Mount Maunganui–based photographer Jay Drew approaches the world with a receptive curiosity— noticing what others pass by and framing the ordinary with an artist’s restraint. We asked Jay a few questions about light, travel, instinct and the moments that shape her work.

1. What’s something most people walk past that you’d stop to photograph?

Probably a corrugated iron wall — maybe partially rusted, with a bit of shade falling across one side. There’s something beautiful about texture and light interacting in simple, overlooked places.

2. Are you more drawn to light at sunrise, sunset, or somewhere in between?

I love sunset because it’s warm and soft — who doesn’t? But the most exciting time for me is actually early morning. There’s this quiet space in the day where most people are still asleep and you’re awake. It feels special — almost like the world is paused just for a moment.

3. If you could photograph one place in the world tomorrow, where would it be?

I’ve never really had a bucket list. I tend to work with what’s in front of me and find that’s usually enough. But my husband loves to travel and once took us to Alaska. So as unexpected as it was for me to love Alaska, it is probably the place I would choose to go back to with camera in hand.

4. What’s your favourite kind of light?

I don’t think I have a favourite. I do love warm, soft light — but I actually enjoy the challenge of working with whatever light is there. There’s always a photograph somewhere; sometimes you just have to think differently and lean into what you’ve got. That way you can enjoy taking your camera with you whatever time of the day it is; rather than thinking you can only go out at sunrise and sunset for perfectly diffused soft light.

5. Do you see compositions everywhere — even when you’re not working?

That’s a funny question because even when I was young, I would look at things as if through a rectangle — like I was framing a photograph. They weren’t very good rectangles back then, but I still saw the world that way. So yes, I suppose I do frame things subconsciously.

6. What’s the most unexpected object you’ve turned into art?

I once did a “photo a day” project and nearly forgot one evening. It was dark, and the interesting light  in the house was from the toaster elements glowing red. So I created a multiple exposure using that light. I’m not sure you’d hang it on a wall, but as far as unexpected objects it certainly fits the bill.

7. If your photography had a soundtrack, what would it be?

I’m not sure photography has a soundtrack… but if it did, I’d probably be somewhere singing badly along to an ’80s song or pretending I know the words to a country track playing on the radio. ’80s and country — not exactly glamorous, I know.

8. What’s one thing you hope people feel when they stand in front of your work?

Calm. Not every photograph will evoke that, but most of them lean toward a sense of slowing down — a pause. A moment to breathe.

View Jay's available works here

More about Jay Drew 

Finding the Abstract in the Everyday

Jay Drew is a Mount Maunganui–based photographer who sees the world a little differently.

Influenced by travel and a genuine love of discovery, Jay is drawn to the quiet details others might pass by — textures, shapes, surfaces, shadows, and the way light lands and moves through a scene. Where some see the ordinary, she finds atmosphere. Where some see the ordinary, she finds the extraordinary. “It’s not so much that I go searching for meaning. I tend to approach what I see from a purely aesthetic perspective — drawn to form, texture and light. Part of that process involves experimenting with in-camera techniques, allowing me to transform what might otherwise be considered ordinary scenes or objects into something quietly artistic and unexpected”.

An Artist’s Eye

With a strong compositional instinct and a sensitivity to tone, Jay creates photographs that feel more like paintings than traditional photography — layered, restrained and quietly immersive.

She searches for the abstract within the real. A softened horizon becomes a wash of colour. A weathered wall becomes texture and rhythm. Light becomes the subject itself.

There is an intentional stillness in her imagery. A calm that invites you to pause, to look longer, to notice what might otherwise go unseen.

The Balance of Commercial and Creative

By day, Jay works as a professional commercial photographer — capturing people, architectural interiors, brand stories and project-based commissions. Her ability to tell a story visually is what makes her highly sought after in the commercial space.

She understands scale. She understands narrative. She understands how to make a space or subject feel alive through the lens.

But it is in her artistic practice that her quieter voice emerges.

Here, there are no briefs. No deadlines. Just curiosity and intuition. her fine art photography is driven by exploration — by moments discovered while travelling, walking, observin. It is where she experiements, refines, and responds instinctively to the world around her.