Aunty Barbara McGrady has been behind a lens documenting Indigenous events, stories and moments in history for 50 years.
The Gomeroi/Gamilaraay woman started taking photographs on a camera given to her by her mother when she was 15 years old.
Her work over the decades is now on display at Campbelltown Arts Centre, in a major solo exhibition, 'Ngiyaningy Maran Yaliwaunga Ngaara-li' (Our ancestors are always watching).
"This collection being shown, especially during NAIDOC Week, will put our stories out there in a big way because it's a mixture of a bit of everything that we are as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people," McGrady told AAP.
"Our stories, our history is out there for everyone to see."
McGrady was born in the town of Mungindi, on the border of NSW and Queensland, and growing up she recognised the power of images from an early age.
Her work is inspired by connection to Country and community, focusing on First Nations beauty, strength, resilience and excellence.
To her, this year's NAIDOC theme, 'Keep the fire burning! Blak, loud and proud', is an extension of how she has lived her life.
"Being Blak, loud and proud has always been my theme," she said.
"I've carried that on the way I've always done, to put out our stories, our photographs, to let people know who and what we are as people from the oldest continuous culture."
At the centre of the exhibition of McGrady's work is a large-scale film installation, created in collaboration with artist John Janson-Moore.
Delving into the archive of her work, she calls the installation "a kaleidoscopic compendium of Aboriginal contemporary history".
After 50 years of documenting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people - from elders to youth, creatives, activists and cultural warriors there are a few photographs that stand out to McGrady.
Among her favourites are photographs of sporting events and portraits of prominent Indigenous figures like activist Gary Foley, and actress Rosalie Kunoth-Monks.
"That's one of my favourites because I remember [Kunoth-Monks] in the movie Jedda in the 1950s," McGrady said.
"I remember as a child in my little hometown sitting in the picture theatre watching that movie when I was a young girl."
'Ngiyaningy Maran Yaliwaunga Ngaara-li' (Our ancestors are always watching) is on display at Campbelltown Arts Centre until October 13.
