Waikato
Photography Courses in Hamilton
Every New Zealand Photography School course is studied online, so a Hamilton student shoots the assignments at home in the Waikato, uploads them, and gets written feedback from a working photographer. There is no campus and no fixed class night, which suits a region where the best light is on the river at dawn and the best subjects are spread from Raglan to Matamata.
Hamilton is a different photographic environment from the coastal cities: an inland river city surrounded by some of the most productive farmland in the country, with a garden that offers a dozen countries' worth of backdrops inside one park. This guide covers where Hamilton students practise, the calendar, the agribusiness market that makes Waikato photography work unusual, the other ways to learn photography here, and what to expect from us.
Hamilton students receive the optional optional Digital Camera by courier anywhere in the Waikato; there is no campus visit at any point in the course.
Also studying with us from Cambridge, Te Awamutu, Ngāruawāhia, Huntly, Raglan, Morrinsville, Matamata and nearby.
Great Places to Shoot in Hamilton
Waikato River walkways and the Victoria Bridge
Reflections, long exposures, winter fog lifting off the water
Best time: Dawn, especially May to August
Access: Flat paths both banks through the CBD. Fog is the Hamilton speciality: it lasts an hour after sunrise.
Lake Rotoroa (Hamilton Lake)
Sunset, waterbirds, families for portrait practice
Best time: Sunset; the lake faces west
Access: 3.8 km loop path; free parking.
Hakarimata Summit Track, Ngāruawāhia
Steps, native bush, and a wide view over the Waikato basin
Best time: Early morning; the summit faces east
Access: 1,349 steps, about 90 minutes return. 20 minutes north of the city.
Taitua Arboretum
Macro, autumn colour, chickens and peacocks that wander in
Best time: Autumn; overcast days
Access: Free. 10 minutes west.
Raglan: Manu Bay, Ngarunui Beach, Bridal Veil Falls (Waireinga)
Surf, black sand, long-lens action, a 55 m waterfall
Best time: Sunset at the coast; midday shade in the falls' gorge
Access: 45 minutes west. Manu Bay's left-hand break brings surfers year-round.
Cambridge and Lake Karāpiro
Tree-lined avenues in autumn; rowing and kayaking action on the lake
Best time: Autumn for colour; regatta days for action
Access: 20 minutes south-east.
Te Awamutu Rose Garden
Macro and colour
Best time: November to March
Access: Free. 30 minutes south.
The Hamilton Photography Calendar
February
Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival
Performances in the themed gardens at dusk
Late March to April
Autumn colour in Cambridge and at Taitua
The Waikato's best colour
May to August
River fog season
The signature Hamilton photograph
June
Fieldays, Mystery Creek
The largest agricultural event in the Southern Hemisphere: machinery, people, commercial subjects; also the single biggest week for commercial photography demand in the region
Year round
Rowing and kayaking at Lake Karāpiro
Panning, long lens
The Hamilton Photography Community
Gardens
Hamilton Gardens is also an events venue and a partner worth approaching for a student exhibition.
Industry
NZIPP Waikato/Bay of Plenty region; PSNZ.
Ways to Learn Photography in Hamilton
Hamilton Photographic Society
Club nights, competitions, outings
Annual membership
You want community and critique
New Zealand Photography School
This courseOnline, structured assignments, tutor feedback on your photos, start any week, up to 12 months' access
From $35 per week
You want a certificate and months of feedback around work or the farm
Courses Available From Hamilton
FAQs for Hamilton Students
Ready to start from Hamilton?
[Compare the seven courses](/locations/hamilton/compare) or [talk to us](/contact).