A favorite son of New Zealand, photographer Derek Henderson has been at the pinnacle of his industry for decades, first in fashion photography and, more recently, engaged in personal and fine art projects. Henderson shared with us some of his favorite images of the people and places of his homeland.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

DP: Let’s start with New Zealand. When did you leave?

In 1987. Since I left, the country has grown. It’s like the saying, “The more time you spend away, the more you have a bit of a love affair with home.” Maybe you see it with rose-tinted glasses — and it isn’t without its problems, of course — but I do now pine for New Zealand. Living in Sydney and going back and forth six or so times a year for a long time, it has just gotten better and better. When I left, I was like, “What a shithole. Nothing is happening here. No art. It’s just sheep and rugby.” All of that, which wasn’t necessarily true by any means, but when you’re young, you just want to travel. But with the world becoming a smaller place with the Internet, I think probably now people look at it and think it’s one of the best places in the world to live.

DP: Where are some places in New Zealand that can’t be missed?

If you really want to see the real New Zealand — or at least the part I love, then head to the East Cape of the North Island. You can drive from Gisborne, and you want to take three or four days to do it. There are incredible empty beaches for miles upon miles; you can just rip all of your clothes off and run into the water. If you keep going around the cape, you end up on the other side, where there are a lot of little bed-and-breakfasts on the beach run by locals. The Māori population there is really big. It's fantastic: You can go fishing, you can go camping. It's unbelievable and untouched. If you go to the very top of the North Island, the scenery up there is wonderful, and you can see where the two seas of two different colors actually meet and form a kind of wave. And it's very spiritual for the Māori people. It's where they say the spirit’s leading to go back to Hawaii.

DP: I want to ask you about taking that now famous picture of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. There are two, dare I say, iconic images of her, that is one of them. Tell us about that day and how it all happened.

The portrait of Jacinda Ardern was commissioned by American Vogue and Anna Wintour. It was early days, and [Ardern] had just become prime minister; it was shockingly easy to organize, and she was so relaxed and at ease. The security guy was incredibly friendly and casual and didn’t walk around with guns, which really struck me. We were waiting and a bit nervous, and I was thinking, “Don't fuck this up.” Next thing you know, she just turned up, driving her station wagon, hopped out in a summer dress, looked around and said, “Hi, you must be the photographer.”