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Mike Aamodt
Biography
BiographyCharles Michael Aamodt, known as Mike, began his working life as a technician at Wallaceville Animal Research.
He then joined B P Oil as a petroleum chemist, and when he retired after 30 years he was their Marine manager.
He joined the Fire service as a volunteer in 1962, and left in the early 1970s when he went overseas. One of the less pleasant parts of that service was cleaning up the mess after sprinkler heads were hit by forklifts and broken in 'hot box' rooms where carbon black was stored in the Dunlop tyre factory; maybe every five or six months.
The October 11, 1993 'Leader' pictured him with a picture of women surrounded by clay pots in a Seoul, Korea market; it had won him the Ronald Woolf Memorial Trust's annual 'Images of Women' award. (Ronald Woolf was the founder of a long-established Wellington studio, now Photography by Woolf Ltd.)
The October 1, 2003 'Leader' printed a picture of him in the regalia of president of the Wellington Provincial Fire Brigades' Association; it mentioned that when Mike had first joined in 1962, the chief would not issue him jackboots for six months, as he might not stay. He had progressed to officer in charge of the Fire Police before he retired, and then rejoined the Upper Hutt brigade as a non-operational member. He was field secretary of the Hutt Wellington Kapiti sub-association for many years, and then elected to the provincial association, becoming president in 2003.
The May 8, 1996 'leader' printed a picture of him; the Community Gallery was to hold an exhibition of his prints of waterfalls and bush scenes from the Marlborough Sounds, and landscapes and bush from the Wellington region. A number of the images came rom a photo course he had been tutoring at Endeavour Inlet, in the Sounds. The article also mentioned that he was a trustee of the New Zealand Centre for Photography, being a founding member with Brian Enting and Brian Brake (both deceased).
Around 1996 he was commissioned by McCulloch, Clark & Co, accountants, to take a series of photos of Main Street, similar to those taken by Leo Morel early in 1948, covering all buildings on both sides; they were to be used in an exhibition celebrating the company's fiftieth anniversary.
He covered the south side in January 1997 and the north side in January 1998; he chose days without direct sunlight, and with little or no traffic.
Small-format proof prints were found by the city council and passed to the library archives, and have been scanned for Recollect.
The 'Leader' picture was taken for an exhibition of his prints taken in Asia; from conversation in January 2016 he is a well-established photographer, still involved in exhibition work.
He then joined B P Oil as a petroleum chemist, and when he retired after 30 years he was their Marine manager.
He joined the Fire service as a volunteer in 1962, and left in the early 1970s when he went overseas. One of the less pleasant parts of that service was cleaning up the mess after sprinkler heads were hit by forklifts and broken in 'hot box' rooms where carbon black was stored in the Dunlop tyre factory; maybe every five or six months.
The October 11, 1993 'Leader' pictured him with a picture of women surrounded by clay pots in a Seoul, Korea market; it had won him the Ronald Woolf Memorial Trust's annual 'Images of Women' award. (Ronald Woolf was the founder of a long-established Wellington studio, now Photography by Woolf Ltd.)
The October 1, 2003 'Leader' printed a picture of him in the regalia of president of the Wellington Provincial Fire Brigades' Association; it mentioned that when Mike had first joined in 1962, the chief would not issue him jackboots for six months, as he might not stay. He had progressed to officer in charge of the Fire Police before he retired, and then rejoined the Upper Hutt brigade as a non-operational member. He was field secretary of the Hutt Wellington Kapiti sub-association for many years, and then elected to the provincial association, becoming president in 2003.
The May 8, 1996 'leader' printed a picture of him; the Community Gallery was to hold an exhibition of his prints of waterfalls and bush scenes from the Marlborough Sounds, and landscapes and bush from the Wellington region. A number of the images came rom a photo course he had been tutoring at Endeavour Inlet, in the Sounds. The article also mentioned that he was a trustee of the New Zealand Centre for Photography, being a founding member with Brian Enting and Brian Brake (both deceased).
Around 1996 he was commissioned by McCulloch, Clark & Co, accountants, to take a series of photos of Main Street, similar to those taken by Leo Morel early in 1948, covering all buildings on both sides; they were to be used in an exhibition celebrating the company's fiftieth anniversary.
He covered the south side in January 1997 and the north side in January 1998; he chose days without direct sunlight, and with little or no traffic.
Small-format proof prints were found by the city council and passed to the library archives, and have been scanned for Recollect.
The 'Leader' picture was taken for an exhibition of his prints taken in Asia; from conversation in January 2016 he is a well-established photographer, still involved in exhibition work.
Photos
Archive
Details
Date of Birth1943SexMale
SexMaleMarriage
WifeColleen Margaret Aamodt
Mike Aamodt. Upper Hutt City Library, accessed 19/03/2026, https://uhcl.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/24904