush kids does not pose quite the same problems as photographing children in urban built-up areas. The reason is that both adults and children in the bush are more trusting than in urban areas where people have, justifiably, become very cautious about having their children photographed.

While I have worked with children in both environments, it's the kids of the bush that appeal to me as subjects for photography. The reason for this appeal lies in the children's often astounding sense of connection to where they are. In indigenous kids, this surely stems from their culture, but all kids in the country have the ability to accept whatever they have and make the most of it. While the adults outback know how to work and play hard, the kids just play. They have a lively curiosity about anything new, and they react to such things as art, animals, outings, and so on, with innocence and pleasure that afford splendid opportunities for making photographs. Shots, with little work on the photographer's part, can have a dazzling spontaneity.

The things I love most about Australia's bush kids are their sense of connection to their environment, and their capacity to revel in the simplest of pleasures.

When, after seven years of drought, the rain finally fell, this little girl came running to her mother screaming, "Mummy, mummy the sky is broken!" She had never seen or heard rain in her life.