Dunedin public libraries digital outreach co-ordinator Jill Bowie does it in her spare time, but the hobby has also become part of her work.
She became digital outreach co-ordinator in 2019 and among her initial tasks was assisting with the "Scattered Seeds – He Purapura Marara" digital archive, which covers photos from a range of events in the city.
It included a treasure trove of photos of various protests taken by Dunedin man Paul S. Allen.
"He was really good at taking photographs of protests and significant events throughout the city over many years.
"It was all sorts of actions. He was there for the Keep Our Assets rally, protests against synthetic cannabis, the rally for keeping the neurosurgery department in Dunedin ... these were things that could have been forgotten about if they weren't documented."
Ms Bowie was similarly inspired, and started with events such as the School Strike for Climate Rally in 2019.
"I think you see a lot of very young, passionate people in Dunedin.
"Things changed during the pandemic, as people were not able to go out in large groups, and you still see remnants of the pandemic with some protesters wearing masks."
Ms Bowie gets her information from posters and public notices, as well as stories in the newspaper, in order to find out where protests are happening, and when.
She has taken photos of every single March for Palestine since October, restore passenger rail protests, the Groundswell "Howl of a Protest", and teachers’ strikes, among others.
"I like taking photos of crowds, rather than individuals, which give you a sense of the size of the protests.
"But you do see certain people come up regularly; there is a passionate community out there."
She said her photography "sort of bled in" to her work as a digital outreach co-ordinator.
"I'm doing this because I enjoy it, but there is some overlap from an archival perspective.
"Everyone has cameras in their phones these days, and they put up all their photos on social media, but there is real risk they will be lost as social media changes.
"It’s important that we have them stored somewhere that is safe."
She encouraged people to contact her if they felt they had interesting photos they could share.
Asked whether she was a protester back in the day, she said she was "too much of a goody-good" for that.
"But I do find it fascinating. By taking these photographs, you are documenting change.
"People think of archives as something old, but there is something really living in them, too."
