I was a commercial pilot, flying for Air NZ on the regional Q300 fleet, up until 2016 when I started to develop migraines. After several years of medical investigations, I was told I wouldn't be able to regain the medical certificate allowing me to fly commercially, so it was time to find a new career. This was a hard knock and despite invitations to remain at Air NZ, I decided to leave the aviation industry and try something completely different. I'd always had a casual interest in photography and in 2018 I joined my local camera club, the Christchurch Photographic Society. It was here that I gained the confidence to believe I was a capable photographer. There was also an opportunity early on to coordinate the club's weekend field trips so I took on that voluntary role and in the time since have planned and run some 23 field trips all around the South Island for the members of our club. I also coordinated the field trip schedule for the 2020 PSNZ National Convention. I've enjoyed the photography experiences as well as coordinating activities that so many of our club members have enjoyed. I decided to make these the core part of what I wanted to moving forward so I'm now a full-time Canterbury-based landscape and astro-photographer. My particular interest is in exploring our superb night skies and natural landscapes with a camera. I'm an enthusiastic educator (25 years in the NZ Cadet Forces, Flight Instructor, Airline Tech Ground Instructor) and now help others on their own photographic journeys by offering education and workshops. Workshops are about getting people into the outdoors and learning how to see and capture the landscape and the night sky with my guidance and tuition. I'm self-employed and now run Mike White Photography as my full-time occupation. I'm an accredited member of the New Zealand Institute of Professional Photography where I hold a distinction of Master of Photography and I also hold an Associate distinction with the Photographic Society of New Zealand. In January this year, my wife and I decided to 100% commit to our new lifestyle and we've moved to Twizel where we're hoping to start building a new home very shortly. In the meantime, I've now got my workshop programme underway (first workshop was in April, and am about to run my 3rd and 4th workshops this coming month) in the Mackenzie Basin and am looking forward to expanding into other locations and sharing the natural beauty of this country, and in particular our night skies, with others.

(Please note my First Aid cert is current to 27 Feb 2026, but the calendar wouldn't let me select that far ahead)

This year, I engaged Horizons Unlimited to prepare an SMS for my business which has been audited. I have various insurances, including Public Liability of $2m and Statutory Liability of $1m. I also hold a Class 1 PSL from NZTA.