A sepia photo of a man in a hammock with two small children on his lap.

Leslie Adkin

Leslie Adkin was a Horowhenua farmer, noted amateur geologist, and ethnologist. Photography was also a passion of his, and he documented every aspect of his life in diary form and images, from his family to his scientific interests, from the 1910s until the 1950s.

Te Papa holds many of Adkin’s photographs and diaries in its collections – explore some of the collection.

Leslie Adkin: Farmer Photographer

A superb selection of the work of one of New Zealand’s finest early photographers.

Head and shoulders of a man with a white beard and blue eyes who is looking at the camera.

Athol McCredie: Biography and 10 questions about Leslie Adkin: Farmer Photographer

Athol McCredie, author of Leslie Adkin: Farmer Photographer discusses his book with Te Papa Press.

A black and white photo of a man and a woman standing next to a railway track with a tunnel shape framing them.

Leslie Adkin: A man of great adventure

Museum and Heritage Studies student Madi Ojala is a Museum and Heritage Studies discusses Leslie Adkin’s geological excursions and the appeal of working with Adkin’s prints, albums, and diaries.

Sepia photo of a man putting a ring on a woman.

Leslie and Maud: Capturing a love story

A prolific diarist, photographer, farmer, ethnologist, and geologist, Leslie Adkin was also a romantic. Frequently a subject in Adkin’s photographs – either as the central focus or to show scale – his photography often tells the story of his great love of Maud Herd – from their courtship in 1910 to old age.

A lot of people in a stadium field waving as a motorcade passes by

Leslie Adkin on Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation and visit to New Zealand 1953–54

View excerpts from Leslie Adkins’ diaries – and photographs – documenting Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation celebrations in Aotearoa New Zealand, and the royal tour of 1953–54.

A black and white photo of four men outside a house. One of them is sitting in a tall chair and being shaved by another man.

Leslie Adkin’s excursion to Kāpiti Island

As part of her internship, Art History student Annie Barnard worked with some of the diaries and photographs from our Leslie Adkins collection. Here she talks about a trip to Kapiti Island that he documented.

Black and white photo of five men in jackets and hats with hiking gear on their backs. They are all looking at the camera.

Making matches: Reconnecting Leslie Adkin photographs

Danielle Campbell, a Museum and Heritage Studies student at Victoria University, discusses her three favourite Leslie Adkin photographs that she came across during her summer internship at Te Papa.

Two women in formal coats and hats stand for a photo in a field covered in snow, beside a fence

Jigsaw: Deep snow and vestiges of the former forest

Deep snow and vestiges of the former forest, 2 August 1936, by Leslie Adkin. Gift of G. L. Adkin family estate, 1964. Te Papa (A.007126)

Several men are sitting on horses in a sepia photo.

For family or for Empire? The risks of staying home during war

We acknowledge the military service of the New Zealand troops who fought in and died during the devastating Battle of Passchendaele. However, in this blog, history curator Kirstie Ross considers other notions of duty and service that many men, like Levin farmer Leslie Adkin, had to weigh up in the face of the demands being made on them to serve as soldiers.

Six people stand on the side of a mountain looking at the view

Jigsaw: Tongariro National Park 1925

Tongariro National Park, August 1925, by Leslie Adkin. Te Papa (B.022470)