Growing up in the depths of South Westland, Bella Nolan is no stranger to isolated living. Her family has a cattle run in the Cascade Valley and Bella described it as a ‘‘free-range’’ upbringing.
‘‘The transition from work to motherhood was difficult to come to terms with,’’ Miss Nolan says.
‘‘I just have different priorities now. I guess it’s called growing up.’’
Miss Nolan loved her shepherding, enjoying the physical nature of the job. But with a young child and another on the way, returning to this work isn’t practical right now.
‘‘I was saying to Ben the other day, I feel like I’ve grieved for the Bella that is no longer. There’s been a sense of losing part of myself and a feeling of guilt when the jobs are on but I’m not in there, getting stuck in.’’
It was while she was home on the farm in the Cascade during calf marking late last year that she first picked up a camera to capture the work happening around her.
‘‘I felt bad I wasn’t in there helping because I had a baby strapped to the front of me, so I decided I might as well busy myself and take photos instead.’’
The process sparked something in her, and the encouraging feedback she received motivated her to get some better gear and take it more seriously.
‘‘I found a guy that leases high-quality camera gear — he sent me a camera and a number of lenses, and I’ve just chipped away, learning as I go.’’
‘‘I’ve given myself a business name (Bell Rural Photography) and set up Facebook and Instagram pages. I’m focusing on rural photography — whether it’s people, animals or landscapes. The beauty of it all is that I’m right here living and breathing it.’’
She has photographed several rural family portraits and has a wedding lined up.
‘‘I like to get around a few events like stock sale days and dog trials. It’s nice to capture those moments where everyone’s got their head down doing the job, not worrying about photos — but almost everyone’s grateful to have that visual record afterwards,’’ she says.
