About Michael (he/him)
Michael Johnstone, b. 1987, is a queer freelance photographer and union organiser. Originally from Kaurna/Adelaide, Australia, he now lives in the western suburbs of Naarm/Melbourne.
Michael has held a passion for photography almost his entire life. As a child, years before holding a camera, he was taken by the impact of the visual storytelling found in the National Geographic magazines his father brought home from the library. It wasn’t until his early twenties that he acquired his first camera for an overseas trip, which cemented his love of photography.
Michael’s personal photographic work focuses on community, what brings us together and what we have in common. Commercially, Michael has previously served a range of clients for private functions, including weddings, parties, and corporate events. Presently, he works in editorial photography and his work has appeared in local newspapers. He welcomes enquiries from anyone requiring editorial-style photography, all services available can be found in the menu.
Alongside his photography practice, he works as a trade union organiser. His journey into unionism grows out of a strong belief that by working together and looking out for each other we can change things for the benefit of everyone in our community. This belief led him to take a stand, with his coworkers at the time, against one of the largest supermarkets in Australia and its infamous union, the SDA. This led to his involvement in a genuine alternative union for retail workers, where he remains active to this day.
“Small When Far?“
The name derives from a literal observation: everything visually gets smaller when we’re physically distant. This too is true for our understanding of people and events. Our understanding also becomes small when we’re not given the opportunity to reflect on the details and nuance. Because of this, we lose so much. In Michael’s editorial and personal work, he seeks to resolve this so that the viewer may get closer and spend more time with a moment and connect with the humanity of people and moments in our community.
