Hastings Visual Poetry Jam – Te Tipu Whenua o Pā Harakeke, Flaxmere College – Teen Parents Unit – ( 2 November 2023)

The best part of the workshop was when we got to take the new skills learned and use them with the babies. The mothers weren’t really sure in the beginning, but then, when they started to shoot, they got quite excited about how quickly their skills developed. There were already a few with strong shooting skills and one who was considering it as an income stream. Our focus was, however, on trying to increase their visual storytelling skills and helping them to have brag-worthy images of their babies to share with the world.
Feedback from the head teacher Judy wrote:
“The mums were a little unsure at first not realising there was much to learn the Click Happy programme. It did not take long before the enjoyment of taking photos using simple skills learnt. The programme took you through easy steps allowing for all learners to achieve good results. This was done by sharing and critiquing photos taken in a friendly and inclusive manner where nobody felt unaccomplished. Skills learnt included framing, colour, focus, mood, layering creating a double image and other useful skills. We downloaded and learnt about different apps while practicing taking photos too. The mums felt this was very worthwhile doing and looked forward to using these skills learnt in the weekend and future thereafter. A very worthwhile course that will add value to special family moments for our mums.”

Student voice:
“It was good! A life lesson for future memories – taking good photos. It was good to learn how to use different apps that I didn’t know we could use like that.”

We created a TikTok video of the behind the scenes of the day (@nzrainbowchallenge) https://www.tiktok.com/@nzrainbowchallenge/video/7296671764984106247

Support provided by
Creative Communities NZ
Hastings District Council
COGS Kahungunu Ki Heretaunga
New Zealand Lotteries