With the 2024 BMX North Island Titles fast approaching, I headed to Auckland’s North Shore to visit North Harbour BMX. The beautiful light, scenic track, and an awesome crew of riders all came together to create some stunning shots. Excited to bring this same energy to the NI Titles this weekend in Cambridge!
Good to be back at Dome Valley for the 4th round of the New Zealand Downhill Championships. After a pretty wet week the sun finally came out to play. It was hot in the forest but the trails were greasy. After a few too many crashes in practise part of the course was changed. A great day with some great close racing. Fastest rider of the day was Joe millington in the U19 class followed by Tyler Waite and Jonty Williamson both U17. Fastest girl Eliana Hulsebosch U17. Looking forward to the final round in Rotorura this weekend.
Round 3 of the NZDH took place at the picturesque Rivenrock MTB park in Masterton. A good 7 hour drive from Auckland, we arrived at lunchtime in time for a drizzly afternoon of practice, not many people up the hill, but plenty of mud to go around. The afternoon made all the more exciting/nerveracking) by the fact we had to be towed out through the ford when we left! Race day brought brighter weather and a lot more riders, a new addition to the track was the rock garden in the top section which certainly kept everyone on their toes while the faster motorway section made for some very exciting fast sections. An awesome day of racing with some super speedy results. Bring on Rd4 next month at Dome!
Round 1 of the NZDH kicked off in October. Rotorua’s Whakarewarewa forest played host to the excited mountain bike DH community keen to get back to racing. It was a misty murky morning but the trails were perfect. So good to be back shooting mountain bikes again and so good seeing everyone again.
As a sports photographer with a passion for people photography, Crankworx week has to be one of my fave weeks of the year. My kids race which makes it exciting (and nerve racking), but getting to watch and photograph the people I see race all year round in all the different events, all in one location over just a few days, is thrilling. In addition, getting to see/watch and meet the creme de la creme of the sport as they battle it out with their fellow pro riders is super exciting. And then getting to work side by side with the many other media personnel who like me are there working hard, soaking up the atmosphere whilst documenting their version of the event. A totally inspiring, glass full kind of week.
I do love taking the action shots but my absolute fave thing to photograph is the BTS - the behind the scenes. Here’s a look at Crankworx week through my eyes, mostly featuring the CWNEXT kids (Crankworx Next generations).
All photos are available to view/purchase here
After a short break away, of nearly 2 years, Mad Love Media was super excited to be back in the pits at the New Zealand Superbike Championships as part of the official media team. Our video extraordinaire Lucas, flew over from Oz especially for our planned road trip to Taupo for round 1. Unfortunately and very disappointing for all those involved, the event was cancelled due to unsafe track conditions, an un heard of scenario, we were all gutted!
As a result I was super keen to make it to the next round, Lucas couldn’t make it. To say it was amazing to be back at the track would be an understatement, I truly forgot how much I love taking photos of the behind the scenes of the people in the pits. Bring on round 3!
First time shooting Crankworx DH - loved it!
Each year on Boxing Day the town of Whanganui in New Zealand shuts down its streets and prepares to race. Motorcycle riders from all over the world come to compete against NZ’s finest in this prestigious event. Here is just a snippet of the day from Mad Love Media sponsored rider Toby Summers edited and filmed by Lucas Sudbury of Mad Love Media.
Very excited to be announced as one of the offical photographers of New Zealand Superbike Series 2019 for the 3rd year.
I love going to the gym, I love training (most of the time) and I love being fit but do I have what it takes to train hard for 6 months, sacrificing many things to compete in a body building competition up on stage in front of lots of people in not many clothes? The answer is NO! But these guys did! They are are from Fitcomm and they all did amazing! Congratulations guys you are an inspiration to everyone that knows you.
