Michelle Gapes

Michelle Gapes is a photographer, writer and founder of The Lens & Pen Collective, based in Coffs Harbour on the NSW Mid North Coast.

Her photography explores the Australian landscape, from expansive outback country and coastal environments to the quieter details of the natural world. Drawn to light, colour, texture and the patterns found in nature, Michelle seeks out compositions that reveal something of the character and atmosphere of a place.

Her work is guided by curiosity and observation, often finding its subject in the overlooked: the play of light across a landscape, the shape of a weathered tree, or the small details that invite us to look a little longer.

Photography and storytelling are closely connected in Michelle’s creative practice. Through The Lens & Pen Collective and its guiding theme, Stories of Place and Presence, she explores the relationship between place, observation and personal experience, encouraging others to look more closely at the world around them.