Having previously photographed the changes taking place within 'Tank Farm' I had the chance to meet and talk to people within the area from different sectors and all walks of life. Aware that the Wynyard Quarter of the future would not bear a complete physical resemblance to the present day (2008), the personal histories unique to the individual characters making up the workforce of the area would be a greater loss.

From July to November 2008 I undertook research, planning, organising and execution of the portraits of 18 Wynyard Workers, resulting in a body of personal work and contributing toward Unitec assessment for the semester. From the outset I knew I wanted to capture the essence of the individuals, people at work in their own surroundings, not tidied up for the camera. The nature of photographing workers dictated the need to shoot on location which also lent itself to using available light, weather permitting.

I am interested in the variety of industries in the area and many different occupations, workers of varying ethnicity, ages, and length of service. Photographically I wanted to depict the diversity of individuals and occupations, whilst simultaneously uniting them through the conscious choice to use a canvas backdrop.

I discovered through research that people's length of service in the area varied from 12 months and less to 45 years, with the average length of service being 20 years. As with any workforce some of those I photographed at the time have already left since the making of this book. Some people have worked for more than one company in Wynyard Quarter particularly in the fishing and petrol industries. People's interests outside of work included fishing, boating, family time and sports.

People's feelings about the planned changes for the area were mixed from not sure or not bothered, to not wanting progress at all. The common theme was it would be nice to open up the area, leaving the older industries as part of the history, so that the space can be enjoyed by all walks of life, maintaining the areas character.

Thank you to all eighteen individuals who let me take their portrait, and without whom this project would not have been possible.

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