At the start of the year as with every year, New Zealand hosts it's national superbike series, otherwise known as the NZSBK's. This year Round 1 was held at the Mike Pero Motorsport Park in Christchurch and round 2 at Levels Raceway in Timaru. Two great tracks with loads of great racing. As one of 2 official photographers for the season my job is to capture all the behind scenes, the action that happens in the pits, the teams, the families, the riders and their bikes, everything that goes on before and after the bikes go out on the track and let me tell you there is always plenty going on!
Here are some of my fave shots from the 2 rounds combined. If there are no pictures of you from these 2 rounds it's because I can't get round to everyone. For rounds 3 & 4 I am offering 3 different photo packages. In my usual style packages will include photos of you winning & grinning, team shots, bike shots, pit shots etc, available to you Sunday night or Monday first thing, these can then be used for for social media and press releases or for sponsors etc. Just fill out THIS FORM ASAP and I'll add you to my list. All package prices are on the form.
Ruapuna FULL GALLERY
Levels FULL GALLERY
Rd1 Mike Pero Motosport Park
Rd2 Levels Raceway
I love being at the race track, the people, the bikes, the smells, the sounds, the emotions, the passion, you can feel it everywhere. I sometimes take pictures of the bikes on the track but I without a doubt prefer taking pictures of the people in the pits, the teams, the families, the riders. Motorbike racing is an individual sport but a lot of the time without a team behind you you it's not possible to do it. A picture can tell a thousand words and it's the moments before a race, or straight after that tell the biggest story! Here are my top picks from the 3 round Suzuki Series 2017, including the final round at the famous Cemetery Circuit on Boxing day in New Zealand's very own Whanganui. This year I was primarily shooting for the Carl Cox Motorsport team but there were plenty of other moments I couldn't resist snapping too. To purchase photos or to enquire about any of these images please contact me here.
In 2017 I got to work with personal stylist Johanna-May Manks on a cover story for the Venus Network magazine. The story was all about the importance and power of personal branding within a business, which applies to both Johanna-May's profession and mine. Over 4000 copies of the magazine were printed and it was also downloadable online. Below are some of the images we took for the article.
To arrange a free consultation to discuss how a personal branding shoot can benefit you and your business, contact me and we can go over some ideas. I'd love to hear from you.
Sunday 12th November 29 teams of 3 riders battled it out for the top spot in the annual Motul Playday 6 hour endurance race at Hampton Downs. Each team had 3 bikes. These photos are of the team M1 Motorsport who ended up in 2nd place. The team was made up of Carl Cox Motorsport sponsored rider Toby Summers on his Kawazaki ZX10 , M1 Motorsport's Alastair Hoogenboezem on his S1000RR and MTF Finance sponsored rider Avalon Biddle on her Kawasaki ZX6R. A total of 314 laps of Hampton Downs was completed in the 6 hours with a fastest lap time of 1.05.018 and a best lap speed of 147.8 Kph over the 2.7k circuit.
Back in 2017, I had the incredible opportunity to photograph one of the world’s premier motorsport events—MotoGP at Phillip Island, Australia. It was a career-defining weekend and a real step into the world of professional sports photography.
Armed with media accreditation, I had full access to the track and media centre while others (my husband and some friends), were restricted to general admission. From the moment I stepped into the media zone—surrounded by top-tier photographers, international journalists, and broadcast teams—I knew I was exactly where I was meant to be.
Over the course of the event, I had the privilege of working alongside some of the most respected MotoGP photographers in the industry, including Gigi Soldano—whose work I’ve admired for years. Gigi even introduced me to Valentino Rossi and captured a photo of us together, which was a personal highlight.
With pit lane access on Friday and Saturday, I was able to document the riders and their teams during the practice sessions.
The weather was typical Phillip Island—sunshine, rain, and wind all in one day—but every moment was worth it. I covered countless kilometres, carried heavy gear, adapted to fast-changing conditions, and walked away with a deeper knowledge of motorsport photography and some unforgettable connections.
Some of the images from that weekend were featured in Kiwi Rider Magazine, alongside a fantastic event write-up. It was an experience that affirmed just how much I love being behind the lens at sports events.
