Get your asses out of bed and come and join us for a sunrise shoot on the southern end of the Gold Coast, the last Veterans Instameet for 2024. 

Who Are We?!

We are a veterans photography group called the Veterans Instameet. Initially set up in 2014 by myself, Mathew Bell, a former grunt and an ex-engineer, Warrick Eady. We had both just come back from service in Afghanistan and found common ground through photography. After discharge we both felt completely disconnected from the defence community and found there was no photography outlets or groups veteran based. We felt that having this shared interest, we could get other like minded veterans together with photography as the basis and have fun and keep the connections to members post discharge. We soon expanded the group to include families of defence members and then the emergency services. We welcomed Andrew Judson on as one of the event volunteers, with his 10 years in defence, a background in personal training and a budding outdoorsman to boot he has been a regular at the past events and is always good for a chat and laugh.

We have since run 38 events in and around Sydney, Canberra and the Gold Coast.

We are comprised of former ADF members, current serving members, children of veterans, the emergency services, SES and a number of non serving civilians who support us and what we've been through.

Please Note:

As most of the events are outdoors, there is always a physical element. Most events require a walk from the carpark to the area of interest or a more strenuous trek. The majority of events are mobile, meaning we're constantly on the move while shooting. The important aspect to us is the psychological well being that comes from a day. The aim is for everyone to have fun and make connections to other people with shared backgrounds. Photography is in the background most of the time, we have the aim for everyone to chat, laugh and shoot photos. 

Each event carries risk and by registering and attending the event, each participant agrees to take responsibility for their own safety. Safety is everyone's responsibility and if in doubt, or if anyone feels unsafe it is the individual’s responsibility to sit out the event or highlight it to the other members.  Each participant assumes all risk associated with any activity whilst with the Veterans Instameet. Each participant assumes full responsibility for themselves, their choices, their actions and their equipment. 

We are teaming up with the Saltwater Veterans crew along with the Yarramundi Veterans Shed to take part in the 2024 Veterans Health Week. This years theme is Keep Connected. We feel that there is nothing like a good campfire to keep us connected. Our Instameet will see us camping out overnight next to the Nepean River, open fire and all. 

We will be meeting at the Yarramundi Veterans Shed at 4:00pm where we will get set up for the evenings camp out. We will have the opportunity to search the bushland for firewood and work as teams to bring enough back to fuel our fire for the night. Our dear friends at On Track Meals have generously offered to give us a 15% discount on their meals. Jump onto their website by clicking the link below, choose your meal and at checkout apply the code "ONTRACKVETERANS" 

As the sunsets, we are hoping the weather gods are on our side and provide a clear evening so we can do some astro photography. Being at the base of the Blue Mountains the conditions for some incredible star photography is pretty good, though if the weather isn't on our side, we'll revert to portraits and long exposures using the light from the fire. 

The following day, Rick from the Yarramundi Veterans Shed has arranged for a bunch of on water actives for us including kayaking, stand up paddle boarding and fishing. The Saltwater Veterans will be there to support these activities all be it, in fresh water.

We encourage everyone to bring along a tent, hootchie or bivvie bag for the overnight camping. Be sure to wear sturdy footwear, bring plenty of water and some snacks to get you though the day and brekkie the next morning. We still strongly encourage wearing appropriate footwear and bringing some wet weather gear in case of rain.

Registrations via the link below are a MUST for all wanting to participate.

We have a bunch of giveaways up for grabs thanks to the teams at Tactical Recovery & Young Veterans.

If you can't make it along, please SHARE this event with any Veterans you know that are into photography and camping, word of mouth is our best tool in spreading our reach and growing the community.

We have three cameras available to anyone who wishes to try their hand at photography but doesn't want to commit to buying their own gear. If you'd like to borrow the cameras and tripods please let me know beforehand so I can ensure there are there on the day.

Let us know if you have any questions or queries.

Mathew Bell - 0409 241 419

Location:
Yarramundi is located south west of Richmond, NSW, minutes drive from Manly.
If you type into your GPS 255 Springwood Road, Yarramundi NSW 2753, then follow the driveway down toward the shed and the river, you'll find the parking lot. Our campsite is only a 50m walk and there are toilets and a shower on the site.

