Photographer hopes new Labrador-focused group can highlight northern beauty | CBC News

A photographer in Labrador West has started a new online group in hopes of emphasising the beauty of the mainland part of Newfoundland and Labrador.

Labrador is geographically double the size of Newfoundland, but when it comes to sharing photographs in online Facebook groups, Timothy Collins said, the Big Land is often underrepresented.

“I’m in like 10 or 15 Newfoundland and Labrador photography groups and there’s no pictures of Labrador in there,” Collins said.

Collins said Labrador has more to offer than the simply mining or hydroelectricity, and that’s why he started the Our Bigland group on Facebook, a public group where people can share their Labrador photographs.

“I think they should be out there for everyone to see,” Collins said. “We have so much to see and no one sees it.”

Collins started the Our Bigland group on Facebook in hopes of highlighting Labrador’s natural beauty. (Submitted by Timothy Collins)

There’s no point in taking a beautiful photograph of cabins, fishing, hunting or the northern lights and not sharing it, Collins said. He hopes his group will encourage people to share their work instead of keeping those photographs on their computer or phones.

Collins hopes the group inspires people to share their pictures rather than keeping them on their computers and phones. (Submitted by Timothy Collins)

The group, created in early September, has about 1,700 members.

“Everyone loves Labrador, right? Just hope everyone sees what we have to offer,” Collins said. “Hopefully it just keeps on building … so more people join in and see it.”

Roberta Baikie-Andersen joined as soon as she heard about the group because it’s an opportunity for people outside Labrador to see the region and make it more visible, she said.

“I think people don’t even realize what we have around us and the beauty that’s out there, and it would be so good if we could get our pictures out there,” she said.

Roberta Baikie-Andersen uses the photography group to share photographs of traditional activities with her children. Here her child is picking berries while on the lookout for polar bears. (Roberta Baikie-Andersen/Facebook)

Baikie-Andersen said she’s always photographing her traditional activities and it’s neat to share them with such a wide audience. She said she hopes it inspires others to learn about Labrador.

“Through this online world we can discover other parts of the world that they would be intrigued by and want to visit, hopefully.”