Our Supporters on the Day!

We have teamed up with a number of veteran owned and supported business who are supporting us on this event:

Who Are We?!

We are a veterans photography group called the Veterans Instameet. Initially set up in 2014 by myself, Mathew Bell, a former grunt and an ex-engineer, Warrick Eady. We had both just come back from service in Afghanistan and found common ground through photography. After discharge we both felt completely disconnected from the defence community and found there was no photography outlets or groups veteran based. We felt that having this shared interest, we could get other like minded veterans together with photography as the basis and have fun and keep the connections to members post discharge. We soon expanded the group to include families of defence members and then the emergency services. We welcomed Andrew Judson on as one of the event volunteers, with his 10 years in defence, a background in personal training and a budding outdoorsman to boot he has been a regular at the past events and is always good for a chat and laugh.

We have since run 38 events in and around Sydney, Canberra and the Gold Coast.

We are comprised of former ADF members, current serving members, children of veterans, the emergency services, SES and a number of non serving civilians who support us and what we've been through.

Please Note:

As most of the events are outdoors, there is always a physical element. Most events require a walk from the carpark to the area of interest or a more strenuous trek. The majority of events are mobile, meaning we're constantly on the move while shooting. The important aspect to us is the psychological well being that comes from a day. The aim is for everyone to have fun and make connections to other people with shared backgrounds. Photography is in the background most of the time, we have the aim for everyone to chat, laugh and shoot photos. 

Each event carries risk and by registering and attending the event, each participant agrees to take responsibility for their own safety. Safety is everyone's responsibility and if in doubt, or if anyone feels unsafe it is the individual’s responsibility to sit out the event or highlight it to the other members.  Each participant assumes all risk associated with any activity whilst with the Veterans Instameet. Each participant assumes full responsibility for themselves, their choices, their actions and their equipment. 

 I can't believe it has been 10 years since Warrick Eady and I decided to get together and create our own little veteran based photography group. It was May 2014 and we'd both recently discharged from the Army and had our shared passion for photography. Looking around Sydney there were no veteran support networks that offered photography, so we decided to set up our own. 

Veterans Instameet #1 saw Warrick and I at Bondi, we put out the word via our small social page (less than 100 followers) and had one other attendee, a Brazilian bloke who hadn't served. The Veterans Instameet has since grown into the community we have around us now, 41 past instameets across three states, two virtual instameets and a huge support network stretched around the nation.

I am deeply grateful for everyone who has supported this little Veteran support organisation over the years. A big thanks goes to Andrew 'Juddo' Judson for stepping up once Warrick left to help me running the events themselves. To all those who have attended events, those that have purchased our merch and donated to funding, even to those who are always liking and sharing our posts on social media, I say thank you!

To celebrate, we're getting together for a few drinks and dinner on Sunday 19th May 2024 from 5:30pm at the Pyrmont Bridge Hotel.

It is going to be a chilled out evening, order your own food and drinks, we didn't want to go through the pain in the ass of setting up anything formal. We'll have our own space reserved, so you're more than welcome to just drop in and say HI, or hang around all night. All we ask is you register so we have an indication of numbers.

We will be drawing the winner of our 10th Birthday raffle on the night too, so be sure to get your donation in via our PayPal account, click here.

Our Veterans Instameets have always been and will continue to be free of charge, though participation via contribution is encouraged. We don't ask for a huge donation, though each event is costing us money through insurances etc. We wish to continue to build a kitty to help us purchase more gear and fund events in the future. To donate to our PayPal account, click here.

Let me know if you have any questions or queries.

Mathew Bell - 0409 241 419

Location:

We will be meeting at the Pyrmont Bridge Hotel, 96 Union St, Pyrmont NSW 2009 at 5:30pm. 

We have teamed up with some of our long term supporters in a raffle to raise funds for future events and more gear to support our crew. Each dollar donated to our PayPal account puts you into the draw to win an amazing prize pack from these champions: